It’s There, But Can It Put Out A Fire?

Aircraft Fires. Just saying it sends chills down the spine of all pilots. The FAA published InFO 18013 (11/15/18) from Flight Standards as a caution to aircrews concerning proper inspection and maintenance of Hand-Held Fire Extinguishers. There have been instances where an extinguisher has leaked, and the time of discovery is the same as the time of need.

There may be required inspection intervals for the fire extinguishers, but those are no substitute for a good preflight.

Before flight, check fire extinguishers for the following:

• Inspection tags
• Security in their mounts
• Safety pin condition
• Charge level

Too often, we get used to seeing the extinguisher in the cockpit, but we fail to give it a second thought. The InFO serves to remind aircraft owners, operators, air agencies, suppliers, distributors, and maintenance technicians that hand-held/portable fire extinguishers have the potential to leak and should be inspected per the proper prescribing guidance.

Advanced Aircrew Academy has this InFo incorporated in our Emergency Procedures module. For more information on how we can customize and streamline your ground training with our endless supply of eLearning module topics, contact us at 843.557.1266 or info@aircrewacademy.com.