1、_ SAE Technical Standards Board Rules provide that: “This report is published by SAE to advance the state of technical and engineering sciences. The use of this report is entirely voluntary, and its applicability and suitability for any particular use, including any patent infringement arising there
2、from, is the sole responsibility of the user.” SAE reviews each technical report at least every five years at which time it may be reaffirmed, revised, or cancelled. SAE invites your written comments and suggestions. Copyright 2006 SAE International All rights reserved. No part of this publication m
3、ay be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of SAE. TO PLACE A DOCUMENT ORDER: Tel: 877-606-7323 (inside USA and Canada) Tel: 724-776-4970 (outside USA)
4、 Fax: 724-776-0790 Email: CustomerServicesae.org SAE WEB ADDRESS: http:/www.sae.org AIR5690 AEROSPACE INFORMATION REPORT Issued 2006-08 Considerations for the Carriage and Use of Visual Distress Signals in Airline Overwater Survival Kits RATIONALE The risk posed to aircraft ditching survivors by pyr
5、otechnic signaling devices can be allayed by the use of TSO C-168 approved Aviation Distress Signals (ADSs) in lieu of the pyrotechnics devices currently required in airline overwater survival kits. In addition, the high-performance ADSs provide an equivalent level of signaling capability without th
6、e costs associated with hazardous pyrotechnic materials. This AIR provides the premise for the recommended use of ADSs. 1. SCOPE This SAE Aerospace Information Report (AIR) is intended to promote awareness of the dangers associated with the carriage and use of pyrotechnic signaling devices in multi-
7、place life rafts and slide/rafts on transport category aircraft. Also included is background information and a rationale for replacing these devices with alternative signaling devices, which offer effective signaling and reduced flammability, yielding an “equivalent level of safety,” as required by
8、the FAA for replacement of the required pyrotechnic signaling device. 2. REFERENCES 2.1 Applicable Documents The following publications form a part of this document to the extent indicated herein. The latest issue of SAE publications shall apply. The applicable issue of other publications shall be t
9、he issue in effect on the date of the purchase order. In the event of conflict between the text of this document and references cited herein, the text of this document takes precedence. Nothing in this document, however, supersedes applicable laws and regulations unless a specific exemption has been
10、 obtained. 2.1.1 SAE Publications Available from SAE International, 400 Commonwealth Drive, Warrendale, PA 15096-0001, Tel: 877-606-7323 (inside USA and Canada) or 724-776-4970 (outside USA), www.sae.org. AS1282 Survival Kits AS5134 Aviation Distress Signal 2.1.2 FAA Publications Available from Fede
11、ral Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20591, Tel: 866-835-5322, www.faa.gov. FAA Technical Standard Order C-168, Aviation Visual Distress Signals FAA Advisory Circular 91-58A, Use of Pyrotechnic Visual Distress Signaling Devices in Aviation SAE AIR5690 - 2 - FAA Ad
12、visory Circular 120-47, Survival Equipment for Overwater Use U. S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 14, 25.1415, Ditching equipment U. S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 14, 121.339, Emergency equipment for extended over-water operations U. S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 49, Parts 100-18
13、5, Other regulations relating to transportation U. S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 29, 1910, Occupational Safety and Health Standards 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 Development of AS5134 In 1996, the SAE S-9 Cabin Safety Provisions Technical Committee reviewed the concerns expressed by its membership regar
14、ding the safety of pyrotechnic signaling devices required for carriage aboard transport category aircraft by Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 25 (14 CFR 25). The committee concluded that pyrotechnics pose a potential risk to survivors of ditchings, in that improper use could signifi
15、cantly damage an inflatable life raft, rendering it useless. Inadequate or non-existent flotation would then expose survivors to hypothermia, predatory marine life, and drowning. As a result, the S-9 Committee developed AS5134, the purpose of which is to “define a device that can be used in lieu of
16、pyrotechnic devices in aviation survival kits.” AS5134 establishes performance requirements for an alternative visual distress signal that eliminates the hazards posed by pyrotechnic devices. The alternative device is a high-intensity, handheld strobe light with a specific lighting signature designe
17、d to provide an equivalent level of safety to single-use pyrotechnic flares. 3.2 Current Regulatory Status Regarding emergency equipment for extended overwater operations, 14 CFR 121.339(a)(3) requires “at least one pyrotechnic signaling device for each life raft” and, 121.339(b) calls for a surviva
18、l-type emergency locator transmitter (ELT). In addition, 121.339(c) requires that “a survival kit, appropriately equipped for the route to be flown, must be attached to each required life raft.” The transmitter and survival kit are also required ditching equipment designated in 14 CFR 25.1415. FAA A
19、dvisory Circular (AC) 120-47 provides a “means, but not the only means for compliance with the pertinent regulations” regarding emergency equipment for extended overwater operations and emergency flotation means. It offers a comprehensive listing of survival items that “should be carried during airc
20、raft extended overwater operations.” The AC recommends carriage of at least one pyrotechnic signaling device, but also lists such items as magnetic compass, radar reflector, desalination kit, fishing kit, and a 1,000-calorie ration for each raft occupant. None of the latter items are currently provi
21、sioned in extended overwater survival kits by U.S. airliners. The FAA issued AC 91-58A, “Use of Pyrotechnic Visual Distress Signaling Devices in Aviation,” on February 10, 2000. The reader of this document is strongly urged to read AC 91-58A in its entirety. The following is an excerpt from the AC:
22、The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recognizes that many pilots and operators of aircraft are utilizing some distress signaling devices that are inherently dangerous, as well as ineffective, when used in actual emergencies. Typical of the problem is the use of “railroad or highway flares,” whi
23、ch produce an excessive amount of high temperature slag, usually burn the user when hand held, and are easily extinguished when used in open bodies of water. Further, the incendiary nature of these and other pyrotechnics presents problems for their safe and proper storage in the aircraft environment
24、. This advisory circular is written to guide the pilot/operator in the proper use and identification of pyrotechnic signaling devices. SAE AIR5690 - 3 - After discussing the advantages and limitations of various pyrotechnic devices, Paragraph 7.a. of the document continues: If young children are car
25、ried on board your aircraft, careful stowage of visual distress signals becomes especially important. Projected devices, such as pistol-launched and hand-held parachute flares and meteors, have many of the characteristics of a firearm and should be handled with the same caution. The FAA has recently
26、 denied at least one request from a major U.S. airline for exemption from the operating rule cited above that requires the carriage of pyrotechnic devices. The airlines request applied for the replacement of pyrotechnic devices on its overwater-equipped fleet with handheld strobe lights. The signifi
27、cant technical objection in the FAAs denial of exemption was that the aviation distress signal did not include a viable daylight signaling capability. It should be noted here, however, that pyrotechnic signals currently used by the majority of U.S. airlines (small red meteor flares) also do not have
28、 an effective daylight visual signaling capability. Other devices carried within the kit, such as signaling mirrors and sea dye markers, fulfill this need. On March 25, 2004, the FAA issued Technical Standard Order (TSO) C-168, “Aviation Visual Distress Signals,” which referenced SAE AS 5134 as its
29、technical basis. 4. HAZARDS AND COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH PYROTECHNICS This section summarizes the views of the S-9 Committee, developed during the process of drafting AS5134, including experience and knowledge gained by committee members during actual life raft trials off the coast of Hawaii in 1998, i
30、nvolving deployment of pyrotechnic flares. 4.1 Primary Concern Improper handling and/or deployment of pyrotechnic devices can result in potentially catastrophic damage to life rafts and slide/rafts, compromising the air-holding capability of these life-saving devices. Such an event could place some
31、or all of the occupants into the water, exposing them to predatory marine life, hypothermia, and drowning. This problem can be exacerbated by the following contributing factors: a. Sea state will contribute to the hazards of handling and deploying pyrotechnics aboard multi-place life rafts by creati
32、ng an unstable platform for the operator holding a burning pyrotechnic. Wind can worsen this situation by blowing burning effluents back into the raft and/or onto occupants. b. A life raft overcrowded with emotional and panicked occupants would be a high-risk environment for deploying a pyrotechnic,
33、 particularly a ballistic-type device. c. The absence of individuals trained in the deployment of pyrotechnic devices, even in a well-organized life raft/survivor environment, is a potential danger. A survey of airline crew members and trainers, conducted early in the S-9 Committee project, indicate
34、d that airline flight and cabin crews do not conduct live-fire training in the deployment of pyrotechnic devices. d. The deployment of recommended pyrotechnic devices, even by aviation industry safety experts, can create unsafe and hazardous conditions in relatively mild sea and wind states. 4.2 Sec
35、ondary Concern Unrelated to the physical dangers the use of pyrotechnics poses to survivors of ditchings, there is a significant threat imposed on the traveling public by the existence of and potential access to dangerous pyrotechnics within the aircraft cabin during flight. a. Pyrotechnics are curr
36、ently installed in survival kits packed within portable life rafts located in overhead, closet, or ceiling compartments accessible from the aircraft cabin. Pyrotechnics installed within some door-mounted slide/raft devices are also accessible from the cabin interior. SAE AIR5690 - 4 - b. In at least
37、 one major passenger aircraft configuration (Boeing 757), remote survival kits that include pyrotechnic devices are located in unsecured overhead bins near exits. These bins can and have been opened during passenger enplaning/deplaning, with the survival kits in full sight. c. If unauthorized indivi
38、duals gain command of an aircraft cabin in flight, it would be relatively easy for knowledgeable accomplices to gain access to life rafts (or separately installed survival kits), retrieve the pyrotechnics, and then use those devices for threat or harm during flight. d. Deployment of any of the types
39、 of pyrotechnics common to airline overwater survival kits within an aircraft cabin, with or without intent, can cause combustion of aircraft interior materials and initiate an in-flight cabin fire with well-understood consequences. The manufacturer of the most popular pyrotechnic device, currently
40、used by airlines, markets a smaller version of the device specifically as a fire-starter. 4.3 Other Concerns There are several issues that pose both potential and actual non-value-added cost burdens on the airline industry, unrelated to the physical dangers the use of pyrotechnics poses to survivors
41、 of ditchings or the danger associated with access to and use of such devices in an in-flight environment. a. The well-known dangers of pyrotechnics make any accident, harm, loss of property or life associated with their use by untrained or unauthorized individuals in an in-flight or overwater emerg
42、ency a potential legal liability and cost to the carrier. b. Pyrotechnics are classified as hazardous materials and as such are governed by strict shipping, handling, and disposal restrictions (e.g., 49 CFR Parts 100-185, 29 CFR 1910). These restrictions and regulations create significant non-value-
43、added cost to the airline industry. Elimination of these costs would have a measurable and positive impact on all airlines that conduct overwater operations. 5. EMERGENCY SIGNALING DEVICES This section provides information on distress signaling devices that are carried within and/or are available fo
44、r use in survival kits. These devices support both day and night signaling. The types of pyrotechnic signaling devices common in current airline overwater survival kits are also discussed. 5.1 Pyrotechnic Devices Rafts and standard airline survival kits generally contain these signaling items to mee
45、t the “suitability” requirement in 14 CFR 121.339(c). The FAA recommends the carriage of some or all of these devices in survival kits (AC 120-47). 5.1.1 Survivor Locator Light A one-candela incandescent light that radiates hemispherically from the center of its ground plane. This type of light is r
46、equired by FAA TSOs covering life rafts, slides/rafts, and individual life preservers. 5.1.2 Whistle Generally provided as a part of airline crew life vests, and in some survival kits, as aural signaling and survivor marshalling devices. 5.1.3 Sea Dye Marker A bright green dye that stains the water
47、surrounding a life raft to attract the attention of airborne personnel during daylight. SAE AIR5690 - 5 - 5.1.4 Signaling Mirror One of the most valuable of the daylight signaling devices and, when used properly in conditions of reasonable visibility, can attract the attention of both seagoing and a
48、irborne personnel many miles away. 5.2 Commonly Used Pyrotechnics 5.2.1 Handheld Day/Night Flare Historically, the most common pyrotechnic device provisioned in airline overwater survival kits was the military-type day/night combination flare and smoke device. This device comprises two pyrotechnic d
49、evices - one on each end of a tubular metal enclosure - each of which is designed to be deployed while being held by the operator. The device includes a brightly burning pyrotechnic for signaling at night, and a colored smoke-generating device for daylight signaling. Both pyrotechnics, even when properly used by trained individuals, develop burning or molten effluents that can harm the operator and burn holes in the inflatable chambers that con
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