II. Match the words with their meaning.

1. odor                                                       a) source of fire                                                       

2. to increase                                              b) to put out                                                                                                                                                                                          

3. fire started                                              c) to suffocate                                                                                                         

4. harmful air                                             d) smell

5. carelessly                                               e) to intensify                                                                                                                

6. the origins of fire                                   f) to smolder                                    

7. to burn without flames                           g) to break out

8. emergency slides                                    h) to choke

9. to gasp for breath, to pant                      i) noxious fumes

10. to eradicate                                             j) loosely

11. to blaze up                                              k) escape chutes

12. to extinguish fire                                    l) to burst into flames

13. to have breathing problems                    m) to eliminate

 

III. Complete the sentences with suitable word in correct form.( sometimes parts of speech transformations are necessary)

to intensify     loosely    to ignite(2)  to spread    to catch  noxious         to eliminate       to smolder     substances   to discharge to choke to put out        to reignite    to go off  to explode    source of fire escape chutes      to burst into flames      evacuation    fire resistant    to burst out         to ashes

1. People started coughing and…………due to ……………fumes in the cabin.

2. The engine ………………..fire after a bird strike.

3. As the fire……………., the chaos in the cabin increased.

4. The aircraft……………..which were visible for a long distance.

5. The cargo was …………..packed, so because of friction it…………...

6. Flight attendant didn’t manage to………….fire as it ……………very quickly.

7. They………………fire extinguisher.

8. Feared of …………….. the crew diverted to the nearest airport.

9. As the fire alarm ……… pilots immediately started …………the problem.

10. They failed in determining …………… and the aircraft ……………..

11. The plane seats are made of ………..materials but it can not exclude the possibility of ………… in the cabin.

12. It’s necessary to deploy…………..for immediate ……………….

13. Nobody was aware of wires ………….. inside the control panel.

14. Easy flammable ………….caused ……………….

 

III. Mind the prepositions and answer the questions.

……………..can result in…………….

…………….can lead to………………

……………..can cause……………….

 

1. What can sparkle result in?

2. What can loosely packed dangerous cargo lead to?

3. What can electrical short circuit  cause?

V. Speculate upon the questions.

1. How hazardous is in flight fire?

2. What may it be caused by?

3. What kind of human mistakes can lead to ignition on the board?

4. What do we call dangerous goods?

5. What groups do they fall into?

6. Are there any restrictions as for their transportation?

7. What types of fire exist on the board? Which one is more perilous in your opinion?

8. What emergency equipment is your plane equipped with? What is the purpose of it?

9. What are the actions of crew in case fire in the cabin is not extinguished?

10. What actions do they have to undertake if the engine caught fire?

11. How should ATC act if he/she has traffic with fire on board in his/her sector?

 

VI. Read the text and discuss it.

FIRE ON BOARD

Fire is one of the most hazardous situation as it spreads so quickly, as according to statistics affected aircraft has only 17 minutes to initiate emergency descent, perform emergency landing and evacuate the passengers. Otherwisewithout aggressive intervention by the flight crew the aircraft will burn to ashes.

Cause

 Fire may be caused by a number of reasons:

· technical problems (electrical system malfunction, electrical short circuit, engine failure which was due to ingestion of debris or bird strike, ignition of dangerous easy-flammable goods during transportation)

· outside factor (lightning strike, hail, severe turbulence, bird strike)

· human factor:

√ Passengers’ error. Most carriers prohibit smoking in the aircraft. This, coupled with the use of fire resistant materials, has reduced the likelihood of fire caused by a cigarette. Nevertheless, despite it minority of passengers continue to smoke in the lavatories. Thus not extinguished cigarette can pose risk to the safety. Explosion of bomb by terrorists can obviously lead to fire.

√ Cabin crew error. Airlines comment that most in-flight and ground fire/smoke events relate to the galley and involve some kind of electrical equipment. Oven fires may occur because of items(which are not heat resistant) being placed inside the oven by FAs (e.g. oven being used as storage place for folders or checklists, or to dry shoes) or because of overheating, or electrical overload/short circuit. In addition to ovens, there is a lot of equipment in the galley wrong usage of which can cause a fire (e.g. coffee or water heaters on without any water in).

√ Airport security officers’ error. Overhead compartment fire is often caused by passengers’ hand luggage which was not thoroughly checked (e.g. nail polish remover, medicinal or toilet articles, safety matches, and other prohibited items).

√ Flight crew / loaders error. Loosely packed dangerous goods (which are not thoroughly controlled by pilots) by loaders can ignite due to friction.

The International Civil Aviation Organization defines Dangerous goods   as “ articles or substances which are capable of posing risk to health, safety, property and the environment.”

Dangerous goods fall into 9 classes:

 Class 1: Explosives – Explosive substances, explosive articles, and pyrotechnic devices, for example, ammunition, and fireworks.

Class 2: Gases                  

Class 3: Flammable liquids – Examples are petrol, alcohol, and perfume.

Class 4: Flammable solids – Examples are matches, flammable metal powder