Originally Posted by
404 Titan
hetfield
I have reproduced the entire remarks column from our MEL for the A330 regarding the cargo fire bottles. My interpretation is that if bottle 1 (instant discharge bottle) is U/S the entire cargo fire fighting system is considered US and therefore would have to comply with the first note. If bottle 2 (slow metered bottle) was U/S I could dispatch as long as I could land within 1 hour from any point in the flight. If I want to dispatch ETOPS then both bottles must be serviceable. Remember there are only two bottles and they protect both the forward and aft cargo compartment depending which squib is pushed. If they are discharged into the aft cargo compartment for example there is nothing left to fight a second possible fire in the forward cargo compartment and vv. So in answer to your question, no you couldn’t load the forward cargo compartment unless you can comply with the first “Note”.
Yes, I know how the system works. The MEL text TMO is missleading. One could think, ok bottle 1 was used in aft CC, so let's load the fwd.......