Flybe says crew not refusing to fly planes in fumes row
23.10.07
Regional low-cost airline Flybe has denied reports that some of its crew members are refusing to fly certain of its planes because of safety fears sparked by fumes entering the cabin.
On Sunday the BBC reported that planes flown by budget airline Flybe between Birmingham and Belfast City Airport have been contaminated by noxious fumes and claimed that flight crew members are refusing to fly on some of its planes, saying their health and that of passengers is being put at risk.
The BBC reported that, in the past 15 months, its investigation found that noxious fumes leaked into aircraft cabins on ten of the airline's flights operating on the Birmingham to Belfast and Gatwick to Belfast routes. These all involve the same type of aircraft - the 146 made by British Aerospace.
In the most serious incident two crew members were sick when overcome by fumes on a flight from Birmingham to Belfast in July. On landing, all seven crew members were taken to hospital, and one of the stewardesses was off work for a month.
Responding to the reports, a spokeswoman for the airline did not dispute the number of incidents reported, but denied that any pilots or cabin crew had boycotted BAe 146 planes as a result. She said: 'We have 700 people operating the planes and not once have we had an incident where somebody has refused to fly.'
'Flybe is completely confident that its aircraft are operated and maintained to the highest industry standards. However, in line with many previous public announcements, Flybe took a commercial decision several years ago to reduce the number of aircraft types operated from three to two. As a result the BAe 146 fleet will have been withdrawn by February, 2008.'
Following the company's takeover of BA Connect earlier this year, it is phasing out the older aircraft to leave it with a fleet of more environmentally friendly Embraer 195 and Bombardier Q400 planes.
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