A bill has been passed by the European Parliament to regulate the working hours of pilots.

Under the new act, maximum flight time at night is reduced by 45 minutes to 11 hours, with no more than 1,000 flying hours in 12 consecutive months (previously 1,300). The longest combined standby and flight time is now 16 hours - previously it was as high as 28 in some countries.

The motion comes after an earlier vote by the European Transport and Tourism Select Committee saw 20 MEPs vote to reject the plans, compared to just 13 MEPs who supported them.

Issues were originally raised by the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa), who argued the changes could see some crews working longer hours and running the risk of fatigue.

Balpa general secretary Jim McAuslan said: "British pilots want to make every flight a safe flight and are deeply concerned that these unsafe new EU rules will put the lives of passengers at risk."

A poll of 500 pilots by Balpa in September found 56 per cent admitted to falling asleep in the cockpit. In the same month, two pilots said they nodded off during a long haul flight into the UK because they only had five hours rest between work.