Halon-Filled Fire Extinguishers in Canada

[Kevin Horton]

A local builder ran into an administrative glitch during the final inspection of his RV-3 last week. The MD-RA inspector insisted that he could not approve the aircraft as it had a halon-filled fire-extinguisher. He had been told by MD-RA headquarters that Transport Canada had sent a letter which said that they should not approve aircraft with halon-filled fire extinguishers.

The builder asked me if I could shed any light on the subject. I dug into the TC regs and guidance material, and couldn't find anything that should preclude the use of a halon-filled fire extinguisher. I then sent an e-mail to the TC inspector who is responsible for coordinating the airworthiness policy for amateur-built aircraft. He replied that halon-filled fire extinguishers were completely "legal".

If anyone else runs into this problem, you find more info on my web site.

 

[Snowflake]

Has there been any motion from the powers that be to block the use of Halon in Canada? I'm in need of an extinguisher for my -6, and am looking at Aircraft Spruce as a good source for a reasonably sized Halon extinguisher. Does anyone know if MD-RA will accept them, and/or if there's any directives from TC that say they are or are not okay?

 

[Kevin Horton]

The situation has not changed. TC still references FAA AC 20-42C has providing the guidance for aircraft fire extinguishers. That AC calls for halon fire extinguishers. If MD-RA gives you grief ask to see a copy of the guidance from TC which prohibits halon.