TAAG B-777 divert to Lisbon
Indeed, no chance of surviving if someone blows the Halon bottles.
Imagine that moment when all his colleagues got back to their crews room or whatever and realised......
Imagine that moment when all his colleagues got back to their crews room or whatever and realised......
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Indeed, no chance of surviving if someone blows the Halon bottles.
Imagine that moment when all his colleagues got back to their crews room or whatever and realised......
Imagine that moment when all his colleagues got back to their crews room or whatever and realised......
It's actually more common than you think for loaders to get locked in the hold, I've known it happen 3 times but thankfully they all managed to raise the alarm as they taxied out
My terminology might be off but basically it removes all oxygen from the cargo hold, so anything alive won't be alive for long
But I will await actual data on firing bottles in aircraft holds with live animals
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wiki halon
How safe is Halon?
Halons are low-toxicity, chemically stable compounds that have been used for fire and explosion protection from early in the last century. Halon has proven to be an extremely effective fire suppressant. Halon is clean (i.e., leaves no residue) and is remarkably safe for human exposure. Halon is a highly effective agent for firefighting in closed passenger carrying areas. Due to its effectiveness and relatively low toxicity, the FAA continues to recommend or require Halon extinguishers for use on commercial aircraft
What is Halon? How does Halon Work? Is Halon legal? Is Halon Safe?
Telecom I used to work in had this installed. We were told to leave in an orderly fashion if activated. CO 2 had to be de-activated before entering.iirc
Halons are low-toxicity, chemically stable compounds that have been used for fire and explosion protection from early in the last century. Halon has proven to be an extremely effective fire suppressant. Halon is clean (i.e., leaves no residue) and is remarkably safe for human exposure. Halon is a highly effective agent for firefighting in closed passenger carrying areas. Due to its effectiveness and relatively low toxicity, the FAA continues to recommend or require Halon extinguishers for use on commercial aircraft
What is Halon? How does Halon Work? Is Halon legal? Is Halon Safe?
Telecom I used to work in had this installed. We were told to leave in an orderly fashion if activated. CO 2 had to be de-activated before entering.iirc
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Still using Halon?
Halon, at least 1301 and 1211 were banned from manufacture in 1994, at least in the US as they were considered Ozone depleting substances. Believe there is still a substantial amount in inventory worldwide. New AC still use it?
Yes, new at least some new aircraft use Halon. Apparently quite a bit of it was stockpiled for aviation use before new manufacture was banned.
Obviously that can't go on forever but suitable, effective substitutes have proved elusive. As I understand it, the stuff they are using for the 767-2C/KC-46 is a non-Halon powder similar to baking soda...
Obviously that can't go on forever but suitable, effective substitutes have proved elusive. As I understand it, the stuff they are using for the 767-2C/KC-46 is a non-Halon powder similar to baking soda...
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The link provided by @crippen says that halon is recycled from old installations, so there should be a reasonable supply left.
I must say, I didn't know that halon did NOT work by displacing oxygen; I'm not a professional, but it seems from some responses that maybe that knowledge is not as widespread as it should be? It could make an operational difference, in some circumstances, I should imagine.
I must say, I didn't know that halon did NOT work by displacing oxygen; I'm not a professional, but it seems from some responses that maybe that knowledge is not as widespread as it should be? It could make an operational difference, in some circumstances, I should imagine.
I was an engineer on one of the first tank ships which had Halon installed in the engine room. I can assure you that the safety routines for CO2 and Halton was markedly different. I would be very suprised if this was not also the case in aviaton.
Without going too far off topic, how does Halon work if not by displacing Oxygen?
I will admit it is a much nicer fire fighting medium than dry powder, which seems to destroy anything around it, although AFFF is pretty effective and doesn't leave a permanent trail of destruction after use.
I will admit it is a much nicer fire fighting medium than dry powder, which seems to destroy anything around it, although AFFF is pretty effective and doesn't leave a permanent trail of destruction after use.
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I attended at a client computer centre shortly after the bottles had cracked.
18 bottles in total, each the size of an acetylene bottle, linked in pairs but due to the system being accidently left in test mode, only the first two pairs cracked.
The suspended ceiling came down, and dumped piles of black dust over everything.
Three operators were in the room, one managed to drag another to the door where others were able to pull them out. The Operations Manager grabbed a breathing unit and went in to find the 3rd guy unconscious and managed to drag him out. He took quite a while to get resuscitated but survived.
Halon sinks to the floor, so if you are prone, you get to buy the farm quickly.
The building had to be evacuated until the room could be purged by the fire service.
Deadly stuff which I believe was banned in computer rooms shortly after. I doubt anything in a cargo hold could survive, and the potential (in my mind) for distribution of the gas through the aircon still fills me with dread.
18 bottles in total, each the size of an acetylene bottle, linked in pairs but due to the system being accidently left in test mode, only the first two pairs cracked.
The suspended ceiling came down, and dumped piles of black dust over everything.
Three operators were in the room, one managed to drag another to the door where others were able to pull them out. The Operations Manager grabbed a breathing unit and went in to find the 3rd guy unconscious and managed to drag him out. He took quite a while to get resuscitated but survived.
Halon sinks to the floor, so if you are prone, you get to buy the farm quickly.
The building had to be evacuated until the room could be purged by the fire service.
Deadly stuff which I believe was banned in computer rooms shortly after. I doubt anything in a cargo hold could survive, and the potential (in my mind) for distribution of the gas through the aircon still fills me with dread.
I doubt anything in a cargo hold could survive, and the potential (in my mind) for distribution of the gas through the aircon still fills me with dread.
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how does Halon work if not by displacing Oxygen?
Concentrations of Halon 1301 as low as 3-7% are effective for extinguishing fires.
Source: Wikipedia on halomethanes
I think it sits in your lungs for a while so not a good idea to sit there breathing it in if it goes off.
It's been replaced by FM200 for confined-room environments such as comms (server) rooms.
Interestingly it's still approved by the FAA I believe for use in aircraft even though it's been banned since 1994. It'll take a while before something with Halon's fire-suppresion properties is approved - a powder suppressant will likely inflict damage to the cargo whereas Halon doesn't.
It's been replaced by FM200 for confined-room environments such as comms (server) rooms.
Interestingly it's still approved by the FAA I believe for use in aircraft even though it's been banned since 1994. It'll take a while before something with Halon's fire-suppresion properties is approved - a powder suppressant will likely inflict damage to the cargo whereas Halon doesn't.