Loose Bolts and Leaking Seals

The quality problems that are rocking Boeing

Boeing is under intense scrutiny after last Friday's (Jan.8, 2024) shocking mishap on Alaska flight 1282. A panel on the plane flew off just a few minutes after takeoff, leaving a gaping hole terrifying passengers and causing (of course) a rapid, explosive decompression during which the cockpit door unexpectedly blew open - more on that one further down.

The crew as per procedure donned their oxygen masks, stopped the climb at about 16,000 ft, and declared emergency reporting depressurization of the aircraft. They initiated an emergency descent to 10,000 ft and returned to Portland for a safe landing on runway 28L about 20 minutes after departure.**

The NTSB revealed Monday evening that Alaska Airlines Flight 1282's flight crew was unaware that the cockpit door is designed to blow open during a cabin decompression.

So Boeing failed to mention that the cockpit door flies open in the event of cabin decompression? What else have they failed to mention in the past?

I can tell you about one: Worries about cabin air quality aka contaminated cabin breathing air.

The contamination of cabin air with toxic vapors introduced via engine or auxiliary power unit bleed air as part of the pressurization, heating, and cooling functions remains a subject they do not wish to discuss. But, those who have been affected in so many ways, will not stop bringing it to the table.

Here’s the email titled “Toxicity?”– but they do not listen to their engineers, not now not then in 2007. The engineer states:

“We are looking for a tombstone before anyone with any horsepower is going to take interest”:

Some Background

Most modern pressurized commercial aircraft use heated air drawn or "bled" from the engines or APU for cabin and cockpit air conditioning. As described by the US Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (CAMI) in a 2015 report, "air is supplied to the cockpit and cabin of a pressurized aircraft through an environmental control system (ECS). Fresh air from outside the aircraft, known as a replacement or make-up air, enters the ECS via the aircraft engines in most large transport category commercial aircraft. The compressed air is then "vented" through ports and cooled before being mixed with recirculated air in a manifold and distributed throughout the cockpit and cabin.

Fume Events

Fume events or ‘Contaminated Air Quality Events’ (CAQE) can occur as a result of the interaction of incoming make-up air and heated oils or hydraulic fluids from leaking or failed engine compartment seals or from leaks around the APU.

The fact is that cabin air quality events do occur and they can cause health problems for passengers and crew, as well as flight safety issues if any of the crew is incapacitated.

In a 2018 paper on "Cabin Fumes," the International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations (IFALPA) said, "When a fume event occurs, cabin air contamination can cause short-term physical effects that may compromise flight safety. There is sufficient scientific concern that further studies are needed to determine the short and long-term effects of smoke exposure".

Although I am tired of quoting specific organizations that continue to turn a blind eye, I will do so anyway for the sake of some balance. However, I will point out that their rhetoric never changes and they always refer to the same ( supported and financed by them) studies.

IATA documentation states that “… while most events do not affect crew or passengers”, "… in some events, crew and/or passengers experience symptoms.“

„Health effects are usually short-lived and resolve within hours to days. They may include irritation of the eyes, nose, mouth or throat, shortness of breath, headache, nausea and abdominal discomfort and fatigue.“

„Some crew members who have been involved in CAQEs have persistent health problems afterward and may associate their symptoms with the exposure, but research to date has not established a cause-and-effect relationship“. (source IATA)

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) states on its website that “… long-term ill health due to a toxic effect of cabin air is unlikely“, although „such a link cannot be ruled out“.

IFALPA writes that „… it is recognized that flight crews are exposed to minimal seal leakage even during normal operations.“

Referring to the „minimal seal leakage“ they imply that the much over-used quote credited to Paracelsus „It is the dose that makes the poison“ is valid, however, it is not valid for modern man-made toxins. Some chemicals are reasonably safe on their own but can become lethal in combination or when changed within the body. “Minimal leakage” can already cause nervous system injury - one shudders to think what a “big leakage” would do.

Findings in aircraft cabin air have come up with 317+ substances – a cocktail of which no one knows what new chemical it could produce, or how toxic or lethal it might be.

Those individuals whose "cumulative dose" (TILT) exceeds a certain threshold may experience symptoms immediately or delayed, from mild to severe. There is a valid concern, that this has cumulative and long-term health effects. Genetic differences in metabolism could also affect how and why individuals react or not.

Photo by brut carniollus on Unsplash

There is a long list of potential long-term health effects including some obvious nervous system reactions to injury: numbness in fingers and limbs, memory and concentration impairment, severe headaches, dizziness, nausea, difficulty breathing, chest pain, skin rashes, weakness, fatigue, and many more. For those who do not know: a headache and dizziness following the breathing in of chemical fumes already is a sign of the entire nervous system/brain reacting to an unwanted intruder.

Our bodies are not designed to metabolize man-made chemicals.

We have countless testimonies and case studies on this subject. Nobody wants to hear it, least of all the aviation industry. In recent months though, success has been achieved in the courts of Law in France/Europe.

In March 2022, legislation known as the ‘Cabin Air Quality Act of 2022’ was introduced in the US Congress. One of the bill's sponsors said at the time that the legislation was designed to protect commercial airline passengers and crew from toxic cabin air. The bill, if passed in its current form, would require pilots, flight attendants, and aircraft maintenance technicians to be trained to identify toxic smoke and fumes; require the FAA to record and monitor reports of smoke or fume events; authorize the FAA to conduct investigations of such events; and direct airlines to install and operate on-board detectors and other air quality monitoring equipment.

I ask again: How safe is flying, when doors fly off brand new planes because the wrong bolts were used or not properly installed, self-opening cockpit doors give the flight crew a scare and distract them, and in previous Boeing cases the plane does what it wants because of faulty sensors and ends up shockingly killing everyone on board because the pilots are unable to do something about it?

One could be a bit cynical and say: At least there's fresh air coming in - if everything is sealed tightly, you're likely to inhale toxic fumes from the engines due to leaking seals.

What do you think?

Much more information on the subject at UNFILTERED where you can find medical information and laboratory protocols, documentaries and videos, testimonies, books, court cases, and general information about the causes of fume events and the health consequences known as AEROTOXIC SYNDROME so many have already suffered from. On this page, you can also find other websites in the U.K., France, Germany, The Netherlands, and the USA and the running petition with over 131,000 signatures to date - Please sign and share it - it could also be you and your health! Many reported fume incidents/accident cases can be found in The Aviation Herald.

** Full report on Alaskan Airlines flight 1282 January 8th, can be found at Aviation Herald.

Were you expecting a paywall? It has never been my style. I have always been on a mission to share my research and knowledge for free.  Still, if you can and want to help and support the upkeep of my websites please support my Substack by pledging. Thank you. If not, that’s OK, instead please share and like my articles.