FAA rules Boeing must modify 800 jets

[question everything]

Long Beach Press Telegram

FAA rules Boeing must modify 800 jets

Airlines would have to replace or modify old insulation.
By Leslie Miller
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON -- Airlines would have to replace or modify old insulation in about 800 Boeing Co. jetliners within the next six years because of concerns that the material becomes less fireproof as it ages, under a rule proposed by the Federal Aviation Administration Friday.

Fire is especially dangerous in aircraft because of the amount and flammability of jet fuel, and the fact that there's no escape until or unless the plane lands. While a concern, the FAA does not believe the problem poses an imminent danger.

Several air disasters have involved fires, including Swissair Flight 111, which plunged into the ocean off the Nova Scotia coast in 1998, killing all 229 aboard. Canadian investigators said the fire likely started with a spark and fed undetected on insulation above the cockpit.

As a result of that crash, the FAA in 2000 required airlines to replace their insulation if it was the kind used in the Swissair plane, an MD-11. About 700 Boeing and McDonnell-Douglas aircraft had to swap out the insulation that was installed between the jet's aluminum skin and the cabin.

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http://www.presstelegram.com/Stories/0,1413,204~21474~2794123,00.html#

[Up2Late]

1. Well, it's about time

I just saw a special on Swiss Air 111, and was outraged that the Insulation replacement Rule was effectively made Optional by the U.S. Congress.


NOVA:Crash of Flight 111

Transcript
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/3105_aircrash.html>