BERLIN — The day that IATA announced its new ULD safety program also featured a panel discussion on the very hot topic of the place of ULDs as the front line of defense against lithium-ion battery fires.
\nIt is easy to think of Unit Load Devices as just expensive boxes. After all, the 900,000 ULDs currently in service represent about US$1 billion in replacement cost, and every year our industry spends about $330 million on ULD repair. And the costs extend beyond the ULDs themselves \u2013 the number-one cause of aircraft damage from ground loading equipment is from mishandled ULDs, and at least two aircraft crashes are known to have been caused by improperly handled ULDs.
\nDuring the session \u201cULDs: In the Frontline of Flight Safety,\u201d delegates to IATA\u2019s World Cargo Symposium learned that, in addition to their role as shipping containers, ULD\u2019s play a critical role in aircraft safety.
\nIf a fire occurs in a ULD in the hold of an aircraft in flight, the pilot needs to descend to 20,000-feet, depressurize and land. This takes time, and the explosive nature of lithium battery fires can leave time in short supply. In one negative example, shown on a video, a Lithium-ion battery explosion disengaged the base of a ULD. But there are ways to contain a fire in a ULD, whether it\u2019s caused by batteries or other flammable items, and Joe Ashton, business manager with AmSafe Bridport, said one such way was through the use of his company\u2019s Fire Containment Covers (FCCs). The covers have been available for four years, but Ashton said that a combination of apathy, denial and misinformation is why they\u2019re not widely used.
\n\u201cLithium cells are prevalent in all aspects of life,\u201d Ashton said. \u201cThey are being shipped by air in bulk, in devices and as undeclared dangerous goods.\u201d However, he said an FCC can contain a fire to a single pallet position, shield the aircraft from damage, prevent the spread of the fire and protect the rest of the cargo onboard. According to Ashton, the FCC can contain a fire within a ULD for up to six hours \u2013 plenty of time to get on the ground.
\nLikewise, Bob McClelland, the dangerous goods manager for UPS, explained how the fire resistant containers UPS developed work. Made from fiber-reinforced plastic, they can withstand intense fires for at least four hours. He showed an equally fascinating video of one of the UPS ULDs, in which viewers could hear the cells exploding. But the specially designed container didn\u2019t blow up (it mitigates gas build-up), and the fire remained contained within the box for four hours. And, while not directly ULD-related, he added that full-face oxygen masks are now available for pilots on all UPS aircraft.
\nMcClelland also underscored something IATA has been saying for some time: \u201cReally, the problem is low-quality, non-standard batteries.\u201d He also pointed out that lithium-ion batteries are not the only problem to be considered in ULD design, saying that undeclared cargo and mail of many kinds \u2013 even if there is no fire danger \u2013 \u00a0can damage ULDs in other ways.
\nAnd finally, Dave Brennan, dangerous cargo specialist with IATA, agreed that fire resistant containers and fire containment covers are able to reduce risk. But he also added that shippers not declaring dangerous goods is a real problem, and that governments need to reinforce the need for Fire containment covers and fire-resistant containers.
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\nSource: aircargoworld<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"