This "possibility" is merely that. I translated the French language article on which this speculation is entirely based and it is that, entirely speculation. They are basing it on the fact that the co-pilot was seen placing a phone and a tablet on the top of the dashboard of the plane when he sat down at his pilot position when he got into the cabin. Combine that with the known fires from SAMSUNG phones and you have the speculation that Apple iPhones and iPads might ALSO suddenly burst into flames IF their chargers were plugged into an outlet not intended for "coffee makers" or other crew supplied appliances but are rather provided for the convenience of the airline in the cabin for airline equipment.
The French Examining Magistrates wished to know whether the presence of these aircraft in the cockpit could be the cause of the fire. Will the French justice shake the American giant Apple? According to our information, the three investigating judges in charge of the investigation of the crash of EgyptAir flight MS 804 between Paris and Cairo, in the Mediterranean, on May 19, 2016 (66 deaths including 15 French) are interesting to the track of a fire in the cockpit provoked by Apple hardware, as we revealed in January: an iPhone 6S and iPad mini 4 belonging to the copilot. Last week, an expert assessment of these devices was ordered and three judicial experts were appointed.
Given the "exceptional nature" of this expertise, the magistrates wrote in a document dated May 17 that we were able to consult, but also on the "complexity and technicality of the mission", the judges chose specialists who are not on the usual list of experts from the Ministry of Justice. They retained a research engineer at CNRS, a physicist in the physics of solids from the Ministry of the Army, and a engineer specializing in Lithium batteries, who also comes from the Ministry of the Army. Their mission is to determine accurately whether these devices, including their batteries, would have been able to trigger the disaster. Experts are asked to acquire "three iPad Mini wi-fi 3G model A 1455" and "three iPhone 6S, both new and used". Smartphones and tablets will be tested.
Causing a fire and analyzing fumes
But above all, the experts will "cause a thermal runaway", write the judges in their mission letter. After determining whether the appliances can catch fire, experts should cause this fire, in order to calculate the heat radiation produced and to analyze the soot and smoke that emanate. Through this expertise, filmed and recorded, investigators look to see if the tablet and the smartphone can catch fire spontaneously and, if so, under what conditions and at what speed; And ultimately to determine whether the combustion of the aircraft could have rendered the aircraft uncontrollable and / or asphyxiated the pilots.
Their report must be submitted to the judge by 30 September. This orientation of the investigation comes after a careful work of the research section of the gendarmerie of air transport (GTA). They had identified the presence of Apple products with cameras that scanned the cockpit of the aircraft parked at its departure station at Roissy airport. But also during the passage of the security check of the crews, who scanned their personal belongings. "The solution of this tragedy may be found in the connection of these devices between the current delivered by the sockets behind the co-pilot and the reception of this current by lithium battery devices," says a source close to the investigation.
Asked by us on Thursday of this request for expertise, Apple made this answer: "We were not contacted by the GTA or any other authority investigating this tragic event. We have not had access to any reports, but our understanding is that there is no evidence linking this event to Apple products. We are entirely at the disposal of the investigators to answer any question. We rigorously test our products to ensure that they meet or exceed international safety standards. "
Lithium batteries under surveillance Laptop, phone, or tablet, the problem of electric appliances that ignite, and more particularly their lithium batteries, is carefully followed by the airlines. For example, when dozens of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 had caught fire on the ground, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Transport Canada had recommended that these aircraft be turned off The duration of the flight. There is no ban on traveling with your phone, computer or tablet. The EASA simply recommends not to ship batteries more than 100 watts per hour.
For personnel in the cockpit, it is forbidden to travel with these devices unless they are issued to the pilots by the company in the course of their work. For example, Air France or Transavia have a specific Nav / Aero tablet. "The cockpit plugs are not made to connect the toaster or the coffee maker. They are professional plugs, "says a source close to the file.
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