CABIN DECOMPRESSION

Original idea from Fred George

In the "Highly unlikely event" your aircraft loses pressurization, how well would you and your passengers fair ?
Bang! "Explosive" or rapid decompression makes quite an impression Bon your senses, even if it's a simulated event in a hypobaric altitude chamber. Your ears pop, your eyes water, dust flies in the cockpit and the temperature plunges below freezing. Water vapor in the "cabin" may instantly condense as fog. If you were in a transport category airplane, warning lights would glare and/or warning horns would blare. All those sensations are unmistakable signs of explosive decompression. At typical business aircraft cruise altitudes, you have only a few seconds of useful consciousness time to don your oxygen mask before hypoxia claims you as a victim, as shown by the accompanying Time of Useful Consciousness graph. Yet, eight out of 10 pilots who haven't rehearsed the event take as long as 15 seconds to respond with corrective action when they experience loss of cabin pressurization, according to U.S. Air Force research. Notably, USAF decompression experiments involved young, fit pilots who passed rigorous military flight physicals. The classic aviation physiology model is based upon putting "normal" people into an abnormal environment. However, in reality, chances are some of your passengers will have abnormal physiology, such as advanced age or other aggravating cardiovascular issues that may exacerbate the effects of hypoxia. If you were to lose pressurization suddenly, your priorities would be clear. In a business aircraft, you have a small fraction of the time to respond to the incident compared to pilots of an airliner, because of the relatively small cabin air volume escaping from the pressure vessel, according to data compiled by the FAA's Civil Aeromedical Institute (CAMI). Moreover, you're probably cruising at a considerably higher flight level than most airliners, increasing the severity of the problem. Immediately, you and your passengers would need supplemental oxygen. If you get your mask on properly and start the flow of oxygen, you will recover in as little as 15 seconds, even if you are on the verge of unconsciousness, according to USAF research. You would have to start an emergency descent. Most diluter demand and pressure demand emergency oxygen masks only are rated for a maximum altitude of 40,000 to 43,000 feet. Above 45,000 feet, even pressure breathing masks can't supply enough oxygen because the gas pressure in the lungs is too low. Passengers and cabin attendants don't have the same level of protection as the flightcrew. Their continuous-flow masks typically are rated by the manufacturer to 30,000 feet. Most business aircraft manufacturers and the USAF recommend not using continuous-flow passenger oxygen systems above 25,000 feet cabin altitude. During the descent, you also would have to avoid other air traffic, terrain and hazardous weather. And you have to communicate your problems with ATC.

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In the chamber, or in a flight simulator, the entire compound emergency event is over and you're safely back at ground elevation within a few moments. Another training event to log and forget, some might say. Over a cup of coffee, if you bring up the possibility of cabin depressurization with any group of experienced business aircraft pilots, more than a few may roll their eyes if as to say, "Yeah, sure! It couldn't happen in my airplane. That only happens in altitude chambers and onboard aging airliners." Statistically, that's true. ln the late 1960s, the FAA conducted a study of depressurization events in business, airliner and military jet transport aircraft. The FAA concluded that the odds of experiencing cabin depressurization were one in 54,300 flight hours, according to research conducted by a team headed by Stanley R. Mohler, M.D., then chief of the FAA's Aeromedical Applications Division. Today, cabin depressurization incidents in business aircraft are few and far between. But every few years they still occur, according to the FANs Service Difficulty Reports. And they happen frequently enough to merit consideration, especially if one happens when you're hundreds of miles away from the closest suitable divert field. Imagine how you would handle a cabin pressurization loss if you were midway between San Francisco and Honolulu, stretching the legs of a midsize jet at FL 390. Or, put yourself 1,500 miles northeast of White Plains, N.Y., when you lose cabin pressurization and then find out that Gander, Goose and Halifax are below minimums. Then, consider your options if you experience depressurization over Alaska or the Yukon, halfway between the United States and West Asia in mid-winter in an ultra-long-range business aircraft. During any of these scenarios, the need to conserve fuel or avoid high terrain enroute to a suitable divert field might force you to fly for an extended period well above a maximum safe cabin altitude.

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RECOGNIZING LOSS OF PRESSURIZATION

Most depressurization events aren't as obvious as the sudden loss of pressure in the hypobaric chamber. If they occur, they usually are more insidious, according to Service Difficulty Reports. For example, after takeoff, a faulty landing-gear squat switch or electrical short might keep the solenoid of a cabin outflow valve in the fully open, or ground, depressurized position. En route, a fissure or break in a pressurization or bleed air duct might cause a partial loss of pressurization. A door or emergency exit seal unseats, causing a substantial air pressure leak. Transport category aircraft systems provide three types of warnings if the cabin altitude climbs above die 8,000-foot maximum limit specified by FAR Part 25.841. First, the rule requires that an aural alarm or visual warning alert the crew upon reaching 10,000 feet cabin altitude. Second, passenger oxygen masks must deploy automatically prior to reaching 15,000 feet cabin altitude. On the Learjet 45, for example, the passenger masks automatically deploy at 14,500 feet cabin altitude. Automatic mask deployment is triggered at 13,000 feet cabin altitude in the Gulfstream V Third, in some turbofan aircraft, an emergency pressurization system automatically will activate, routing hot, high pressure, high velocity (read unmistakably "noisy") engine bleed air directly to the pressure vessel for maximum possible pressurization. For example, the Learjet 35's emergency pressurization system automatically is activated at 9,500 feet cabin altitude on serial number 113 and subsequent aircraft. In addition to aircraft systems activation, your passengers also provide warnings of excessively high cabin altitude in the form of hypoxia symptoms. There are four types of hypoxia, as shown in the accompanying table. Hot and cold flashes, a feeling of ants crawling on the skin and dizziness, along with nausea, blurred vision, slurred speech and mental confusion are typical signs. Reaction times are slowed. Senses of touch and pain are diminished. Skin under the finger nails may turn bluish. Hearing, though, is one of the last senses to go. Behavior shifts, also may be signs. Once you confront the loss of cabin pressure and have to deal with the effects of hypoxia by using supplemental oxygen, your oxygen allocation priorities are clear. Flightcrew members are first, passengers and cabin attendants are second. None of the occupants will survive the event if the crew loses consciousness. The crew first, passengers second principle is part of the design of the supplemental oxygen system. Flightcrew members are provided with quick-donning masks that can provide as much diluted or 100-percent oxygen as the crew demands by breathing. Diluter demand masks, if properly fitted to the face, can provide a sea-level partial pressure of oxygen up to an altitude of 33,700 feet, thus ensuring full cognitive and motor skills, plus normal visual acuity. Passengers and cabin attendants typically are provided with a low volume, continuous flow of oxygen to their masks. The intent is to keep the cabin occupants physically safe from the dangers of hypoxia, but not necessarily mentally sharp at excessive cabin altitudes. Continuous flow masks for the passengers only have to deliver 68 to 82 percent as much oxygen as diluter demand flightcrew masks, according to the Part 25 certification rules. Ideally, supplemental oxygen only will be needed until you can descend, stabilize the cabin altitude below 10,000 feet, and proceed to the closest suitable divert field.

SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN DURATION

For extended-range operations, fitting the aircraft with the largest capacity emergency oxygen system increases your options should your aircraft suffer a partial or total loss of pressurization. The actual duration of available oxygen depends upon the number of flightcrew members, the pressure altitude of the cabin and the number of cabin occupants.

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The amount of oxygen supplied by the diluter demand masks in the cockpit is dependent upon the pressure altitude of the cabin, coupled with the crew's respiration rate and depth. Momentarily, this can be as much as 19 liters per minute above 35,000 feet cabin altitude, according to Part 25 certification requirements. Typically, though, oxygen duration charts are based on each crewmember's consuming two to five liters per minute at 10,000- to 25,000-foot cabin altitudes. Four liters per minute for each passenger is a good rule of thumb, although some continuous-flow

FOUR TYPES OF HYPOXIA

Hypoxic Hypoxia - Respiration fundamentally involves the supply of oxygen to the air sacs of the lungs and the exhaust of carbon dioxide. Oxygen compromises 20.9 percent of the volume of the atmosphere up to 80,000 feet. Assuming a sea level pressure of 760 mm Hg, the partial pressure of oxygen is 159 mm Hg in ambient air. However, the lungs not only exhaust carbon dioxide, they also transpire water vapor at a relatively constant pressure of 47 mm Hg. This "hydrostatic pressure" effectively reduces the overall air pressure to 713 mm Hg; thus, the partial pressure of oxygen in the trachea is reduced to 149 mm Hg at sea level. By donning a diluter demand crew mask and using supplemental oxygen, the 149 mm Hg sea level partial pressure of oxygen in the lungs can be maintained up to 33,700 feet. Above that altitude, there isn't enough ambient pressure to provide 100 percent oxygen saturation in the lungs, even when using pure oxygen. At 36500 feet, for example, 100 percent oxygen provides the same oxygen partial pressure as ambient air at 51000 feet. Breathing pure oxygen at 39,500 feet is equivalent to breathing ambient air at 10,000 feet. Above that altitude, the partial pressure of oxygen in the trachea is insufficient to provide adequate oxygen in the blood. As the partial oxygen pressure is reduced, breathing rate and depth increase to help compensate for the effects of hypoxia. Pneumonia can cause scarring and abscesses in the lungs. Emphysema causes irreversible lung tissue degeneration. One of the most-common lung maladies is bronchiectasis, or thickening of the alveoli, commonly characterized by violent coughing and heavy expectoration of sputum. Such diseases can decrease lung capacity by as much as 50 percent, essentially raising the density altitude in the lungs from sea level to 18,000 feet for the affected individual. Alcohol, certain prescription painkillers containing opiates and antihistamines can suppress respiration rate and depth, thereby increasing the severity of hypoxic hypoxia. Hypemic or Anemic Hypoxia - Blood flowing through the lungs transports oxygen diffused through air sacs or alveoli. The blbbd's hemoglobin is remarkably efficient at binding with oxygen, even at reduced partial oxygen pressures in the lungs associated with increased attitudes At 5,000 feet pressure altitude, for example, hemoglobin still is 94-percent saturated with oxygen, only three percent less than at sea level. At 1,000 feet, hemoglobin is 90-percent saturated, and at 15,000 feet it's 80-percent saturated Anemia results when there is a reduction in blood hemoglobin content. This reduces the blood's ability to carry sufficient oxygen to the tissues. Anemic hypoxia can be caused by blood loss. In addition, carbon monoxide nitrates and certain prescription drugs can bind with hemoglobin, thereby preventing the hemoglobin from binding with oxygen. Stagnant Hypoxia - If cardiovascular circulation is impaired, then even the most-oxygen-rich blood can't transport oxygen to the tissues where it's needed. Arterio- and atherosclerosis, right to left cardiac shunts (leaks) that mix oxygen-rich venous blood with oxygen-rich arterial blood, or a weakened left heart ventricle can cause stagnant circulation. Histotoxic Hypoxia - Alcohol, certain narcotics and cyanide compounds can prevent the tissue cells from making full use of the oxygen available to them in the blood supply. If histotoxic hypoxia occurs, blood oxygen saturation levels typically are high because the cells cannot remove the oxygen from the hemoglobin. What's the single, most-important thing you can do to prevent multiple causes of hypoxia? "Don't smoke. There are 4,000 compounds in cigarette smoke. Numerous cardiovascular diseases and various forms of hypoxia are linked directly to smoking," emphasized Pat 0. Daily, M.D., director of cardiac surgery at Sharp Hospital in San Diego.

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systems may reduce oxygen consumption to as little as one liter per minute at a cabin altitude of 12,500 feet. Computing liters per minute is the easy part. Most aircraft, except for the latest models, don't have an oxygen level gauge calibrated in liters. Instead, the gauge reads psi. The oxygen duration in liters must be calculated as a function of bottle pressure, according to charts provided by the aircraft manufacturer. If oxygen reserves become tight, at 15,000 feet cabin altitude, you legally can turn off the supplemental oxygen Note: Range performance is for high-efficiency, high-bypass-ratio turbofans. Older, supply to the passengers, lower efficiency turbofans or turbojets may have less range at lower altitudes. according to Part 91.211, Part 121.329 and Part 135.157. This typically will reduce oxygen consumption to about 3.9 liters per minute for each flightcrew member. For example, 600 liters of oxygen will supply two crewmembers for 77 minutes, according to the Learjet 45 Approved Flight Manual. Above 15,000 feet, your passengers are at risk, according to the FAA and other sources. However, if you had to stretch your fuel supply, you might be able to fly at up to FL 200 for one to two hours, according to Pat 0. Daily, M.D., director of cardiac surgery at Sharp Hospital in San Diego. Daily also is a commercial instrument pilot and CFII who is type rated in the Cessna Citation. Daily's comments were echoed by Stanley R. Mohler, M.D., director of aerospace medicine at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Daily, Mohler and Russ Rayman, executive director of the Aerospace Medical Association in Washington, D.C., all caution that there is a high degree of variability in hypoxia tolerance caused by abnormal physiology and aging. Cardiovascular disease, prescription painkillers and alcohol can reduce the critical altitude for time of useful consciousness and hypoxia-induced unconsciousness by several thousand feet. just as importantly, cardiovascular disease, which is not symptomatic at sea level, becomes acutely apparent at high altitude.

RANGE PERFORMANCE VS. SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN ENDURANCE

Descending from FL 450 to FL 250 can reduce specific range performance by as pass-ratio turbofans. Older, lower efficiency turbofans or much as 30 percent in a turbofan aircraft, as shown in the accompanying Specific Range Performance chart. Simple math indicates that if you have two-thirds of your estimated fuel burn remaining at the equal time point on a long trip and are forced to descend from optimum cruise altitude to FL 250, you may have the option of pressing on to the destination airport or returning to the origin airport if there are no closer suitable divert landing facilities. However, sustained cruise at FL 250 requires having supplemental oxygen for both pilots

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and passengers. If you have to conserve both oxygen and fuel to fly to the closest suitable divert field, cruising FL 200 with supplemental oxygen available for crews but not the passengers poses serious risks. If your passengers all are in their early 20s and are in excellent health, the odds of long-term injury from sustained hypoxia may be minimal, according to Daily and Mohler. At FL 200, though, a high-efficiency turbofan aircraft retains 63 percent of its optimum specific range performance, which might prevent a "feet wet" landing short of the divert field during an extendedrange mission after loss of pressurization. Down at 15,000 feet, the crew should still be on oxygen, but passengers with normal physiology who are not using medications or alcohol should be safe from long-term injury from hypoxia, according to FAA regulations. At 15,000 feet, a turbofan business aircraft may retain up to 56 percent of its optimum specific range performance. If you are out of oxygen completely down at 10,000 feet, don't count on more than one-half of the range performance shown on your flight plan, as illustrated by the Specific Range Performance chart. The odds are against your experiencing depressurization in your flying career. But loss of cabin pressurization remains a statistical possibility four decades after the first business jets started flying extended range missions over water. Pilots who frequently make such trips compute the equal-time point between origin and destination, along with OEI range performance to the closest suitable divert fields. If you include loss of cabin pressurization among your list of contingency preparations for extended range missions, you'll afford yourself an extra measure of protection against this statistically rare, but potentially serious malfunction.

Hypobaric Chamber Training Facilities

The FAA and, the U.S. Air Force have a joint training agreement to offer high-altitude hypobaric chamber training to civilians for a nominal $35.00 fee. Applicants should contact FAA Aeromedical Education Division (AAM-400), Airman Education Programs, Civil Aeromedical Institute, Oklahoma City Okla. at (405) 954-4837 to schedule training sessions at any of the following facilities. Beale AFB, Marysville, Calif. Brooks AFB, san Antonio., Texas Columbus AFB, Columbus, Mich. Edwards AFB, Mojave, Calif. Fairchild AFB Spokane, Wash. Holloman AFB, Alamogordo, N.M. Langley AFB, Norfolk, Va. Laughlin AFB Del Rio, Texas Little Rock AFB, Little Rock, Ark. Mike Monroney Aeronautical Ctr., Offutt AFB, Omaha, Neb. Peterson AFB Colorado Springs, Colo. Randolph AFB, San Antonio, Texas Shaw AFB, Columbus, S.C. Sheppard AFB, Wichita Falls, Texas Tyndall AFB, Panama City, Fla; Vance AFB, Enid, Okla. Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton Ohio.

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