Cyclic Hotline
9th May 2001, 10:07
FAA Orders Inspections of Fuel Tanks
By JONATHAN D. SALANT, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - The government on Monday ordered airline manufacturers to inspect the designs of airplane fuel tanks to prevent fires like the one investigators blamed for the 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered the manufacturers to conduct the review and then develop regular tank inspection and maintenance programs. Airlines also must develop such programs for their fleets.
In addition, new airplanes must be designed to reduce the chances that fuel vapors in the tanks will ignite, causing an explosion.
"It's time for a new approach to fuel tank safety,'' FAA Administrator Jane Garvey said.
The new rules will affect about 7,000 airplanes that have at least 30 seats. The FAA estimates that the new rules will cost the industry $165 million over 10 years.
Investigators blamed a fuel tank fire for the crash of TWA Flight 800, a Boeing 747 that went down on July 17, 1996, shortly after taking off from John F. Kennedy Airport in New York en route to Paris. All 230 people aboard were killed.
The National Transportation Safety Board said a flammable fuel-air mixture in the tank probably was ignited by an electrical short circuit, but the plane's design contributed to the blast by putting heat sources under the tank.
In March, a Thai Airways Boeing 737 exploded on the tarmac in Bangkok, Thailand, killing one crew member and injuring seven others.
The NTSB said the center fuel tank of the Thai plane, located near air conditioning packs that had been running nonstop, exploded first. The right tank exploded 18 minutes later.
Last month, the FAA ordered airlines to shut off fuel pumps on Boeing 737s when there is a low level of fuel remaining in the center tank.
The NTSB has made several recommendations to reduce the chances of a fuel tank fire, including requiring a certain amount of fuel in the tank before turning on the pump, installing insulation between the fuel tanks and heat-generating equipment, and pumping in gases that don't ignite in order to reduce the amount of air in a fuel tank. The NTSB has listed its fuel tank recommendations among its most-wanted safety improvements.
A joint airline industry-FAA task force is looking at whether to recommend that airlines pump nitrogen gas, which doesn't burn, into fuel tanks to reduce the amount of air and therefore the flammability of the fuel-air mixture. Garvey said a recommendation is expected in July.
By JONATHAN D. SALANT, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - The government on Monday ordered airline manufacturers to inspect the designs of airplane fuel tanks to prevent fires like the one investigators blamed for the 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered the manufacturers to conduct the review and then develop regular tank inspection and maintenance programs. Airlines also must develop such programs for their fleets.
In addition, new airplanes must be designed to reduce the chances that fuel vapors in the tanks will ignite, causing an explosion.
"It's time for a new approach to fuel tank safety,'' FAA Administrator Jane Garvey said.
The new rules will affect about 7,000 airplanes that have at least 30 seats. The FAA estimates that the new rules will cost the industry $165 million over 10 years.
Investigators blamed a fuel tank fire for the crash of TWA Flight 800, a Boeing 747 that went down on July 17, 1996, shortly after taking off from John F. Kennedy Airport in New York en route to Paris. All 230 people aboard were killed.
The National Transportation Safety Board said a flammable fuel-air mixture in the tank probably was ignited by an electrical short circuit, but the plane's design contributed to the blast by putting heat sources under the tank.
In March, a Thai Airways Boeing 737 exploded on the tarmac in Bangkok, Thailand, killing one crew member and injuring seven others.
The NTSB said the center fuel tank of the Thai plane, located near air conditioning packs that had been running nonstop, exploded first. The right tank exploded 18 minutes later.
Last month, the FAA ordered airlines to shut off fuel pumps on Boeing 737s when there is a low level of fuel remaining in the center tank.
The NTSB has made several recommendations to reduce the chances of a fuel tank fire, including requiring a certain amount of fuel in the tank before turning on the pump, installing insulation between the fuel tanks and heat-generating equipment, and pumping in gases that don't ignite in order to reduce the amount of air in a fuel tank. The NTSB has listed its fuel tank recommendations among its most-wanted safety improvements.
A joint airline industry-FAA task force is looking at whether to recommend that airlines pump nitrogen gas, which doesn't burn, into fuel tanks to reduce the amount of air and therefore the flammability of the fuel-air mixture. Garvey said a recommendation is expected in July.