4 ms·

A bit off-topic, but I hate, hate, HATE the smell of airports and airplane cabins. I don't know if it's jet fuel or what, but I am certain we will one day disco

A bit off-topic, but I hate, hate, HATE the smell of airports and airplane cabins. I don't know if it's jet fuel or what, but I am certain we will one day discover that the fumes cause all sorts of maladies. I feel vaguely nauseous for the entire day after getting off a plane, and don't feel myself again until a good night's sleep.

carlmr 6y ago
I have thought the same thing for a while. When you're at the airport it smells like fuel. Everyone's talking about the radiation, but I'm wondering if pilots and stewardesses aren't exposed to much worse through the cabin air.
- cameronh90 6y ago
  Cabin air comes from the "bleed air", which is air from the compressor stage of the engine. Very rarely this air is noticeably contaminated due to engine issues, but I think it's valid to wonder if it's contaminated in a sub-perceptible way more often than that.
- drewwwwww 6y ago
  there are substantial unanswered questions about cabin air quality, both from long term chronic exposure as well as the acute occurrences known as “fume events.” not surprisingly, airlines, manufacturers, and the FAA are all working together to suppress a thorough understanding. the LA Times did a good investigatory piece at the end of last year: https://www.latimes.com/projects/toxic-chemicals-planes-covid-19-travel-woes/ https://www.latimes.com/projects/toxic-chemicals-planes-covi...
- paol 6y ago
  Cabin air is renewed at a high rate form the outside. It will contain fumes when the airplane is on the ground, because airport air contains fumes. The vast majority of the time the airplane is at cruising altitude, though. That air is as clean as you are going to get on planet earth.
  - mint2 6y ago
    *Except during fume events. Which are basically not tracked or measured well.
  - bloopbloo 6y ago
    I used to think the same thing, then it was pointed out to me that most air comes from engine bleed air. That is, it’s air that has been compressed by the engine and can contain aerosolized engine oil. Oil that has been heated to really high T (that’s really bad). There are standards to filter it before it goes into the cabin. Some aircraft (Dreamliner?) have separate pumps to avoid using bleed air (improves engine efficiency). But even that pump will need lubricating. However for that pump you can probably use a safer oil and also not expose it to extreme heat.
- hinkley 6y ago
  I got stuck on the tarmac while they tried to sort out a fuel problem and we were all huffing jet fumes for half an hour. I thought I was going to puke by the end. I really should have asked for a refund on that flight. I blame the loss of brain cells. When they start a jet engine, the fuel before it ignites would just blow out the exhaust. They catch it in a reservoir and pump it back into the engine to burn it off. Well, that pump was glitching out, in some way they thought they could fix without a wrench. After about five minutes the fumes started getting sucked into the cabin, and every five minutes after they would tell us they were still working on it. What a shitshow.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
dehrmann 6y ago
I think airplane cabin smell is in part old coffee.
- avree 6y ago
  https://viewfromthewing.com/flight-attendant-puts-coffee-grounds-above-passengers-head-to-mask-the-smell-of-chick-fil-a/ https://viewfromthewing.com/flight-attendant-puts-coffee-gro... Flight attendants commonly use coffee grounds to mask the other, worse smells.
CyberDildonics 6y ago
This is not at all what this article is about.
bloopbloo 6y ago
Agreed. However, I’d rather smell kerosene than baby-bottle plastic - plasticizers known to be endocrine disrupters
numpad0 6y ago
Not sure what airport smell refers to but I actually like the sweet cabin smell. I think it’s equal part mix of residues from years of sweat, detergents, anti-corrosion chemicals and lemon-soaked paper napkins that were all carried along.
eternalny1 6y ago
> I don't know if it's jet fuel or what, but I am certain we will one day discover that the fumes cause all sorts of maladies. A lot of it is oil and jet fuel. This is a known hazard, even to the flight crew. In the industry these are referred to as "fume events" or "contaminated air quality events" (CAQE). https://www.bbc.com/news/business-47740523 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-47740523

carlmr 6y ago

I have thought the same thing for a while. When you're at the airport it smells like fuel. Everyone's talking about the radiation, but I'm wondering if pilots and stewardesses aren't exposed to much worse through the cabin air.

cameronh90 6y ago
Cabin air comes from the "bleed air", which is air from the compressor stage of the engine. Very rarely this air is noticeably contaminated due to engine issues, but I think it's valid to wonder if it's contaminated in a sub-perceptible way more often than that.
drewwwwww 6y ago
there are substantial unanswered questions about cabin air quality, both from long term chronic exposure as well as the acute occurrences known as “fume events.” not surprisingly, airlines, manufacturers, and the FAA are all working together to suppress a thorough understanding. the LA Times did a good investigatory piece at the end of last year: https://www.latimes.com/projects/toxic-chemicals-planes-covid-19-travel-woes/ https://www.latimes.com/projects/toxic-chemicals-planes-covi...
paol 6y ago
Cabin air is renewed at a high rate form the outside. It will contain fumes when the airplane is on the ground, because airport air contains fumes. The vast majority of the time the airplane is at cruising altitude, though. That air is as clean as you are going to get on planet earth.
- mint2 6y ago
  *Except during fume events. Which are basically not tracked or measured well.
- bloopbloo 6y ago
  I used to think the same thing, then it was pointed out to me that most air comes from engine bleed air. That is, it’s air that has been compressed by the engine and can contain aerosolized engine oil. Oil that has been heated to really high T (that’s really bad). There are standards to filter it before it goes into the cabin. Some aircraft (Dreamliner?) have separate pumps to avoid using bleed air (improves engine efficiency). But even that pump will need lubricating. However for that pump you can probably use a safer oil and also not expose it to extreme heat.
hinkley 6y ago
I got stuck on the tarmac while they tried to sort out a fuel problem and we were all huffing jet fumes for half an hour. I thought I was going to puke by the end. I really should have asked for a refund on that flight. I blame the loss of brain cells. When they start a jet engine, the fuel before it ignites would just blow out the exhaust. They catch it in a reservoir and pump it back into the engine to burn it off. Well, that pump was glitching out, in some way they thought they could fix without a wrench. After about five minutes the fumes started getting sucked into the cabin, and every five minutes after they would tell us they were still working on it. What a shitshow.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]

dehrmann 6y ago

I think airplane cabin smell is in part old coffee.

avree 6y ago
https://viewfromthewing.com/flight-attendant-puts-coffee-grounds-above-passengers-head-to-mask-the-smell-of-chick-fil-a/ https://viewfromthewing.com/flight-attendant-puts-coffee-gro... Flight attendants commonly use coffee grounds to mask the other, worse smells.

CyberDildonics 6y ago

This is not at all what this article is about.

bloopbloo 6y ago

Agreed. However, I’d rather smell kerosene than baby-bottle plastic - plasticizers known to be endocrine disrupters

numpad0 6y ago

Not sure what airport smell refers to but I actually like the sweet cabin smell. I think it’s equal part mix of residues from years of sweat, detergents, anti-corrosion chemicals and lemon-soaked paper napkins that were all carried along.

eternalny1 6y ago

> I don't know if it's jet fuel or what, but I am certain we will one day discover that the fumes cause all sorts of maladies. A lot of it is oil and jet fuel. This is a known hazard, even to the flight crew. In the industry these are referred to as "fume events" or "contaminated air quality events" (CAQE). https://www.bbc.com/news/business-47740523 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-47740523