Air carriers and aircraft manufacturers have kept secret for years something that affects regularly their crews and passengers. The air you breath on a flight can be heavily contaminated.
Faulty engineering design
One thing most people ignore is how the air comes in the cabin. It cannot come directly from the outside because of the difference in pressure and freezing temperatures. Initially, an electric compressor was required for this operation but it was bulky and noisy so in the 1950’s, some engineers find a smart way to warm up the air, directly through the engines. However, anti freeze, oil and kerosene can leak in the engine and get sprayed inside the cabin. Most planes lack air filters and the seals which are supposed to reduce these risks often lack longevity and do not work anymore especially on old planes.
Symptoms
Specifically, organophosphates will be absorbed by the organism, and they are also found in pesticides, insecticides and even in chemical weapons... The chemicals depending on accumulation can cause severe dizziness, headaches, vision problems, chronic fatigue or breathing problems. Air crew and passengers describe a smell similar to wet dog or dirty socks. According to some conservative studies performed by the airlines, these types of incidents would happen every 2000 hours of flight but when talking to air crew, the problem seems to be much more frequent, and airlines are often unwilling to cancel the next flights to fix the planes when it happens. The crew will be much more exposed to aerotoxic syndrome than the general public given the time they spend in the cabin.
Health crisis
Several flights had emergency landing because most of the crew was incapacitated. Some passengers were also affected. Several stewards or pilots even had to stop their career because they experienced one too many “fume event” and they suffered from neurological damage so severe that they could not perform the most simple tasks anymore. A British Airways co-pilot even died after experiencing typical symptoms like headaches and nausea for months. He alerted the direction but they denied any link to cockpit air quality.
Airlines and manufacturers response
The airlines response has always been that the problem does not exist and that they are fully compliant with the regulations. However, we can wonder if the regulation is not outdated given the amount of evidence pilling up. Boeing changed the air system on their latest 787 dreamliner installing an electric compressor (so that the air does not go through the engines anymore) but they still deny any issues on their other planes. Some airlines like Easyjet while still downplaying these incidents are looking into putting in place air filters but not before 2020 unfortunately.
Lawsuit
But air crew unions are taking the matter in their own hands and several law suits have been filled in the US and Europe against airlines and manufacturers like Boeing and Airbus. They are up against a very powerful lobby, I hope the lawsuits will lead to a verdict and won’t be settled outside of the tribunal (it happened before unfortunately).
Meanwhile, I would advise you to wear a mask with carbon filter when you fly to avoid any risk of being affected in case of a toxic fume event especially if you are a frequent flyer. Let me know in the comments if you have experienced any of these symptoms during or after a flight.