NO, this never happens to laptops' batteries..........
Posted on 07/13/2006 8:29:44 AM PDT by rawhide
WASHINGTON — Did laptop batteries aboard a UPS cargo plane catch fire, causing it to ignite into flames?
The National Transportation Safety Board began looking into the question at a hearing Wednesday.
All three crew members on the plane owned by the Sandy Springs-based delivery giant were treated for minor injuries after it made an emergency landing shortly after midnight Feb. 8 at the Philadelphia airport.
The crew declared an emergency on approach into Philadelphia. Fire and rescue crews met the four-engine jet, a DC-8 that originated in Atlanta, when it touched down shortly after midnight.
Firefighters said the blaze was under control about four hours later, although the charred plane smoldered for hours.
Several other incidents have occurred in recent years in which lithium batteries — used in laptops and cell phones — have caught fire aboard airplanes.
Less than two months ago in Chicago, a spare laptop battery packed in a bag stored in an overhead bin started emitting smoke, chief crash investigator Frank Hilldrup of the NTSB testified Wednesday.
A flight attendant used an extinguisher and the bag was removed, but the bag caught fire on a ramp, Hilldrup said.
Investigators in the Philadelphia fire found that several computer laptop batteries were on board the plane, and that in many cases portions of the laptop batteries had burned, he said.
"It is not known at this time the role these batteries may have played in the fire," Hilldrup said.
It is expected to take several months for the NTSB to reach a conclusion about the cause of the fire in Philadelphia, although several hazardous materials on board the plane have been determined not to be the cause. The NTSB is also examining other related issues such what can be done to make cargo flights safer and the overall emergency response to the incident.
In 1999, a shipment of lithium batteries ignited after it was unloaded from a passenger jet at Los Angeles International Airport. Another shipment erupted into flames in Memphis in 2004 when it was being loaded onto a FedEx plane bound for Paris.
Ruh-roh!! Watches are next!
A DC-8 ? How old is this old dog ?
Where's the protesters? Time to ban lithium batteries.
W's fault!
I'm wondering if that isn't really an MD-80? I haven't seen a DC-8 since flying on one in China in 1984, and it was scary old then!
A DC-8 would be a 4 engine airplane. MD-80 would be 2 engine.
Really old. But, UPS re-engined all of theirs with GE (CFM) engines. It's an old airframe, but UPS has kept them in excellent condition.
Yes, I know that, but I haven't seen a UPS flying a DC-8.
I guess I need to consider shipping on another carrier? I have never noticed it before! LOL!
NO, this never happens to laptops' batteries..........
Here is a photo if the plane in question:
http://www.jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=5673655
Firefighters battle the blaze on the plane at Philadelphia International Airport.
The cargo companies fly a lot of old crap because they don't have to cater to passengers. The stuff is usually in tip-top mechanical shape, but looks like hell on the inside.
hmmmm...
I've seen laptop batteries smoke, fizzle and pop, but i've never watched one start a fire before.
We kinda had a problem with the power in Iraq. It was all 220 and we received a shipment of 110 laptops. Not only did it fry the power supply, it would fry the batteries as well.
Fun stuff, but damn did it Stink.
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