Flammability of Interior Materials

[zemon]

Folks,

I found some seats that I want to use in my plane. They are aftermarket truck/SUV seats so they would meet DOT Standard No. 302; Flammability of interior materials (http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/fmcsrruletext.aspx?reg=571.302). That standard is surprisingly readable.

Sadly, AC 25.853-1 Flammability Requirements for Aircraft Seat Cushions (http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC%2025.853-1.pdf) is nowhere near as understandable.

Does anyone know if automotive seats meeting DOT standard 302 are comparable in safety to seats meeting AC 25.853-1? Barring that, do you have any thoughts about whether you would fly with such seats in your plane?

Thanks,
-- Art Z.

[WLIU]

So reading the DOT spec, they require a horizontal burn test. The FAA Part 25 burn test includes a vertical test. Harder to pass. If you can get a sample of the fabric, you can have it Part 25 burn tested by a lab. There was a Sport Aviation or Experimenter article about that a while ago I think.

All of that said, truck seats are going to be a lot heavier than typical aircraft seats. Since weight control is very very important when building and aircraft, I would reject them for that reason, before I got to worrying about upholstery burn testing. A heavy airplane flies badly. Built light.

Best of luck,

Wes
N78PS

[pacerpilot]

Are you putting these seats in a production airplane? If so, you can't use the DOT seats. They do not comply simply because the testing and required certification hasn't been accomplished. If you're putting them in an experimental the AC doesn't apply. You can sit on seat cushions packed with gun cotton if you want. However, as for suitability of aftermarket auto seats in an airplane, they'll work fine but there will be a weight penalty. Car seats are steel framed behemoths. I think you could do better building seats. As for my airplanes, my Kitfox has blue denim upholstery, my Junior Ace has regular vinyl. I'm comfortable with both. Hope this helps.

[FlyingRon]

I agree with pacer pilot. Note that upholstery in older CAR 3 certificated aircraft only needs to be "flame resistant" but there is no requirement for it to be tested or certified. For Part 23 certificated aircraft, you need to use a fabric either certified by the manufacturer or tested yourself as in the AC.

Note you must have the proper authority to install seats in a certificated plane (of any vintage) just like with any other part.

On an homebuilt, you can do what you choose.

[Bill Greenwood]

Regardless of regs it would be foolish to use any interior fabric that is not flame resistant. I don't remember the details, but some years ago I had an interior shop at Arapahoe recover the seats in my T-34. The fabric they used was not retardant, but they only had to treat it with a solution to make it so, and that was in a normal category certified plane.
So to paraphrase, you want the "retard" to be on the fabric, not be the builder who neglected this.

One other point, besides weight, if you are considering building the seat structure from scratch, that the space underneath some seats is a designed crush area, which needs to be there to have some "give" room to absorb an impact. Spinal compression injuries are common in crashes from hitting with too much downward force, it is not just forward motion impact that needs to be absorbed.

Good luck.

[zemon]

Thanks, everybody. Lots of good advice.

-- Art Z.

[FlyingRon]

An auto upholstery place in Nebraska did my interior. There was no problem in obtaining approved/approvable materials for the job. They sent be a large box full of swatches that I could choose from.

[Bill Greenwood]

Is it true that if you use an auto interior shop in Nebraska, you can have any color you want as long as it is red and white?

[FlyingRon]

Chortle... the funny thing about the shop was that they were "Hartzell Auto Upholstery" (no relation to the prop scoundrels).

[WLIU]

Actually, there is a good point there. Auto upholstery shops are eminently qualified to sew an aircraft interior so long as they are provided appropriate materials. The sewing techniques and equipment are the same for airplanes as they are for custom cars. And more than a few know where to get materials that are FAR 25 qualified.

So if you are looking at an interior and all you have is a home sewing machine that is pulled out once or twice a year, you might gather up your stuff and talk to an auto upholstery shop.

Best of luck,

Wes
N6234A