Crews Plan Legal Action Against Airlines, Allege “Toxic” Cabin Air Poisoned Them

A number of current and former cabin crew members are taking legal action after suffering from what they believe are the effects of aerotoxic syndrome.

Claiming that they were made ill by contaminated cabin air, a group of former and active cabin crew members intend to bring legal action against several British carriers. Presently, there are 17 intending to take legal action over alleged aerotoxic poisoning, but according to Unite, the union which represents thousands of flight crew and is funding the cases, this number is expected to increase.

The group’s choice to pursue legal action comes after a coroner investigating the death of Richard Westgate — a British Airways pilot who died in 2012 after claiming he’d been poisoned by toxic cabin air — ruled that the fumes constituted “consequential damage” to the health of those onboard. In a report regarding Westgate’s death, Stanhope Payne, the senior coroner for the English county of Dorset, called the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and British Airways to take “urgent actions to prevent future deaths” from aerotoxic syndrome.

Thought to be caused by the inhalation of fumes contaminated with engine oil and toxic chemicals, aerotoxic syndrome can cause a variety of affects on health, including drowsiness, headaches, as well as serious respiratory and neurological problems. Some have blamed this syndrome for the death of at least two pilots, including that of Richard Westgate, and for a number of incidents where those onboard have fallen ill mid-flight.

In most passenger planes, the environmental control system (ECS) manages the flow of cabin air, using compressed air from the engines to pressurize the cabin. It is thought that aerotoxic syndrome is caused by a malfunction of the ECS, which could allow airborne toxins from the engine to enter the cabin.

In a statement to the Daily Telegraph, a CAA representative said that although incidents of aerotoxic poisoning are rare, “Passenger and crew safety is of paramount importance … U.K. airlines are legally required to report any potential safety incident, including where fumes or smoke are detected on board an aircraft … We take all reports very seriously and review them thoroughly to identify any safety issues or trend.”

British Airways, one of the airlines crew members are targeting with legal action, also spoke out on the matter of aerotoxic poisoning. “There has been substantial research into questions around cabin air quality over the last few years,” said an airline representative. “In summary, the research has found no evidence that exposure to potential chemicals in the cabin causes long-term ill health.”

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