Existing fire-protection regulations for cargo airplanes are inadequate, and action is needed to improve the detection and suppression of blazes in cargo containers, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) says.
The agency cited information gathered in its recent cargo container fire study and the investigations of three in-flight cargo airplane fires — a February 2006 fire on a United Parcel Service (UPS) McDonnell Douglas DC-8-71F; the fatal September 2010 crash of a UPS Boeing 747-400F; and the fatal July 2011 crash of an Asiana Cargo 747-400F (“In-Flight Fires”) — in issuing three safety recommendations in late November to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
“These fires quickly grew out of control, leaving the crew with little time to get the aircraft on the ground,” NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman said. “Detection, suppression and containment systems can give crews more time and more options. The current approach is not safe enough….
