Incidence of failure of cabin pressurisation in military aircraft, even in peace time, is higher than commercial aviation. The commonest cause of loss of pressurisation in military aviation, especially in fighter flying, is engine flameout.
Category: Occupational Health
Cabin Pressurisation – If Lost?
On 10 Jun 1990, on BA flight 5390, Captain Tim Lancaster was sucked out halfway out of the aircraft, when an improperly installed windscreen pane failed. While the first officer made an emergency landing in Southampton, the cabin crew firmly held on to Tim, bringing him down safely [*].
Cabin Pressurisation – The Mechanism
It is not practical to maintain sea level conditions in flight. For example, a cabin differential pressure of 1 Kg/sq cm (nearly 1 ATA) generates more than 1,000 gm/cm2 pressure on the cabin wall and the transparency. If the cabin altitude of 2,500 m (8,000 ft) is accepted,the pressure differential would now be reduced by …
Cabin Pressurisation – An Introduction
On 26 January 2011, a Qantas Boeing 737-400 made an emergency descent of about 8000m [*], when the aircraft lost cabin pressure after about 30 minutes of flight. This flight, with 99 passengers, from Adelaide to Melbourne had oxygen masks dropping in the cabin, causing a scare amongst its 99 passengers.
Decompression Sickness in HA Reconnaissance Aircraft
Pilots flying high altitude (HA) reconnaissance sorties are vulnerable to decompression sickness (DCS) due to, exposure to “pressure equivalent up to 29,500 ft (8992 m) of altitude for over 8 h” [1]. Cruise altitude of such HA reconnaissance aircraft viz. U-2 [2] and MiG 25 [3] is 70,000 ft and 74,000 ft, respectively. There are two …