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Old Sep 23, 2008, 11:33 am
  #1  
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Wheelchair on plane bursts into flames

Battery fire causes near disaster on British holiday jet carrying 229 passengers

A holiday jet carrying 229 passengers narrowly avoided disaster when a wheelchair stored in the hold burst into flames shortly after landing at Manchester airport.

Ground staff unloading baggage from the hold of the First Choice holiday jet noticed blue sparks coming from the chair, it was revealed today.

The chair was removed from the Boeing 727-200 jet and placed on a vehicle -where it immediately burst into flames and was destroyed.


http://tinyurl.com/3s3cm5

N.B. "The scare happened on Sunday September 7" and for some reason is only appearing September 23.
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 11:57 am
  #2  
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Sounds like a Ford Taurus wheelchair.

Holy Cow - 229 people on a 727? If I had been on that flight, I might have burst into flames.
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 1:11 pm
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They don't operate 727's. I suspect it was 757-200 and a reporter that can't type
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 1:52 pm
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Flames

Sounds like the ground staff did not follow the regs when loading the W/C. Differences between wet & dry batteries, requirements for battery removal and storage; and, also disconnection of the power source.
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 4:58 pm
  #5  
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Originally Posted by mjcasta
Sounds like the ground staff did not follow the regs when loading the W/C. Differences between wet & dry batteries, requirements for battery removal and storage; and, also disconnection of the power source.
But of course it's the passenger who is blamed:

"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.”
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 5:26 pm
  #6  
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The picture with the article shows a non-powered wheelchair, instead of the battery type that would be more vulnerable to incidents as described.
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 5:40 pm
  #7  
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Originally Posted by tjl
The picture with the article shows a non-powered wheelchair, instead of the battery type that would be more vulnerable to incidents as described.
Journalistic license similar to being off by a digit or two when naming the type of plane?
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 6:48 pm
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a commenter on another .. um .. 'blog' posted:
"now there's TSA messing with travelers' stuff at Canary Islands ??"
Hmmmm.....

/.
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Old Sep 23, 2008, 7:37 pm
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Originally Posted by FWAAA
Sounds like a Ford Taurus wheelchair.
I believe it was the Ford Pinto that tended to go up in flames after a rear-end collision.


"Your Delta Tau Chi name is 'Pinto'."
-- Bluto
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Old Sep 24, 2008, 6:43 am
  #10  
 
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Originally Posted by Fredd
But of course it's the passenger who is blamed:

"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.”
That is the expected response. It never fails. I'll bet the airline didn't load it properly.
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Old Sep 24, 2008, 7:59 am
  #11  
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Originally Posted by DeafFlyer
That is the expected response. It never fails. I'll bet the airline didn't load it properly.
Indeed. The individual sufficiently incapacitated to be using a motorized wheelchair, and who may never have flown before, is blamed in classic knee-jerk bureaucratic style for failing to disconnect the battery.

IMHO the airline owes the individual a properly repaired wheelchair.
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Old Sep 24, 2008, 11:19 am
  #12  
 
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Originally Posted by Fredd
Battery fire causes near disaster on British holiday jet carrying 229 passengers

A holiday jet carrying 229 passengers narrowly avoided disaster when a wheelchair stored in the hold burst into flames shortly after landing at Manchester airport.

Ground staff unloading baggage from the hold of the First Choice holiday jet noticed blue sparks coming from the ch
The chair was removed from the Boeing 727-200 jet and placed on a vehicle -where it immediately burst into flames and was destroyed.


http://tinyurl.com/3s3cm5

N.B. "The scare happened on Sunday September 7" and for some reason is only appearing September 23.
After re-reading this, it appears that the chair did not burst into flames until they unloaded it. There was no "near disaster". Another bit of sensationalist journalism?
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Old Sep 24, 2008, 1:54 pm
  #13  
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Originally Posted by OldRoyal
I believe it was the Ford Pinto that tended to go up in flames after a rear-end collision.


"Your Delta Tau Chi name is 'Pinto'."
-- Bluto
You're correct about the Pinto exploding when rear-ended, but I was not referring to vehicles that explode when struck by other vehicles in collisions. The article doesn't mention any violent traffic collision between this wheelchair and another vehicle. Had the wheelchair exploded when rear-ended by, say, another wheelchair, I would have said "Ford Pinto."

I was referring to the Ford Taurus, many of which are alleged to have burst into flames while parked in owners' garages. Faulty electrical switches have been blamed for the seemingly spontaneous combustion. Additionally, the alleged defect has been blamed for fires in other various Ford products like F-150 pickups.
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