Flight MH370 News, Update: Theory Of 'Explosive Batteries' Gives Weight To The Case
A new theory has surfaced linked to the downing of the Malaysian Flight MH370 which reportedly caused the death of 239 passengers and flight crew on board.
The speculation mentioned over at Express UK points out to a "deadly cargo of mobile phone batteries" which was believed to have "caught fire and caused a catastrophic explosion."
Citing their sources, it was believed that almost "500lbs of Motorola batteries" were said to have been aboard the Boeing 777 jet. The Malaysian government confirmed that indeed, a "fresh shipment of batteries" was made on March 7 and had been boarded onto the plane the day it took off for its course.
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However, the report said the batteries failed to go through the necessary safety checks and that the whole cargo wasn't labelled as "dangerous goods."
An expert on the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries for cellphones, Dr. Victor Ettel, told the Daily Beast (via Express UK) that shipping the items "so soon" after they were assembled could be a very dangerous thing.
The tech expert went on to mention the faulty packaging method used to secure the batteries which include wrapping it in "cardboard boxes and plastic sheets."
With regards to the failure of the aircraft's communication systems, it is believed by investigators that "two of the three pallets" of the battery cargos were placed in the "forward cargo bay" of the plane which is coincidentally situated behind the plane's critical electronics equipment or Main Equipment Centre (MEC).
Another aviation expert, Clive Irving, seems to be in agreement with what Mr. Ettel told DB.
According to Irving (via Yahoo.com), the fire, which the batteries may have caused, may have overwhelmed the plane's fire-suppression system.
"The cargo hold has a special liner intended to contain a fire until it is extinguished," Irving explained. "A battery fire might well have been intense enough to breach the liner and, in doing so, allow the airflow to weaken the concentration (and therefore the effectiveness) of the Halon gas used as a fire suppressant."
If this turns out to be the case then the burning batteries may have also resulted to the release of concentrated amounts of toxic fumes which in turn knocked out the people inside the plane.
According to Ettel, the organic electrolyte contained in lithium-ion batteries easily decompose when situated in high temperatures. Harmful compounds emanating from the solution like fluorine and "even arsenic" may have been inhaled by the victims, leaving them unconscious.
Stay tuned for more updates.
