Reports indicate that contaminants can infiltrate aircraft cabins through a system that heats and pressurizes external air drawn in by the engines.
An investigation by the Wall Street Journal, reviewing decades of industry data, reveals that an increasing number of incidents involving toxic fumes entering airplane cabins have led to illness and lasting damage for pilots, flight attendants, and passengers.
Published Saturday, the WSJ’s inquiry was based on over one million reports from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and NASA, thousands of documents, and more than 100 interviews. It concluded that aircraft manufacturers and carriers have understated health risks, opposed safety regulations, and reduced expenses in ways that heightened dangers for those on board.
These “fume events” happen when air supplied to the cabin through the ‘bleed air’ system – which brings air directly from the engines – becomes tainted. Malfunctioning seals or leaks of engine oil and hydraulic fluids can introduce hazardous elements like neurotoxins, volatile organic compounds, and carbon monoxide into the passenger and crew areas.
Official reports cited by the WSJ indicate that pilots have reported impaired vision and vomiting while airborne, with certain leaks necessitating emergency landings. The publication also noted that, according to healthcare professionals managing numerous such cases, some of the most severe occurrences have resulted in permanent neurological harm and cancer.
An analysis of FAA and NASA data by the newspaper revealed a significant surge in incidents over recent years, escalating from approximately 12 per million departures in 2014 to almost 108 per million in 2024. The WSJ suggested that the true frequency is probably considerably greater due to substantial underreporting of the issue.
The publication reported that aerospace companies, airlines, and regulatory bodies contend that fume events are infrequent, contamination levels are minimal, and studies on long-term health effects are too inconclusive to warrant significant corrective actions.
It further mentioned that various congressional attempts to enact stricter laws regarding this problem have mostly been unsuccessful or resulted in diluted legislation.
Despite comprising only 20% of the United States’ air fleet, the Airbus A320 family of aircraft accounted for 80% of reported fume events between 2018 and 2023, as per a study published earlier this year by Switzerland’s Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute.