I wonder if anyone out there is aware of any discussions concerning the new drill code "Z" for lithium batteries as published in the new version of “Emergency Response Guidance for Aircraft Incidents Involving Dangerous Goods (ICAO Doc. 9481)".
Specifically, the comment, " aircraft cargo fire suppression system may not extinguish or contain the fire, consider landing immediately." has very serious connotations.
I wonder how Boeing views this wording and how the terminology differs from their wording "land at nearest suitable airport" which is included in their lower deck fire procedure in the QRH. Don't forget, the last thing the crew sees before departure is the NOTOC which advises them to "land immediately" in the event of a fire in the compartment containing the lithium batteries. Should they take this to mean 'off-airport', or ditching if over the pacific?
I guess the situation would certainly dictate the course of action; however, I think there should be some serious pause and reflection before running the ditching checklist.
In the end crews should ditch if necessary, but not necessarily ditch
I would have posted this on the Freight Dogs forum but there didn’t seem to be much tech content and the lithium battery thread has run its course.