"AIR CONTAMINATION RISK" ON BRUM FLIGHTS

22-10-2007

Two air stewardesses collapsed on a flight from Birmingham to Belfast after being overcome by noxious fumes earlier this year - and that was just one of ten so called "fuming" incidents on Flybe flights in the last 15 months according to a BBC Five Live documentary presented by Stirrer editor Adrian Goldberg.

The programme, broadcast yesterday, was investigating allegations that the air supply on planes is contaminated, causing occasional sickness to passengers but posing a long-term health risk to pilots and cabin crew.

Although there's a potential risk on all planes, airline insiders pointed the finger at the British Aerospace 146, which is mainly used on domestic routes, and was associated with all of the problematic Flybe flights. We heard from staff who said that, if asked, they would refuse to fly the plane.

In another disturbing incident, a trip from Birmingham to Belfast was aborted after just fifteen minutes when the pilot felt sick - again, apparently the victim of leaking gases.

The air supply on all commercial aircraft is fed through the engine, cooled down and then recycled into the cabins. Critics say that, as a result, those on board can inhale fumes poisoned with engine oil.

As well as serious one-off "fuming" incidents, it's argued by groups like the Aerotoxic Association (http://www.aerotoxic.org/) that exposure to low-level contamination over a lengthy period can cause sickness among staff.

Last month's report for the government by the Commission on Toxicity was inconclusive, however, and the Department for Transport has now pledged to start monitoring air quality on planes.

Flybe insist that their aircraft are maintained to the highest industry standards, and say that although they are withdrawing the 146 from service next February, it's a purely commercial decision.

British Aerospace insist that the air quality on the 146 is better than that on most planes and that there's no issue of a long-term contamination risk.

(To see Adrian Goldberg's online report for the BBC click here )