Safety Topics: Passenger Survivability in Aircraft Fires

Abstract

AS readers of ‘Aircraft Engineering’ will be aware there has been a considerable amount of discussion, criticism of decisions and controversey over means to improve passenger survivability. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has published a review of those improvements that relate specifically to aircraft fires. In particular and although the House of Commons Transport Committee recommended the mandatory carriage of the best smoke hoods currently available, the CAA feels that it is an unnacceptable safety risk and will not require their provision. On the subject of water sprays, the Authority considers that serious consideration should now be given to introducing regulations requiring the installation of such systems in large transport aircraft. These two issues are among a number discussed in the report but are those which have attracted the most publicity.

Citation

Mayday (1991), "Safety Topics: Passenger Survivability in Aircraft Fires", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 63 No. 6, pp. 24-25. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb037116