[at-l] Fuel in Mail - Bad idea

[bennettk@wfu.edu (ken bennett)]

On 12/3/02 10:22 PM, "Clark" <icw39@ncfreedom.net> wrote:

> Ken, don't be so both ridiculous and serious at the same time - how do
> you think this stuff, and tons of other similar goods are shipped all
> over the world?  Just to use one "nearby example, say to Alaska?  Have
> you ever flown Alaska Air - one of the best safety ratings of any
> airline?  Most of their planes are 50% cargo, and 50% passenger . . .
> and guess what all goes into the cargo half by the ton???
>
> Also, go back and re-read my post and then think about the definition of
> "checked baggage" in the context of that post - or, to make it clearer:
> when you check baggage, it goes into the cargo hold, not on the plane
> with you . . .
>
> One more thing - ever think about the tens of thousands of refined
> kerosene floating around in those tanks less than ten feet from your
> window seat?  Remember that flight out of NYC?  And, to anticipate in
> advance, this is NOT the same as what was so grossly negligently carried
> on the infamous Valu-Jet flight . . .



Clark,

I did stop to think about the cargo hold, and the fact that cargo holds do
occasionally lose pressure (say goodbye to the doggie in the crate, BTW).
That makes your MSR bottle fully pressurized, and MSR bottles can and do
leak when pressurized.  So now your luggage is full of highly flammable fuel
dripping out onto the cargo bay floor. (Oh, right, you put the bottle in a
zip loc bag. I've never had one of those leak.)

Look, I'm sure that you are doing this safely -- using a new bottle, etc.
But there is a reason why the airlines won't let us put fuel, primus
canisters, gasoline, and even stoves in the cargo hold. And no, I don't
think that the airlines are in cahoots with the gear companies to sell more
stoves and fuel bottles. Having a fuel bottle leak is a long shot, as is any
sort of spark that might ignite the fuel once it's in your duffel bag. Even
if it's only a one-in-a-million shot, the airlines need to minimize that
potential problem.

The new federal airline civil aviation security page has a list of banned
items:

http://cas.faa.gov/qa.html

Oh, and speaking of Alaskan Air, they do accept hazardous cargo, but it has
to be packed and labeled according to federal regs:

http://www.alaskaair.com/www2/cargo/AS_QX_SpecialHandling.asp

However, Alaskan Air *specifically prohibits* passengers from bringing
hazardous materials in either their carry-on or their checked baggage:

http://www.alaskaair.com/www2/help/faqs/Baggage.asp

Finally, since we're up in the frozen north with all the people who know
about these things, Canada Air Transport has a page of banned items as well:

http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/commerce/DangerousGoods/NewsInfo/Notice/Ca
mpEquip/menu.htm



If you continue to insist that secretly transporting fuel bottles in your
checked baggage is a good idea, then two things are going to happen:  1) you
will encourage other people who may not be as safety-conscious as you are to
do the same thing, and 2) you may end up with a large fine and/or some jail
time down the road.

We'll send you a card.

Cheers,

Ken