UPS Tests Lithium Battery Cargo Safety Aids

Dean Sigler Electric Powerplants, Sustainable Aviation 1 Comment

Aviation Week reports that United Parcel Service (UPS) “is ready to start FAA certification testing of an active fire-suppression system fitted to the cargo carrier’s new fire-resistant containers, preventive measures aimed in large part at protecting crews from lithium-type battery fires.”   The fire-resistant containers are the center of attention right now, though. After the fatal crash of a UPS Boeing 747-400F in Dubai in September 2010, United Arab Emirates investigators “determined that a large fire developed in the palletized cargo on the ‘Class E’ main deck in an area that included ‘a significant number of lithium-based batteries and other combustible materials,’” according to the Aviation Week report.  That fire had filled the flight deck with smoke within three minutes of its detection and the intense heat had damaged aircraft control systems. MACRO Industries of Huntsville, Alabama makes composite armor for military vehicles.  Their MacroLite panels are half the weight of aluminum and provide superior fire protection.    UPS looked at this material …