Halon Replacement in Aviation Industry

ICAO has mandated the use of Halon replacements in fire extinguishers used on civil transport aircraft.

The Halon replacement cut off dates in ICAO SARPs contained in Annex 6 and 8:

  • Lavatory fire extinguishing systems - 31 Dec 2011
  • Portable fire extinguishers - 31 Dec 2018
  • Engine and APU fire extinguishing systems - 31 Dec 2014
  • Cargo compartment fire extinguishing systems - 28 Nov 2024

Halon still remains one of the most effective fire extinguishing agents available. However, there is no new production. Halon is considered a clean agent by The National Fire Protection Association because it’s electrically non-conducting and does not leave a residue.

Halon has an extremely high potential to deplete the ozone layer and contribute to global warming. On January 1, 1994, Halon production ceased in compliance with the Montreal Protocol and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The ozone layer is a region of the upper atmosphere containing relatively high concentrations of ozone (O3) molecules. It protects humans and other living things from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun and is therefore crucial to life on Earth. 

In Annexes 6 and 8 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, the ICAO has established deadlines for the replacement of halons. 

Paragraph 6.2.2.1 of Annex 6 (Operation of aircraft) provides that: 

‘any agent used in a built-in fire extinguisher for each lavatory disposal receptacle for towels, paper or waste in an aeroplane for which the individual certificate of airworthiness is first issued on or after 31 December 2011 and any extinguishing agent used in a portable fire extinguisher in an aeroplane for which the individual certificate of airworthiness is first issued on or after 31 December 2018 shall: 

a) meet the applicable minimum performance requirements of the State of Registry; and 

b) not be of a type listed in the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer as it appears in the Eighth Edition of the Handbook for the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, Annex A, Group II’.

In addition, Annex 8 (Chapter 1 § 1.2.5) provides that: 

‘the approved design of an aircraft under Parts IIIB, IVB and V of this Annex shall use extinguishing agents that are not listed in the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer as it appears in the Eighth Edition of the Handbook for the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, Annex A, Group I, in the aircraft fire suppression or extinguishing systems in the lavatories, engines and auxiliary power unit’.

This standard of Annex 8 is applicable to aircraft types for which an application for a new type certificate is submitted to the appropriate regulatory authority on or after 31 December 2014. 

Finally, aircraft for which an application for a new type certificate is submitted to the appropriate regulatory authority on or after 28 November 2024 must use an agent other than halons in the fire-suppression or extinguishing systems in the cargo compartment. 

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