“Oxygen generators without safety caps. A cargo hold without fire detection. One hundred and ten people had no warning.”
ValuJet Flight 592, bound for Atlanta, crashed into the Everglades approximately 10 minutes after takeoff from Miami. An uncontrolled fire had erupted in the forward Class D cargo compartment, initiated by the accidental activation of one or more chemical oxygen generators being carried as company material (COMAT). The generators—improperly packaged, without safety caps, and past their expiration dates—produced oxygen and heat that ignited adjacent cargo and tires. Because the Class D compartment had no smoke detection or fire suppression system, the crew had no warning until smoke and flames entered the cabin. All 110 occupants died.
ValuJet 592's expired, uncapped oxygen generators rode as COMAT in a Class D hold with no detection or suppression; the crew saw the fire only in the cabin. Company material is still cargo — do not put oxidizers in a hold you cannot monitor.