As many people plan flights abroad to escape the British weather, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is reminding air passengers of the dangers that can be posed to aircraft by seemingly innocuous items. The warning follows an incident at Manchester Airport on Sunday 7 September involving an electric wheelchair that caught fire.

Ground staff unloading baggage from the hold of a Boeing 757, which had arrived at Manchester, noticed blue sparks coming from the chair. The chair was removed from the aircraft and placed on a vehicle where it immediately burst into flames and was destroyed.

Geoff Leach, Manager of the Dangerous Goods Office at the CAA, said: “Thankfully no-one was injured as a result of the Manchester incident. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation, but it does highlight the need for passengers to be extremely vigilant when taking items on board aircraft. Passengers need to be aware that some items, which are relatively innocuous in everyday use, are capable of posing a serious risk to the occupants of an aircraft, no matter where they are carried onboard and therefore need to be carefully checked.”

Battery powered wheelchairs may be carried by passengers subject to certain safety conditions, including:

• ensuring the battery is securely attached to the wheelchair;
• protecting the battery and chair from short circuiting; and
• ensuring that the wheelchair cannot become switched on during transport.

Spillable batteries are subject to additional requirements. In all cases, passengers should contact their airline in advance to check what special conditions apply.

Geoff Leach added: “Passengers frequently travel with electronic gadgets or other battery powered items and, although the batteries in these rarely pose a safety problem, if they are loose or the equipment is inadvertently activated there is a danger of fire.”

An example of this occurred in February 2007 when a fire started in an overhead locker in an aircraft that had just taken off from New York JFK Airport. Prompt action by cabin crew ensured that the fire was extinguished without any injuries to passengers or crew, but the aircraft had to return to New York for an emergency landing. It is believed that the fire was caused because a battery carried onboard by a cameraman and placed in an overhead locker that short-circuited and overheated. Incidents involving batteries, some of which are believed to have been counterfeit and obtained from parts of Asia or Internet auction sites, continue to occur. It is imperative that air passengers are aware of the possible dangers associated with batteries, further information on which can be found here.

The CAA wants to make sure that passengers are aware of the risks posed by ‘dangerous goods’, which include items such as culinary blowtorches, fireworks and other explosives as well as substances such as petrol, lighter fuel and weed killer. Whilst many items which are restricted for reasons of security (such as “sharps”) can be carried safely in hold baggage, this is not the case for dangerous goods, many of which must not be carried anywhere on the aircraft.

Dangerous goods that must NOT be taken onboard are:

• explosives, such as fireworks, flares, toy gun caps;
• gases, such as culinary blowtorches, camping or compressed gas cylinders, tear gas, mace or CS gas devices;
• flammable materials such as petrol, lighter fuel, paint, thinners, non-safety matches, firelighters;
• poisons, such as weed killers, insecticides; and
• corrosives, such as filled car batteries.

Goods that may be carried by passengers include:

• gas powered hair curlers (one per person), provided the safety cover is fitted at all times. Separate refills are not permitted;
• safety matches or a single lighter when carried on the person. One lighter per person may be carried through central search. Lighters form part of the passenger allowance permitted in the one litre capacity transparent bag and can either be placed inside the bag or screened separately. It is very important that passengers do not place the lighter into their cabin bag after screening - it must be carried on the person for the duration of the flight. Separate lighter refills are not permitted; and
• battery powered wheelchairs in the hold - passengers should contact their airline in advance to check whether special conditions apply.

Passengers can check the instructions covering dangerous goods on their flight ticket or on the website of the airline they are travelling with. The CAA Travelling Safely leaflet contains similar information. There are also notices on display at the airport check-in desks and advice can be sought from the check-in staff.