Aircraft Cabin Water Spray Disbenefits Study

Details

• Creators:
  Reynolds, Thomas L. ; Porter, Kent W.
• Corporate Creators:
  Boeing Commercial Airplane Company
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration ; United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Aviation Administration. Technical Center
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  • Aircraft cabins
  • Airplanes
  • Fire fighting equipment
  • Fires
• Publication/ Report Number:
  DOT/FAA/CT-92/6
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States
• Edition:
  Final Report
• Contracting Officer:
  Hill, Richard
• Corporate Publisher:
  United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Aviation Administration. William J. Hughes Technical Center
• Abstract:
  The concept of utilizing a cabin water spray system (CWSS) as a means of increasing passenger evacuation and survival time following an accident has received considerable publicity and has been the subject of testing by the regulatory agencies in both the United States and Europe. A test program, initiated by the CAA in 1987, involved the regulatory bodies in both Europe and North America in a collaborative research effort to determine the benefits and 'disbenefits' (disadvantages) of a CWSS. In order to obtain a balanced opinion of an onboard CWSS, NASA, and FAA requested the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group to investigate the potential 'disbenefits' of the proposed system from the perspective of the manufacturer and an operator. This report is the result of a year-long, cost-sharing contract study between the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group, NASA, and FAA. Delta Air Lines participated as a subcontract study team member and investigated the 'return to service' costs for an aircraft that would experience an uncommanded operation of a CWSS without the presence of fire. Disbenefits identified include potential delays in evacuation, introduction of 'common cause failure' in redundant safety of flight systems, physiological problems for passengers, high cost of refurbishment for inadvertent discharge, and potential to negatively affect other safety systems.
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  NASI-18027, Task 22
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/93307/dot_93307_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.60 MB]
• Collection(s):
  FAA Fire Safety
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0f0d70b62026c58be63b0f5e7b2b0ead15b8a0644225de86f045ab723272fef3acc67b43bb719eb309b065ad2c9906f4c32ca65d36c56da14217b281a7d47156