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1990s. Gulf War military personnel were also exposed to OPs and became mysteriously ill. It is known that chronic exposure to OPs can go on to change personalities and character, affect relationships and moods, and devastate lives. Does any of this sound familiar? of fume events are reported; pilots hate extra paperwork. University College London calculated in 2006 that 196,000 UK passengers are exposed to toxic gas each year. These people present their symptoms to their GPs, who have no pigeonhole for OP poisoning. Why? The UK government decreed years ago that it is all just too difficult, and does not even mention the possibility to doctors who are frequently presented with evidence from their patients and the Internet telling a different atae: How many passengers are aware of OPs—especially The UK government decreed years ago that it is all just ricresyl phosphate, or TCP—being in the engine oil of too difficult, and does not even mention the possibility passenger jets? Well, if the oil stayed in the engines to doctors who are frequently presented with evidence ere wouldn't be a problem, but all too often OPs end from their patients and the Internet telling a different up in the brains of aircrew and passengers. story. Is there a problem? Well, some aircraft are more Meanwhile, the UK government thinks that fume events prone to a “fume event"—when the air and oil mix— happen in one in 2,000 flights (although the UK an others, and the BAe 146 is by far Committee on Toxicity reckons it's one e worst offender, closely followed by in 100 flights from pilot reports). Tha e Boeing 757, but really any Airbus, doesn't sound too bad, except tha Boeing. Embraer and rok er jet can It must be known wit 1 200,000 rights in tota annually and does suffer from this basic design . is is ights per year. e aw. that breathing any numbers are almost immaterial. ny oe . : som ten tune eens tree? | visible oil fumes," hat ne ves cn ad are two sides to the argument, but is likely to be than anybody can imagine. As a only one can be right. Members of the comparison, how many airliners end public are stuck in the middle, amazed extremely up landing in the water? Well, the at the genuinely "safe" reputation of hazardous due to answer is two survivable accidents in lying but maybe having the sneaking . around 50 years, and yet every suspicion that their "jet lag" is not the concentration passenger has an expensive life-jacke entirely due to changing time of chemicals, and under their seat (even for flights zones, for it can kick in badly a . over land), just in case. ew days after a fume-event flight. many aircrew have Many pilots know that minor become seriously Fumes and filters ume events happen on each and g Would a passenger recognise a every flight. ill from repeatedly fume event? What are the tell- On a BAe 146, there is a small breathing these tale signs? auxiliary power unit (APU) jet In aviation, there are many engine at the rear of the aircraft fumes... different smells. Jet exhaus fumes on the ground from an aircraft taxiing ahead is a classic example of fuel fumes, but not oi which is used primarily on the ground to provide electrical power and warm or cool air in the cabin. Often when this small jet fumes. There are oven fumes engine is started from cold, the from when ovens get too hot. whole aircraft fills with a visible blue haze of oil fumes There are electric fumes when electrical components ge’ which lasts for around 10 minutes. oo hot and melt. Then there are oil fumes from the Breathing organophosphate fumes in a confined bleed-air lines. space is arguably much more hazardous than breathing Most people would imagine that the oil components in tobacco smoke, and scientists agree that a cocktail o would be filtered out, but the incredible fact is tha chemicals working together synergistically is collectively bleed-air lines are not filtered—except, as one lawyer many times more dangerous than any chemical in as darkly noted, by the passengers’ lungs. isolation. There are filters in the actual aircraft, but not in the The UK Mandatory Occurrence Reporting Scheme for _ bleed-air lines. The aircraft manufacturers helpfully pu June and July 2009 shows a fume event being recorded hese filters inside the aircraft to filter the air, but only on average every second day. A quick calculation shows he air which is already in the aircraft. that 180 fume events multiplied by the number o Oil fumes have been described as smelling like "a we passengers—on average, 100 per flight—and dog", "the inside of trainers" or "vomit". The fumes can immediately one has 18,000 passengers per year being _ also be visible and are often reported in aircraft such as exposed to toxic chemicals. he BAe 146 as a visible blue haze. It has been suggested that only around four per cen It must be known that breathing any visible oil fumes that breathing any visible oil fumes extremely hazardous due to of chemicals, and many aircrew have become seriously ill from repeatedly breathing these fumes... NEXUS ¢ 19 It must be known is likely to be the concentration FEBRUARY - MARCH 2010 www.nexusmagazine.com