From “Pilot’s Salt” to Modafinil: The Evolution of Wakefulness Aids in Aviation

The “interesting” tablets were discovered in the pocket of a Nazi pilot after his plane was shot down over Britain during World War II – alongside remnants of his stash of methamphetamine.

At that time, this was the preferred aid for exhausted pilots, known as “Pilot’s Salt.”

Those drugs were immediately shipped for testing, and soon the British were working on creating their own version. The stimulant was widely distributed, leading to hundreds of nighttime missions across Europe, but this was just the beginning.

The drug dextroamphetamine became prevalent again during the Gulf War in 1990-1991, as the majority of participating fighter pilots consumed it during the initial airstrikes on Iraqi forces in Kuwait.

Today, these pills are still in use by American military aircraft crews, as they address the same issue: pilot fatigue, which can creep up during long missions and endanger their safety.

However, amphetamines can lead to addiction to a significant degree, and even in the 1940s, their misuse was widespread. Therefore, in recent years, military organizations have been seeking alternative options.

Modafinil was introduced, originally developed in the 1970s to treat narcolepsy and excessive daytime sleepiness.

It didn’t take long for people to discover that while the drug could help prevent sleep, it could also have negative effects.

The drug has been shown to improve spatial planning, pattern recognition, memory, as well as enhance overall cognitive performance and alertness in cases of extreme fatigue.

Modafinil has its downsides, which may include side effects like sweating, severe headaches, and even hallucinations.

Despite these risks, it can be helpful in certain conditions for those who need to stay awake. In one early study, the drug kept people alert for up to 64 hours of activity, with its effects compared to drinking 20 cups of coffee.

How does the sedative drug work? And why is it used?

In the world of fighter pilots, there are two types of drugs: stimulant pills and banned pills.

The former are stimulants, increasing central nervous system activity – one of the reasons why amphetamines are sometimes referred to as “speed.”

As for the banned pills, they are inhibitors that slow down the transmission of messages between the brain and the body.

In situations where timing of wakefulness and sleep is crucial, air forces sometimes use these medications to “cooperate” with the body.

Modafinil is widely available and has been approved for use by air forces in Singapore, India, France, the Netherlands, and the United States.

Meanwhile, an investigation by The Guardian in the UK revealed that the Ministry of Defence purchased a large quantity of this drug before the start of the war in Afghanistan in 2001, with another order placed in 2002 before the invasion of Iraq. However, despite a defense research agency conducting trials on the pills, they were not used on fighters.

While flying in the sky, fighter pilots often have only a few seconds to monitor the surrounding areas and determine how to respond to threats, so fatigue can be deadly.

But the strange thing is that intensive flights involving wars or dangerous maneuvers are not the only ones where pilots suffer from sleep deprivation – in fact, routine flights have their own challenges.

Yara Vengilar-Jagt, head of aerospace medicine at the Dutch Ministry of Defense in Soesterberg, said in a BBC report, “If you’re only observing, five hours will feel much longer than it does during a combat mission.”

In fast-paced situations, the body produces a special stimulant – adrenaline – which increases alertness and reduces fatigue – at least in the short term. On the other hand, “boring” tasks can lead to fatigue.

This issue was raised after pilots slept on a domestic flight operated by a local airline in Indonesia from Southeast Sulawesi to Jakarta.