Fuel tank Explosion
TAE Aviation was fined after it admitted to failing to provide a safe workplace to a man injured when the fuel tank of a Cessna twin-engine plane exploded in a hangar.
Technician sustained minor burns to his face and lacerations in the blast. Technician was "relatively fortunate" not to have been seriously injured through the company's failure to properly drain the fuel tank in the wing of the plane before repairs on the wing of the plan began.He was exposed to an explosive force, of sufficient intensity to deform metal and break an arm bone, and with the potential to cause shards of metal to fly off.
TAE Systems was charged following a Safework SA investigation and pleaded guilty to breaching the Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare Act. TAE had taken an "unacceptably casual attitude" in preparing the aircraft to be worked upon and had relied on a 1976 Cessna manual and the individual discretion and judgment of various employees.
It accepts it should also have developed and implemented a safe working procedure that eliminated or minimised the risk of generation of sparks.
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