In-flight fire explained

In aviation, an in-flight fire is a type of aviation accident where an aircraft catches on fire in-flight. They are considered one of the most dangerous hazards in aviation, with a report from the British Civil Aviation Authority showing that after a fire on an aircraft starts, flight crews only have on average 17 minutes to land their aircraft before it becomes uncontrollable.[1] Between 1981 and 1990, approximately 20% of all fatalities on US airlines were caused by in-flight fires.[2]

Types

Causes and spread

Electrical fires are often the result of rogue sparks or the overheating of electronic components. If there are flammable materials around the source of the fire, an electrical fire can quickly spread. Cockpit fires are often related to electrical fires as there many electrical components inside the cockpit that can produce sparks. If a cockpit fire is not extinguished in time, the smoke and fire on the control surfaces could make controlling the aircraft harder.

Fires in the cabin can be caused by items that the passengers bring on board, like personal electronic devices, lithium batteries, cigarettes, and can be exacerbated by improper waste management. Electrical fires can also occur the cabin area from wires that run through the cabin, like those for in-flight entertainment systems.[7]

Depending on what's inside the cargo hold of an aircraft, a cargo fire can quickly spread. For example, lithium batteries can undergo a process called thermal runaway, where the battery is able to serve as a source of heat, fuel, and an oxidizing agent.[8] [9] Other hazardous cargo include items that can serve as an oxidizing agent, like oxygen bottles and cleaning products.

Engines failures, mainly from loss of engine oil and uncontained engine failures, are the main cause of engine fires. In these scenarios, the excess heat produced could ignite the jet fuel or jet fuel vapors inside the engine.[10]

In cases where a fire burns for a sufficient time, an event called a flashover can occur. A flashover is the near simultaneous ignition of any combustible material within an enclosed area. As more flammable gasses are released when materials burn and the temperature rises, the autoignition temperature is eventually reached, causing the everything in the enclosed space to ignite.[11] Temperatures of flashovers can reach, making them unsurvivable for more than a few seconds.[12]

Prevention

See also: Fire safety. Since 1985, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has mandated more fire-resistant materials to be used in aircraft to lengthen the amount of time until a flashover occurs.[13] A kerosene burner test for aircraft seats is used to validate their resistance to the type of fuel fire most commonly encountered; developments in fire-resistant foam and fire-blocking layers have adding 40 to 60 seconds of time for passengers to escape the aircraft. Since 1986, aircraft cargo compartments have been required to have more fire-resistant lining and in 1998, the compartments were to have fire detection and suppression systems.[14] Halon fire extinguishers, generally using Halon 1301, are used widely throughout the aviation industry because of their high performance to weight ratio.[15] Due to its ozone depleting nature, aviation fire-suppression systems are one of the last remain permitted uses of halon.[16]

Notable examples

EventDateAircraftSiteFatalities/Occupants TypeCauseRef
Swissair Flight 3064 September 1963Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle IIIDürrenäsch, Aargau, Switzerland 80/80Landing-gear fireOverheated tires from excessive breaking[17]
Mohawk Airlines Flight 4023 June 1967BAC 1-11 204AFBlossburg, Pennsylvania, United States34/34Tail section fireComplete valve failure in APU spreading fire to the tail section[18]
Interflug Flight 45017 August 1972Ilyushin Il-62Königs Wusterhausen, Bezirk Potsdam, East Germany156/156Cargo fireHot-air tube leak[19]
Varig Flight 82011 July 1973Boeing 707-320CNear Orly Airport, Île-de-France, France123/134Cabin fireUndetermined, potential electrical fault or lit cigarette
Pakistan International Airlines Flight 74026 November 1979Boeing 707-340CNear Taif, Mecca Province, Saudi Arabia156/156Cabin fireUndermined, potential electrical fault or gasoline leak
Saudia Flight 16319 August 1980Lockheed L-1011-200 TriStarRiyadh International Airport, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia301/301Cargo FireUndetermined[20]
Pilgrim Airlines Flight 45821 February 1982de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin OtterScituate Reservoir, Rhode Island, United States1/12Cockpit fireIgnition of the windshield washer/deicer fluid, exact ignition source undetermined[21]
Air Canada Flight 7972 June 1983McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, Kentucky, United States23/46Cabin fireUndetermined, potential electrical fault[22]
Mexicana de Aviación Flight 94031 March 1986Boeing 727-264Near Maravatío, Michoacán, Mexico167/167Landing-gear fireUnder-inflated and overheated tires being filled with air, chemical reaction
LOT Polish Airlines Flight 50559 May 1987Ilyushin Il-62Kabaty Woods, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland183/183Engine fireDisintegration of engine bearings from improper maintenance
South African Airways Flight 29528 November 1987Boeing 747-244BM CombiIndian Ocean, 225 km NE of Flacq, Mauritius159/159Cargo fireDisputed; undetermined (Official investigation), military fuel (alternate theories)[23] [24]
Nigeria Airways Flight 212011 July 1991Douglas DC-8-61Near King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia261/261Landing-gear fireUnder-inflated and overheated tires bursting on takeoff[25]
Zambia national football team plane crash27 April 1993de Havilland Canada DHC-5D BuffaloGulf of Guinea, near Akanda, Estuaire Province, Gabon30/30Engine fireEngine defects, carbon contamination in gearbox
Baikal Airlines Flight 1303 January 1994Tupolev Tu-154MMamony, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia124/124Engine fireUncontained engine failure from foreign object damage
ValuJet Flight 59211 May 1996McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32Everglades, Florida, United States110/110Cargo fireImproperly packaged oxygen generators activating, excessive heat[26]
FedEx Express Flight 14065 September 1996McDonnell Douglas DC-10Stewart International Airport, New York City, United States0/5Cargo fireUndetermined
Propair Flight 42018 June 1998Fairchild Metroliner SA226Montréal–Mirabel International Airport, Quebec, Canada11/11Landing-gear fireOverheated dragged tires[27]
Swissair Flight 1112 September 1998McDonnell Douglas MD-1110 km SW of Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada229/229Electrical fireFlammable materials around in-flight entertainment wires[28]
Air France Flight 459025 July 2000ConcordeGonesse, Île-de-France, France109/109Fuel tank/Engine fireForeign object damage on landing gear[29]
China Northern Airlines Flight 61367 May 2002McDonnell Douglas MD-82Bohai Bay, near Dalian Zhoushuizi International Airport, Liaoning, China112/112Cabin fire
UPS Airlines Flight 63 September 2010Boeing 747-400FNear Nad Al Sheba, Dubai2/2Cargo fireAutoignition of cargo pallet with lithium batteries[30]
Asiana Airlines Flight 99128 July 2011Boeing 747-400FEast China Sea, W of Jeju City, Jeju Province, South Korea2/2Cargo fireUndetermined[31]
EgyptAir Flight 80419 May 2016Airbus A320-232Mediterranean Sea, N of Alexandria66/66Cockpit fireDisputed; terrorism (Egyptian officials), leaking oxygen tank and cigarette (BEA)

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Fire in the Air . SkyBrary . 2 March 2024.
  2. Web site: Fire Research . Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety . 2 March 2024.
  3. Web site: Passenger Cabin Fire . SkyBrary . 2 March 2024.
  4. Web site: Cargo Fire Safety – Cargo Hazards, Risks, and Mitigations . Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety . 2 March 2024.
  5. Web site: Simon . Jeff . AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE: FIGHTING A COCKPIT FIRE . Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association . 2 March 2024 . 24 February 2020.
  6. Web site: Fire in Flight . Aviation Safety Magazine . Aviation Safety Staff . 2 March 2024 . 29 May 2002.
  7. Web site: Rebekah . How common are commercial airplane fires? . FireSystems.neet . 3 March 2024 . 8 December 2019.
  8. Web site: Hazard: Passenger Baggage . Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety . 3 March 2024.
  9. Web site: What Is Thermal Runaway? . UL Research Institute . 3 March 2024 . 24 August 2021.
  10. Web site: Rossier . Robert N. . AIRCRAFT FIRES . 4 February 2016 . Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association . 3 March 2024.
  11. Web site: Flashover . SkyBrary . 5 March 2024.
  12. Web site: Pennington . Ryan . Three Lessons from the Fire Behavior Lab . Connecticut Fire Academy . 5 March 2024.
  13. Web site: FAA Fact Sheet: Improvements to Aircraft Survivability . Federal Aviation Administration . 5 March 2024.
  14. Web site: Protecting Aircraft and Passengers from Cargo Fires . SkyBrary . Safety First . 5 March 2024.
  15. Web site: Halon Fire Extinguishers . SkyBrary . 5 March 2024.
  16. Web site: What is the Halon fire extinguisher and its use? . 24 October 2023 . Industrial Safety Guide . 5 March 2024.
  17. Web site: Swissair SE-210 Caravelle HB-ICV, accident at Durrenasch. (near Zurich/Kloten Airport), Switzerland on 4 September 1963 . Swiss Accident Investigation Commission . 13 March 2024 . 10 March 1965.
  18. Web site: Aircraft accident report Mohawk Airlines BAC 1-11, N1116J near Blossburg, Pennsylvania June 23, 1967 . . 22 April 2024 . English . 18 April 1968 .
  19. Web site: Denes . Benjamin . Spaeth . Andreas . 13 August 2022 . "Mayday! Kurs 90 Grad, unmöglich Höhe zu halten." . Mayday! Course 90 degrees, impossible to maintain altitude. . 9 March 2024 . Berlin-Brandenburg Broadcasting . de.
  20. Web site: Aircraft Accident Report Saudi Arabian Airlines Lockheed L-1011, HZ -AHK Riyadh, Saudi Arabia August 19th 1980 . Presidency of Civil Aviation . 9 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140101170608/http://lessonslearned.faa.gov/Saudi163/AircraftAccidentReportSAA.pdf . 1 January 2014 . dead.
  21. Web site: Pilgrim Airlines Flight 458, deHavilland DHC-6-100, N127PM, Near Providence, Rhode Island, February 21, 1982 . National Transportation Safety Board . 7 March 2024 . 20 July 1982.
  22. Web site: Aircraft Accident Report: Air Canada Flight 797, McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32, C-FTLU, Greater Cincinnati International Airport, Covington, Kentucky, June 2, 1983 . National Transportation Safety Board . 8 March 2024 . 31 January 1986.
  23. Web site: Report of the Board of Inquiry into the loss of South African Airways Boeing 747-22B Combi Aircraft "Helderberg" in the Indian Ocean on November 28th 1987. 9 March 2024. 3 March 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220303082815/http://caa.co.za/Accidents%20and%20Incidents%20Reports/Final%20Report%20ZS-SAS.pdf. dead.
  24. Web site: Helderberg Conspiracy. PDF. 4 June 2000. Carte Blanche.
  25. Web site: McDonnell-Douglas DC-8-61, C-GMXQ, accident at King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on 11 July 1991 . aviation-safety.net . Presidency of Civil Aviation . 8 March 2024.
  26. Web site: In-Flight Fire and Impact with Terrain, ValuJet Airlines Flight 592, DC-9-32, N904VJ, Everglades, Near Miami, Florida, May 11, 1996 . National Transportation Safety Board . 8 March 2024 . 19 August 1997.
  27. Web site: In-Flight Fire-Landing Gear Well Propair Inc. Swearingen SA226-TC C-GQAL Montréal/Mirabel International Airport, Quebec 18 June 1998 . Transportation Safety Board of Canada . 13 March 2024.
  28. Web site: In-Flight Fire Leading to Collision with Water Swissair Transport Limited McDonnell Douglas MD-11 HB-IWF Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia 5 nm SW 2 September 1998 . Transportation Safety Board of Canada . 13 March 2024 . 27 March 2003.
  29. Web site: Accident on 25 July 2000 at La Patte d'Oie in Gonesse (95) to the Concorde registered F-BTSC operated by Air France . 16 January 2002 . . 22 March 2024.
  30. Web site: Air Accident Investigation Report Uncontained Cargo Fire Leading to Loss of Control Inflight and Uncontrolled Descent Into Terrain Boeing 747-44AF N571UP Dubai United Arab Emirates 03 September 2010 . General Civil Aviation Authority . 8 March 2024 . 24 July 2013.
  31. Crash Into The Sea After An In-Flight Fire, Asiana Airlines, Boeing 747-400F, HL7604, International Waters 130 km West Of Jeju International Airport, 28 July 2011 . 24 July 2015 . . skybrary.aero . 22 March 2024.