American Laptop Fire

I see stories like this and wonder how many are in checked bags. Same goes for us in the cargo world. How much undeclared hazmat are we carrying around. It’s something I don’t think people understand how dangerous it could be. Unfortunately I can see the next big event being a cargo compartment fire.
 
The only saving grace for these occurring, are that a phone or laptop that suffers a thermal runaway of a Li battery, the battery in those is so small, that the actual lithium fire burns for a very short time before the battery itself is off-gassed. What you’re left with is the residual Class A fire…..burning plastic case, maybe some fabric or floor that has caught fire. A residual fire that can be extinguished quickly if tackled quickly. As mentioned, the danger comes with either a ton of Li batteries being carried in heavy cargo that ignite, or even a small number of batteries that ignite and burn for sufficient time to ignite other items around them in a cargo hold or other normally inaccessible area during flight. I agree, we are likely going to see something akin to a UPS 5 accident again.
 
MikeD said:
The only saving grace for these occurring, are that a phone or laptop that suffers a thermal runaway of a Li battery, the battery in those is so small, that the actual lithium fire burns for a very short time before the battery itself is off-gassed. What you’re left with is the residual Class A fire…..burning plastic case, maybe some fabric or floor that has caught fire. A residual fire that can be extinguished quickly if tackled quickly. As mentioned, the danger comes with either a ton of Li batteries being carried in heavy cargo that ignite, or even a small number of batteries that ignite and burn for sufficient time to ignite other items around them in a cargo hold or other normally inaccessible area during flight. I agree, we are likely going to see something akin to a UPS 5 accident again.
Click to expand...
It's my understanding that TSA removes these batteries from checked bags if they show on a scan.
 
arkavgal said:
It's my understanding that TSA removes these batteries from checked bags if they show on a scan.
Click to expand...

Am not sure if that’s what they are looking for necessarily on a scan of checked bags, as the Li battery restriction is an airline/FAA safety prohibition, not necessarily a TSA prohibition. I could be mistaken, but I don’t believe the Li batteries in things like laptops or phones or chargers, are droids they are looking for or would otherwise notice. Now, a large bulk shipment of Li batteries inside checked baggage might get their attention as to what it is.
 
MikeD said:
Am not sure if that’s what they are looking for necessarily on a scan of checked bags, as the Li battery restriction is an airline/FAA safety prohibition, not necessarily a TSA prohibition. I could be mistaken, but I don’t believe the Li batteries in things like laptops or phones or chargers, are droids they are looking for or would otherwise notice. Now, a large bulk shipment of Li batteries inside checked baggage might get their attention as to what it is.
Click to expand...
If they’re nabbing people for drugs, large amounts of cash, or immigration status, but not screening things that are an actual safety hazard to aviation, what is the point of the billions we’re dumping into this supposed “security” agency other than yet another surveillance state and jobs program?
 
Roger Roger said:
If they’re nabbing people for drugs, large amounts of cash, or immigration status, but not screening things that are an actual safety hazard to aviation, what is the point of the billions we’re dumping into this supposed “security” agency other than yet another surveillance state and jobs program?
Click to expand...

they’d have to be then be seizing anything and everything that could potentially have the smallest Li battery then; that’s after identifying it correctly. Who knows, they might already be doing it.

TSA already is a jobs program, has been for awhile. There was nothing wrong with airport security on 9/11. The hijackers didn’t get through security with anything not already allowed in an airliner cabin at the time. Security was not breached in any way, they just capitalized both on the rules at that time, and the cultural norm of how hijackings were dealt with then. There was no need to create the huge agency that TSA is, much less a few more, besides feel-good window dressing. Same with FFDO program, mostly a feel good program.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top