November 2018
01 November - Frontier Airlines
Airbus A321-200
Registration: N702FR Flight Number: F9-1851
Islip NY/Myrtle Beach
Fumes in Cockpit - Returned to Islip.
Source: www.avherald.com
11 November - Air France
Boeing 777-300
Registration: F-G8QC Flight Number: AF 116
Paris CDG/Shanghai Pudong
Smell of smoke in Crew rest area and light smoke visible
Diverted to Irkutsk (Russia).
Source: www.avherald.com
14 November - Endeavor Air (From 12 October 2018)
Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines
Registration: N8847A Flight Number: 9E-5370/DL5370
Columbus/Atlanta
Smoke onboard.
Source: www.avherald.com
16 November - WestJet
Boeing 737-600
Registration: C-GWCY Flight Number: WS 137
Calgary/Vancouver
Sulphur like smell detected in the cabin
Source: www.avherald.com
18 November - Austrian Airlines
Airbus A321-100
Registration: OE-LBC Flight Number: OS 125
Vienna/Frankfurt
Strong odour in cockpit followed by acrid odour and smoke in cabin.
Returned to Vienna.
Source: www.avherald.com
28 November - Nordic Regional
Embraer ERJ-190 on behalf of Finnair
Registration: OH-LKE Flight Number: AY 865
Helsinki/Gothenburg
Smell of smoke in the cabin. Diverted to Turku (Finland). Emergency evacuation via slides. No trace of fire, heat or smoke found by emergency services.
The source of the smoke was identified on 4th December 2018 as ‘malfunctioning air conditioning system’.
Source: www.avherald.com
December 2018
02 December - Lufthansa
Airbus A319-100
Registration: D-AIBG Flight Number: LH2023
Dusseldorf/Munich
Bad ‘Odour’ in Cockpit and cabin.
Source: www.avherald.com
03 December - JetBlue
Airbus A320-200
Registration: N648JB Flight Number: B6-2828
Orlando/Newark
Flight crew advised a medical emergency but later advised they had a Fume Event.
Source: www.avherald.com
04 December - Joon
Airbus A340-300 on behalf of Air France
Registration: F-GLZN Flight Number: AF 218
Paris CDG/Mumbai
Smoke in cabin. Diverted to Kuwait.
Source: www.avherald.com
05 December - EasyJet
Aircraft Unknown
Registration: Unknown Flight Number: EZY7123
Liverpool/Alicante
Smell of smoke in cabin. Diverted to Bristol.
Source: www.visionsafe.com (bristolpost.co.uk)
09 December - British Airways
Airbus A320
Registration: G-EUYP Flight Number: BA 598
London Heathrow/Venice
Crew used smoke hoods. The return flight the following morning was delayed by approximately 4 hours as new crew smoke hoods were required. These were allegedly brought over to Venice on the Gatwick flight that arrived that morning.
Alleged Fume Event
Source: Confidential.
10 December - Indigo
Airbus A320-200N
Registration: VTITR Flight Number:6E-237
Jaipur/Kolkata
Smoke in cockpit and cabin. Aircraft continued to Kolkata and landed safely.
‘A number of passengers opened the aft exists and slid down the evacuation slides, most of the passengers disembarked normally via stairs’.
Source: www.avherald.com
11 December - British Airways
Boeing 777-300
Registration: G-VIIG Flight Number: BA 202
Boston/London Heathrow
Alleged Fume Event - Issue with the APU
Aircraft allegedly put in for engineering inspection and did not fly again until 14 December.
Alleged Fume Event
Source: Confidential
11 December - British Airways
Boeing 777-300
Registration: G-STBE Flight Number: BA 32
Hong Kong/London Heathrow
Some crew allegedly on oxygen.
Alleged Fume Event
Source: Confidential
15 December American Airlines
Airbus A330-200
Registration: N282Y Flight Number: AA 793
Philadelphia/Charlotte
Flight crew on oxygen. Unusual smell in cabin.
Returned to Philadelphia
Source: www.avherald.com
16 December - Spirit Airlines
A320-200
Registration: N653NK Flight Number: NK395
Philadelphia/Las Vegas
Diverted to Denver.
Source: www.avherald.com
17 December - Airline Unknown
Embraer 175
Registration: Unknown Flight Number: Unknown
Louisville (Kentucky)/La Guardia
Diverted to Newark . Smoke in cockpit
Source: www.visionsafe.com
24 December - Air Transat
Boeing 737-800
Registration: C-GZEH Flight Number: TS-41
Paris Orly/Toronto
White smoke appeared in the cockpit prompting the crew to reject take off.
Source: www.avherald.com
26 December - British Airways
Airbus A320-200
Registration: G-GATH Flight Number: BA2578
London Gatwick/Turin
Burning odour in cockpit. Diverted to Paris CDG.
Source: www.avherald.com
27 December - Jet Airways
Aircraft Unknown
Registration: Unknown Flight Number: 9W 713
Bengaluru/Mangaluru
Smoke detected in the airplane while it was readying for departure.
Source: www.visionsafe.com (www.thehindu.com)
Many fume events go unreported for many reasons. The majority of the occurrences listed above have been reported with clarification and evidence from flight recordings. Many aircraft have fume events but there may be no actual evidence on the flight recordings - without ‘evidence/proof beyond doubt’ they cannot be reported for legal reasons - the airlines can take legal action.
The ‘alleged’ fume events we have been informed of (confidentially) have to be thoroughly checked out by various methods before adding them to the list and even then can only remain as ‘alleged’.
Despite airlines declaring that ‘safety is paramount’, ‘safety is their priority’ etc., in regards to Fume Events - it is not something they want discussed. Crew are frightened to talk openly about the issue and they certainly cannot talk publicly - for fear of dismissal.
Many crew are still unaware of the risks of inhaling the fumes via the air conditioning system from aircraft oil, hydraulic fluid and many other toxic sources within their working environment. As for passengers - it is not a requirement for an airline to inform passengers when a Fume Event has occurred.
Until laws are implemented and bleed-air aircraft are fitted with filters and sensors passengers and crew will continue to get sick and premature deaths will continue.
If you missed the BBC World Service programme ‘Aerotoxicity- The Hidden Dangers Of Flying’ on New Years Day this is a link to the programme:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w172w0q34d6cs2y
If you have been involved in a Fume Event onboard an aircraft you can report it confidentially at http://fumes.dallasmcintosh.co.uk
If you are airline crew please, please also report via your airline’s internal reporting system and to your Union (if you are a Union Member). It is important to keep a screenshot or copy for yourself.
If you develop any health issues - document them, keep a record.