Hank Investigates: Hazard in the Sky

In the cockpit, the pilot radioed "emergency."

Pilot
"Roger, sir, would you call out the fire equipment? We've got the possibility of some real hot stuff in the cargo compartment--the floor is real hot!"

The hot stuff was an illegal shipment of hazardous chemicals, which caught fire in flight!

Our investigation found thousands of cases where hazardous materials shipped as commercial cargo on passenger planes resulted in problems including evacuations, emergency landings, fires, injuries, and even deaths.

Gerald Dillingham, U.S. General Accounting Office
"We think its very serious."

What's more: this government investigator found that cargo violations often go unreported.

Dillingham
"The problems we have now may only multiply."

Flight attendant
"I just don't like it all. Its very frightening!"

This flight attendant worries that hazardous materials may affect passenger safety in an emergency.

Flight attendant
"There's a good chance if something happens we're not gonna survive it because of the cargo."

Federal rules allow companies to ship specially-marked boxes of explosives and infectious substances, as well as products that are poisonous, flammable, combustible, and dangerous!

Tom O'Mara, National Air Disaster Alliance
"They're putting passengers at risk, period."

O'Mara
"It's an inherently dangerous situation and one which the FAA should stop today just by ordering all hazardous materials off of the belly of passenger planes."

An available federal training video demonstrates that the proper packaging of hazardous materials can be safely transported with proper paperwork, packaging and labeling. However, our investigation found its those illegal air shipments that are a growing problem.

Tom Watts-Fitzgerald, Assist. U.S. Attorney, Miami
"What goes on nobody really knows."

That's because commercial cargo is not routinely x-rayed or physically inspected. If shippers decide to save time and avoid red tape, they send their illegal cargo unmarked and unlabelled.

Tom Watts-Fitzgerald
"For a few dollars or some saved time or a happy client they're putting everybody on the aircraft at risk."

In Miami, FAA records show a quarter ton of illegal pesticide hidden in black plastic, which was discovered only when it produced toxic fumes. As a result, a planeload of vacationers arrived in Jamaica with a chemical fire burning in the cargo compartment. In fact, FAA figures reveal almost 8000 hazardous materials violations in the past ten years.

Gerald Dillingham
"Most illegal cargo is not found unless there's an ax or an incident."

It was found on a cargo jet headed to Boston--only after a fiery crash destroyed a DC-10 and endangered lives. It was also found in the wreckage of Valujet Flight 592, and caused the cause of its disaster in the Everglades.

Hank
"Do you think that could happen again?"

Tom O'Mara
"Absolutely why wouldn't it. The FAA does not have the people to monitor or police all those packages being put underneath."

FAA press releases proclaim high fines for hazardous material violations like those. However, our investigation found that 80 percent of the fines get reduced.

Carol Reitz
"You could lose someone you love."

Carol Rietz's learned of hazardous cargo after her son died in the Valujet crash. Remembering the memorial paid tribute to the Valujet victims, Rietz says a better remembrance would be closer scrutiny of dangerous cargo.

Carol
"That's the point here: maybe have other people aware of some of the things that I became aware of only too late."

Airlines say they carry properly-packaged hazardous cargo because the FAA allows it. As for detecting illegal cargo, they say it would be impossible to inspect every package without causing extreme passenger delays. The FAA however has just added new cargo inspectors to try to crackdown on what they know is a growing problem.