Eye opening by for sure...I was never dubious about these events but I haven't had the experience myself so I did start to wonder. Thanks for sharing, something I'll absolutely be cognizant for out on line.

 

As a society, we have become over medicated. We live in an ultra clean environment, use hand sanitizers, drink bottled water, and go to the doctor for the slightest ailment and demand an antibiotic or other remedy.

As a result, over time, our bodies natural immune systems and defense mechanisms are deteriorating and becoming less effective. Any little event that our bodies once dealt adequately with, will now overwhelm our frail, sensitive, candy assed bodies.

Not saying that is the case here, just saying....

 

Despite your disclaimer at the end, I feel you in some way are insinuating or outright saying that the global resistance to antibiotics is somehow related to an increased reaction to the neurotoxin called tricresyl phosphates. That is fake science and one of the dumbest things I've read on here. I'm sure those asbestos workers back in the day were "overmedicated candy asses" whose bodies were too weak to fight off the asbestos related cancer. Hope you volunteer to go fly all the "dirty sock smell" planes with your superior immune system.

 

Since it's not the case here... the first two paragraphs were useless in this thread. Just sayin.

 

One case study does not make a pandemic. 50 percent of marriages end in divorce. Does that mean that you personally have a 50% chance of getting divorced? It does not.

I'm not saying there's not a problem. I spent hundreds of hours as a primary flight instructor dipping my hand into the fuel tanks of a C152 filled with 100LL. Because it was taught that way and as a 19 yr old I did it. So medical history is relevant and we're largely ignoring that here. Do you cut your own grass? Ever spill gas on yourself? Ever take supplements for "health"- you know, the stuff not regulated by the FDA that was laced with all sorts of stuff the last two decades? Ever get a blood test to screen for herpes I? (Estimates are 50-63% of the population has antibodies to it from exposure) and that can be passed in saliva in the mask. That little wet wipe won't do a thing unless you get every single microbe. And that's impossible unless it's a vacuum sealed vessel with say, gaseous formaldehyde. My point is that we're exposed to countless things that have far more statistical significance than the "odors."

Ever smoke ribs or a brisket? Cancerous. Do you drink alcohol? It's a toxin. Ever smoke a cigar? Have unprotected sex ?Eat sushi? That's raw food. Like your steaks rare to medium rare? Eat a runny egg yolk? Raw oysters? Salmonella. Wife get Botox (botulism, a poison)? Could be hospitalized for weeks or months for many of these. All potential career enders.

Is there a problem? Perhaps. In one week we had 6 fumes events with two diversions. Is this happening at this rate with other operators? It's not.

Driving in traffic is dangerous. Do we not leave the house because of the risk? We take calculated risks everyday. Four drinks in more than one sitting is considered Binge Drinking. Any guesses on how the pilot community would come out statistically on that one? 3-2-1 special at happy hour...should we end it? Seems it's hazardous to pilot longevity. Along with buffets. They encourage overeating. Obesity is also a killer but we keep eating the cheeseburgers and worrying about fumes.

 

So I guess you are the guy who's cool with hydraulic fluid in your urine.

I just want to repeat one thing that blew my mind. "There is NO FILTER between the engine bleed and the cabin." Wow. That smell is pure chemicals.

 

No I'm not. I'm wondering how you arrived at that conclusion from my statements. I'm pointing out flawed reasoning, psychological bias, inaccurate heuristics, and dubious statistical inferences. There's also no filter between your home furnace - perhaps with heating oil - and your lungs. Unless you installed it. So you're an alcohol drinker then (e.g. Consumer of toxin for pleasure)?

Do you clean the ducts on your house yearly?

So you have tested positive for hydraulic fluid in your urine? Maybe it's the glycol in your shampoo.

 

I had a heating oil furnace once. I installed a smoke detector that also happened to detect CO. As soon as I powered it up the alarm went crazy. Turns out my old heater had been pumping out potentially lethal levels of CO. It was immediately replaced.

If you are cool inhaling vaporized engine oil, have at it. But when you have 150 people, women, children and babies you are potentially poisoning by not doing anything because of faulty "heuristics" I have problem with that.

Again, there is no filter, or water separator between the engine and you. The dirty sock smell is vaporized engine oil.

 

What struck me is how relatively simple most of these incidents are to mitigate. Admittedly I may have heard the speaker incorrectly but it sounds like in general getting the pack off at the first sign of odor is the trick to nipping this in the bud. The APU problem seems more insidious. What about a CO detector in the cockpit? Seems fairly easy to do.

Seems we should all have a fairly easy checklist of O2 Masks on, suspected pack off, wait three minutes and check if the smell went away. If not switch packs. It sounded like it is unlikely to be coming from both engines at the same time.

As a guy brand new to the bus I will definitely be keeping this in mind, though it sounds like all planes but the 787 could be susceptible.

 

I know at my previous carrier, the dirty sock smell was nothing out of the ordinary. You'd come across it regularly (at least once a 4 day). Couldn't say it was particular tail #'s, but did seem to happen during descents and in warmer climates (perhaps low power/high stage bleed air?).

With thousands of pilots flying these planes (just at our airline) you'd think there'd be greater instances of illness. Perhaps it manifests as a longer term chronic issue and only is acute in some people. Did I feel like crap sometimes, yes. Was it from the air or flying 5 legs over 13 hours? Who knows.

I do get regular annual physicals outside of work. Not sure if any of this would manifest in routine blood work. Would this be something the union could organize by getting a large enough sample of pilots (volunteers) to submit to physicals specifically related to engine oil toxicity.