TOXIC OIL FUMES IN JET AIRLINERS – Monday 21st April 2008
Following BBC Panorama’s hard hitting investigation into Contaminated Air in Airliners Captain John Hoyte, Chairman of the victim support group Aerotoxic Association, calls on the Government, Airlines and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to:
“Stop denying there’s a problem and take urgent action to safeguard the health of all those who travel by air. Passengers and aircrew have a right to know about toxic fumes in public transport airliners and Government has a duty to take action. This is long overdue.”
The Problem:
· Organophosphates – the same group of chemicals that have caused ill-health in farmers exposed to sheep dip and to veterans with Gulf War Syndrome. These are added to engine oil as anti-wear agents.
· It is feared that at least 196,000 passengers a year are exposed to poisonous toxic fumes from hot engine oil that can leak into cabin air supply in the UK alone. The fumes are almost certainly responsible for ‘mysterious’ ill health, CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) type symptoms frequently reported to GP’s in recent years and possibly mistreated with anti depressants.
· Pilots and air crew regularly report these “fume incidents” and describe the symptoms they have experienced as if intoxicated, but without the alcohol. The smell has been described as “like sweaty socks”; as aircraft have no detection systems it is difficult for aircrews and passengers to know when they have been exposed.
· The risk has been known for more than forty years, and ill health symptoms can be long-lasting. They can include chronic fatigue, memory impairment, thought processing problems, and longer term neurological illnesses in what is termed ‘Aerotoxic Syndrome’. (Balouet and Winder 1999)
· Poisoned aircrew and passengers may be brain damaged and therefore gravely disadvantaged against the power and vested interests of the governments, airlines and oil companies.
- 81% of pilots surveyed by union Balpa said fatigue had affected them.
The Answers: Captain Hoyte asserts:
· UK MP’s Early Day Motion 1017 calls for current aircraft to be fitted with filters (costing around £10,000 each) to stop the toxic fumes leaking into the cabins.
· Future aircraft to de designed like the new Boeing 787, thus avoiding engine bleed air.
· Change to engine oils that don’t contain hazardous chemicals like organophosphates.
· Fit detection systems.
Industry professionals accept that this technology is available.
Airline customers will demand its use - when trials eventually demonstrate the threat.
Further Questions:
Captain John Hoyte is a former airline pilot and training captain, who has direct experience of the problem. He suffered sixteen years of illness caused by exposure to fumes. He eventually had to give up his career after electing not to fly a Public Transport aircraft due to ill health on three different occasions. He flew whilst being unaware of the cause of his illness:
“I couldn’t understand what was happening to me but clearly I didn’t feel I was safe in charge of flying an airliner and putting everybody on board at risk. I now advise other aircrew in order to save them from the nightmare I had to endure for so many years.”
· Why won’t the airlines take action? Customer ignorance.
· Why won’t the Government take immediate preventative action? Fear of the airlines.
· There is an irony that the Government uses laws to enforce domestic smoke alarms, outlaws passive smoking and blood samples athletes and car drivers – whilst totally ignoring identical ‘fume issues’ and toxic poisoning in airline flying. Why is there such a discrepancy in their responsibilities when it comes to the aviation industry?
Campaign & Care:
Captain Hoyte founded the Aerotoxic Association in 2007, to campaign for recognition of the illness caused by the fumes — known as Aerotoxic Syndrome — and to support sufferers with their ‘mystery’ illnesses. He says, “The Aerotoxic Association was set up to care for victims after I found out the hard way about the issues; I was misdiagnosed and mistreated for nine months whilst the authorities knew all about it. There is now overwhelming evidence from commercial airline pilots, cabin crew and passengers who have been in touch with me over the last eighteen months. No Government body has wanted to see this evidence; all aircrew are gagged whilst employed or whilst taking legal action. This is a global industry-wide cover-up and that’s not healthy!”
March 2007 Ex-professional pilots advised the Department of Transport of the optimum time to measure ‘visible oil fumes’. Despite six months of trials on airliners, the Department still cannot state which chemicals, or in what concentrations, the visible toxic chemicals are present. Equally, none of the politicians, scientists or doctors has taken the time to experience the fumes at first hand and therefore can never appreciate the awful effects of the fumes. A ‘rare’ so-called fume event can be recreated easily; they are procrastinating and know it.
December 2007 a letter was sent to the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) requesting to know if pilots’ blood is routinely tested after serious flying errors. Such errors can be caused by aerotoxic poisoning.
After this warning, in January 2008, a BA Boeing 777 crash landed dramatically at London Heathrow.
A further letter was sent to the AAIB asking if the BA crew had had their blood tested? This could have ruled out any question of possible toxic poisoning, as has been found in many other BA pilots.
Once again, a high-handed denial was received, an assertion that the possibility was not relevant.
Even now, three months later, the AAIB are still unable to identify the factors responsible for this serious accident. Could it be that ‘pilot error’ following exposure to toxic chemicals (as many other past BA pilots have experienced in recent years and still continue to do so) is one vital missing factor in the ongoing investigation? Other similar incidents have been brought to the attention of the AAIB.
February 2008, a Freedom of Information Tribunal was brought by Captain Hoyte against the CAA. The airline supported by the CAA had refused to let Captain Hoyte see his own personal final Flight Safety Report giving the reasons why he elected not to fly a Public Transport Flight in 2004 ie the intoxicating effects of contaminated oil fumes making him unfit to fly. This omission to inform the pilot is contrary to the CAA’s own Policy Document that declares that Flight Safety Reports should be disseminated, especially to the originator. (see The Information Tribunal Decision Notice EA/2007/0101 promulgated 5th March 2008) Captain Hoyte lost the case.
Such examples demonstrate the enthusiasm of different Government Departments to cover up crucial evidence of contaminated air and its consequences.
The Aerotoxic Association continues to accumulate extensive global evidence from pilots,
cabin crew and passengers about ‘mysterious ill health symptoms’ known to result
directly from their flying activities.
AEROTOXICITY – an inconvenient and invisible cost of flying -today.
Note to editors:
For more detailed information on Aerotoxic Syndrome, including Captain Hoyte’s own story and evidence from key scientists and doctors go to: www.aerotoxic.org
Contact:
Captain John Hoyte on 01295 770808 or 07773 77 1867
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Frank Brehany, Holiday Travel Watch on 08450 179229
The campaign is supported by Frank Brehany, MD of travel consumers’ website www.holidaytravelwatch.net who has called the situation: “Not just a national but a global disgrace.”
Terry Tozer, Ex-professional pilot and independent aviation journalist familiar with Aerotoxic issues (0034) 93 754 1525 Mobile (0034) 618 792907 email
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
website www.terrytozer.co.uk
