Aviation route doses calculated with EPCARD.Net and JISCARD EX

Cosmic particle flux is significantly higher onboard aircraft than at ground level and for this reason the aircraft crews in the European Union and Japan have been recognized as occupationally exposed workers. Since the radiation field at aviation altitude is very complex in terms of particle composition and particle energies, the dose assessment is a very difficult task. The dose is usually estimated using numerical codes validated by experimental data. In this paper, a comparison of two codes is presented, EPCARD.Net and JISCARD EX. Doses due to the Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs) are provided for periods close to solar maximum and minimum and for selected 68 flights covering major commercial routes in the world. The overall agreement between the codes is much better than ±20%. The agreement within the codes is considered to be fully satisfactory for radiation protection purposes.