MSF: Air Cylinder – High Pressure Discharge

During preparations to land a leaking breathing apparatus bottle ashore, a crew member was draining the remaining pressure from the bottle when the pillar valve broke off from the top. On inspection of the damaged valve, it was found that there was a fracture of the threaded end which had resulted in failure along a crack likely caused by metal fatigue. The MSF notes that “although this could not have been foreseen, the potential for serious injury was very high if the bottle had been fully pressurised. In this case there were no injured persons."

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