Toxic cabin air

In March 2019, Unite announced it had served legal action in 51 court cases against five UK airlines in relation to toxic cabin air. Its backing for the court action came after independent expert evidence concluded that the air in most commercial airline cabins can cause irreversible neurological damage and chronic illness among susceptible individuals. The claims allege that expert medical evidence shows long-term exposure to cabin air or high-dose “fume events” can lead to pilots and cabin crew developing chronic ill health and life-threatening conditions. Unite is also calling for an inquiry into toxic cabin air and for the airline industry to “clean up its act” by using safer oil to lubricate jet engines and fitting cabin air filters on board planes.