The Independent Pilots Association, representing more than 3,400 United Parcel Service pilots, has endorsed the "Fatigued Pilot Protection Act" HR 7191, reported the American Journal of Transportation.

The bill, introduced in the US House by Representatives Hillary Scholten of Michigan and Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania, seeks to ensure Federal Aviation Administration flight duty and rest requirements apply equally to cargo and passenger carriers.

IPA President Captain Robert Travis said the legislation closes a dangerous safety gap by ending the "cargo carve out" and restoring Congress's original intent of one level of safety for US aviation. He thanked the lawmakers for addressing the issue.

Both Scholten, a Democrat, and Bresnahan, a Republican, serve on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and its aviation subcommittee. Their bipartisan effort aims to ensure all commercial airline pilots operate under the same fatigue-prevention rules.