Pilots and cabin crews of Japanese airlines urged the government Friday to protect them from exposure to high-altitude cosmic radiation.
The Airline Pilots Association of Japan and the cabin crew association presented the request to science minister Takeo Kawamura.
The atmosphere protects people on the ground from cosmic radiation.
The request says other countries are taking or have taken legal steps to protect air crews since a report by the independent International Commission on Radiological Protection in 1990 recognized air crews' exposure to such radiation.
In 1998, the Radiation Council, an advisory panel to the central government, said air crews "could be exposed to cosmic radiation higher than the exposure limit of 1 millisievert (per year) for the general public."
The associations requested that radiation exposure be measured for air crew members and flight time and routes be regulated if crew members are found to have been exposed to a certain level.
They said Japanese airlines operate considerably more long-haul flights, such as those to Europe and the U.S. East Coast. This exposes crews to higher doses of cosmic radiation than those working for airlines flying lesser distances.