Toxic cabin air

The general union Unite has called on the airline industry to take urgent action to tackle toxic cabin air as it announced it had served legal action in 51 cases against five UK airlines. The union declared in March 2019 that it was backing the court action 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 medical evidence shows long-term exposure to cabin air or high-dose “fume events” can lead to chronic ill health and life-threatening conditions among pilots and crew.

The expert evidence reveals how fumes from jet engine bleed air, used to pressurise airline cabins, contain a mix of toxic compounds including organophosphates and TCP. The claims involve pilots and crew working for easyJet, British Airways, Thomas Cook, Jet2 and Virgin Atlantic.

Unite renewed its call 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.