Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Dryer than ice

After a plane recently left a gate to take off from Lindbergh Field, carbon dioxide monitors sounded and crew had to resort to auxiliary air packs.
After a plane recently left a gate to take off from Lindbergh Field, carbon dioxide monitors sounded and crew had to resort to auxiliary air packs.

Dry ice and flying don’t mix. That’s the word from Los Angeles, where two ex-airport workers were each sentenced to three years’ probation and 480 hours of community service for setting off dry-ice bombs at airport terminals last October. Dry ice, composed of super-cooled carbon dioxide and frequently used to keep perishables frozen in transit, also presented a worrisome situation for at least one passenger plane departing San Diego’s Lindbergh Field, as documented by a recent disclosure posted on the Federal Aviation Agency’s accident reporting website. “Operating [a one-plus-hour flight] in a B-757 under a dry ice waiver,” wrote the anonymous co-pilot of a plane from an unidentified airline. As the craft pushed back from the gate, the crew’s carbon dioxide monitors suddenly sounded and they were forced to hastily don their auxiliary air packs. “Highest levels noted were .6% for the Captain and .7% for the [First Officer],” the report continued.

“Not sure what actually caused the event,” the co-pilot observed. “We obviously had quite a bit of dry ice aboard. I mistakenly thought the rigid cargo barrier and normal ventilation would take care of most of [the carbon dioxide]. The speed at which the monitors alerted was surprising. Fortunately we were almost complete with the engine start and the packs were quickly available. Also, the Captain opened his window, which I’m sure helped.” The intrepid flyer offered the government some advice regarding similar incidents in the future: “Opening a window, while helpful, is not always feasible. I have no intention of flying complete legs on supplemental oxygen. Further, we should have some real, hands on training with the new monitors and what each alert means. A bulletin is not cutting it when personal safety is concerned.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Now what can they do with Encinitas unstable cliffs?

Make the cliffs fall, put up more warnings, fine beachgoers?
After a plane recently left a gate to take off from Lindbergh Field, carbon dioxide monitors sounded and crew had to resort to auxiliary air packs.
After a plane recently left a gate to take off from Lindbergh Field, carbon dioxide monitors sounded and crew had to resort to auxiliary air packs.

Dry ice and flying don’t mix. That’s the word from Los Angeles, where two ex-airport workers were each sentenced to three years’ probation and 480 hours of community service for setting off dry-ice bombs at airport terminals last October. Dry ice, composed of super-cooled carbon dioxide and frequently used to keep perishables frozen in transit, also presented a worrisome situation for at least one passenger plane departing San Diego’s Lindbergh Field, as documented by a recent disclosure posted on the Federal Aviation Agency’s accident reporting website. “Operating [a one-plus-hour flight] in a B-757 under a dry ice waiver,” wrote the anonymous co-pilot of a plane from an unidentified airline. As the craft pushed back from the gate, the crew’s carbon dioxide monitors suddenly sounded and they were forced to hastily don their auxiliary air packs. “Highest levels noted were .6% for the Captain and .7% for the [First Officer],” the report continued.

“Not sure what actually caused the event,” the co-pilot observed. “We obviously had quite a bit of dry ice aboard. I mistakenly thought the rigid cargo barrier and normal ventilation would take care of most of [the carbon dioxide]. The speed at which the monitors alerted was surprising. Fortunately we were almost complete with the engine start and the packs were quickly available. Also, the Captain opened his window, which I’m sure helped.” The intrepid flyer offered the government some advice regarding similar incidents in the future: “Opening a window, while helpful, is not always feasible. I have no intention of flying complete legs on supplemental oxygen. Further, we should have some real, hands on training with the new monitors and what each alert means. A bulletin is not cutting it when personal safety is concerned.”

Sponsored
Sponsored
Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Last plane out of Seoul, 1950

Memories of a daring escape at the start of a war
Next Article

Raging Cider & Mead celebrates nine years

Company wants to bring America back to its apple-tree roots
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader