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Explosive Depressurisation
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| Article Information | ||
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| Category: | General | 
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| Content source: | SKYbrary | 
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| Content control: | EUROCONTROL | 
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Explosive Depressurisation/Decompression
Contents |
Definition
Decompression which occurs rapidly and at a rate which is greater than the rate the lungs can decompress by will cause lung damage. The likelihood of the rate of decompression reaching a level where lung damage is possible is increased for any particular size of pressure hull breach by the size of the pressure hull overall.
Discussion
A decompression of an aircraft which takes less than 0.5 seconds is considered by most authorities to be “explosive”. The cabin air may fill with dust and debris, and fog caused by an associated drop in temperature and change in relative humidity. Crew may be momentarily dazed or shocked, especially if the event was unexpected, and may therefore be slow to fit oxygen masks.
The great danger of depressurisation is crew incapacitation due to Hypoxia. The Time of Useful Consciousness is reduced by the explosive nature of the decompression. Decompression Sickness is another hazard associated with high altitude decompression.
If the cause of the decompression is structural failure, failure of a window for example, there may be a risk of some crew or passengers being buffeted by strong winds, hit by debris, and extreme cold temperatures, or even being sucked out of the aircraft - another reason for wearing a seat belt or harness when the seated.
Related Articles
Further Reading
- See FAA "Lessons Learned from Transport Airplane Accidents": Pressurization / Decompression Failures