Ozone Concentration & Flight Planning

bafanguy

Well-Known Member
Ran across the article below about a recent USAir incident where the FAs got sick in flight but no one else on board had any symptoms. The cause hasn't been determined yet and we may never hear anything more from it but it jogged my memory of something I THINK I remember from many years ago.

"Nine flight attendants aboard US Airways Flight 715 complained of "nausea, running eyes and dizziness…"

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/10/travel/us-airways-flight-crew-iilness/index.html

When I looked into ozone and cabin air quality all those years ago ( an old 727 was involved), I seem to remember that dispatch offices had a regulatory obligation to track atmospheric ozone concentrations and flight plan around those areas deemed too high if the airplane had no filtering capability. Or maybe that's just what I was told the company did on its own without mandate ?

So, is there now any federal mandate to track/plan around atmospheric ozone ? Was there ever one ?


The only FAR references I find re ozone are these (unless what I think I remember is buried in some seemingly unrelated FAR). FARs do get amended in light of improved technology:

FAR Part 121:

http://www.flightsimaviation.com/data/FARS/part_121-578.html

Maybe 121.578(d)(2) relates to tracking/flight planning ?

FAR Part 25:

http://www.flightsimaviation.com/data/FARS/part_25-832.html

Other things can cause cabin occupants to feel ill, e.g., fluid leaks from engines into the A/C system. But you'd expect everyone to sense this (or at least in my experience they do). I remember reading that the FAs are likely more sensitive to toxic substances as they're on their feet and moving more than sedentary pax (higher respiratory rate).

Symptoms of ozone exposure:

"Shortness of breath, dry cough or pain when taking a deep breath, tightness of the chest, wheezing, and sometimes even nausea are common responses to ozone."

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/OzoneWeBreathe/ozone_we_breathe2.php

cabin ozone research:

http://acer-coe.org/research/atmospheric-ozone.html
 
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When I heard about this US Airways flight, ozone was the first thing I thought of also. Considering it was an A330, I would think there would've been ozone filters.
 
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Most widebody aircraft have ozone scrubbers installed - at least where I work - so planning around levels of high ozone isn't usually something we consider. There are some planes that don't have the scrubbers on (757s, 737s) and we do monitor it for those aircraft.
 
We had 757's without scrubbers at RYN and this was a big pain in the ass in the winter. We had the tropopause levels on the flight plans though, so it was a simple thing to plan below it.
 
Well, ozone was also the first thing that popped into my mind.. I know this is an old thread but I am interested in everything related to ozone, so..
I think they just wanted to desinfect the space as ozone kills any bacteria and viruses, but there were people who got under the influnce of it..
 
I don't know what it has with politics, but the fact that the nausea could be caused by the ozone generator in the plane is for sure...
 
I don't know what it has with politics, but the fact that the nausea could be caused by the ozone generator in the plane is for sure...

Aircraft have ozone catalytic converters not generators, the goal is to remove ozone from the cabin, not generate it.
 
aah, got it. I thought that they have ozone generators as air purifiers as some people have them in their houses and cars. But now I understand. That's sad.. Anyway, maybe they've installed bad the filters or something went wrong in the time flying. When I've installed an ozone generator in my car I did it wrong the first time. Then I've read on How to Use an Ozone Generator in a Car Effectively - Damage Control 911 how to use it properly . Maybe they just installed it wrong too, maybe they didn't pay attention to minor inconsistencies and that turned out pretty bad for those people later.. who knows.
 
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