The Federal Aviation Administration issued a final rule Wednesday mandating technology to reduce the risk of fires on aircraft.
The rule requires that within two years all new aircraft must include a device that protects fuel tanks from explosion. In addition, passenger aircraft built after 1991 must be retrofitted with technology designed to keep center fuel tanks from catching fire.
The announcement came one day before the 12th anniversary of the historic crash of TWA flight 800, which was caused by such an explosion and killed all 230 people aboard.
"We want to do everything possible to make sure safety examiners won't have to investigate another plane shattered by an exploding tank," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters. "We can't change the past, but we can make the future safer for thousands of air travelers, and this rule does just that."
In the wake of the TWA crash, researchers with the FAA developed a breakthrough system that replaces oxygen in the fuel tank with inert nitrogen gas, which effectively prevents the potential ignition of flammable vapors. Commercial aircraft manufacturer Boeing independently developed a similar system.
"Today's rule will add another layer of safety reducing the chance that the vapors in the tank will ignite, even if there is a spark," said FAA Acting Administrator Robert A. Sturgell. |
