Photo as shown in the original article by The Ecologist - Qatar Airways Boeing 777-2DZ(LR) A7-BBF QR921 AKL->DOH dep AKL (At the time of posting, 27.03.18, world's longest commercial flight at 7848 nm / 17 hours).
XPinger (Chris Sutton) / Flickr / Creative Commons 2.0
The Ecologist
Cancer causing aircraft
By Monica Piccinini | 15th February 2024 | Creative Commons 4.0
‘Pilots, cabin crew and passengers are inhaling air that could be tainted with toxic chemicals, often without awareness, impacting their health and the safety of flights.
The world witnessed with shock the alarming Alaska Airlines plane incident involving Flight 1282, a Boeing 737-9 MAX, where a fuselage door plug blew off mid-flight near Portland, Oregon, USA earlier this year.
The disturbing event follows closely after the tragic 2018 and 2019 crashes involving two Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets, claiming the lives of 346 individuals due to flawed flight control systems that caused fatal nosedives.
In the aftermath of these incidents, profound concerns about the overall safety of aircraft have surged, demanding urgent attention and scrutiny. Another worrying and often overlooked matter impacting the safety of our flights involves potential contamination of the air circulating within the cabin and cockpit with toxic chemicals.
Pilots
Jet powered aircraft require the use of synthetic engine oils and hydraulic fluids, which can potentially seep into the air supply in modern aircrafts, except for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The air supply, known as “bleed air”, is drawn unfiltered from the engine or auxiliary power unit (APU), contaminating the aircraft’s internal air with toxic substances.
Inhaling oil and fluids that leak into the aircraft breathing air supply can result in both immediate and prolonged neurological, cardiological and respiratory health issues. This set of symptoms, arising from exposure of toxic air, is referred to ‘aerotoxic syndrome’.
During a June 2022 interview on the Seth Meyers show, actor Miles Teller shared his experience and response after being exposed to toxic fumes in a jet while filming 'Top Gun':
“And so we landed. I’m just like, man, I’m not feeling too good, and I was really hot and I just started itching like crazy, so I get out of the jet and I’m just covered in hives, like head to toe. Instantly, I go to a doctor. I do like a blood analysis, this, that, whatever. I go to the doctor and my bloodwork comes back and I have flame retardant pesticides and jet fuel in my blood.”
Since the 1950s, pilots, cabin crew, and passengers have consistently raised concerns about inadequate cabin air quality and potential contamination of aircraft air supplies. This is typically identified by a peculiar but often subtle 'dirty sock' odour. In instances of severe contamination, visible smoke may be present.
Red Alert
These are often called 'fume events' in the aviation industry. Fume events are highly concerning, as they have the potential to impair or incapacitate pilots and cabin crew during a flight, thereby jeopardising the lives of both the crew and passengers.
The air provided to pilots, crew members, and passengers, originates from the engines. Due to the high temperatures during engine operation, any engine oil leakage has the potential to transform into a mist of chemicals that can be inadvertently inhaled by pilots, crew members, and passengers.’
All rights©️source The Ecologist, author Monica Piccinini
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