A tracheostomy may be performed because of:
Severe neck or mouth injuries
Breathing corrosive material smoke or steam
A large object blocking the airway
http://health.yahoo.com/health/encyclopedia/002955/0.htmlLet us review the information we have at hand.
A "breath-attacking stuff" was released.
Certain individuals experienced breathing difficulties.
A tracheostomy was quickly performed on one particular passenger
by a concerned party who may have used a box-cutter blade.
The stewardesses asked any doctor or nurse on board
to assist in the further care of the patient.
The other passengers were unaware of anything other than a medical emergency on board.
All I can say is that it really wasn't very nice of the two telephone operators (Sweeney and Ong)
to send a medical professional into first class when the guy had chosen to fly coach. Lord knows what type of other ostomies or piercings those guys might have performed on him.
Look what had just happened to fellow crew members Barbara Arestegui and Karen Martin.
I do hope that the masks for the passengers had all been deployed
and that the oxygen equipment was working.
FAA orders inspections of oxygen equipment
Saturday, May 26, 2001
Some oxygen generators that provide breathable air to passengers and cabin attendants if an aircraft loses pressurization wouldn't work on Boeing airplanes because of airline maintenance mistakes, the Federal Aviation Administration warned.
The FAA gives airlines until Sept. 8 to inspect oxygen generators on Boeing 737, 747, 757, 767 and 777 jetliners. The inspections are considered fairly routine and can be accomplished without resulting in airline disruptions.
Additional checks will be required whenever the oxygen generators are replaced to make sure they have been installed correctly.
Eleven oxygen generators failed to work in July on a Boeing 757 that lost cabin pressure, the agency said. Details were not available, but apparently no one was injured.
Boeing said it is aware of only one incident in which the oxygen generators failed to work because of incorrectly installed release pins. That was on the 757 that lost cabin pressure.
But a subsequent investigation found that some oxygen generators on other 757s had been improperly installed by the operator.
And one 737 operator reported finding that half the oxygen generators on that plane had been incorrectly installed.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/24850_oxygen26.shtmlHmmmmm
I wonder if that really was mace.
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0UBT/15_17/100000508/p1/article.jhtmlhttp://www.iasa.com.au/folders/Safety_Issues/Aircraft_Wire/IFEevents.htmlSept 13, 1999
Special Review Finds Oversight Lacking in Supplemental Type Certificate Process
Satisfying the regulations and meeting the minimum standards did not prevent the installation of a system that was incompatible with an airplane's design philosophy.
<snip>
It was the FAA's imprimatur on the Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) that authorized the installation of a high-powered interactive in-flight entertainment network (IFEN) in Swissair's 16-plane fleet of MD-11 jets. After the Sept. 1998 crash of one of those airplanes, burned wires associated with the IFEN were pulled from the wreckage and the company immediately disconnected the power from the IFEN systems on its remaining aircraft.
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0UBT/37_13/55745831/p1/article.jhtmlIn-flight smoke and fire events occur with sufficient frequency to generate a thick stack of confidential reports over a three-year period (2000-2003) submitted by pilots to the Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS). The database is maintained by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on behalf of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0UBT/36_17/108012305/p1/article.jhtml?term=Add something to the airplane, and add the potential for failures. Such is the case with the reinforced and lockable cockpit doors installed on a priority basis after the 9/11 attacks. Numerous problems have been encountered since installation with dysfunctional doors, to include jammed doors, reduced cabin/cockpit ventilation, and lock failures.
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0UBT/39_17/108842698/p1/article.jhtml