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CO Detection on Lightspeed Delta Zulu Proves Its Worth

The company reports having heard from approximately 100 people who say the headset's carbon monoxide warning feature may have saved their lives.

The Lightspeed Delta Zulu innovates with a built-in CO monitor. [Courtesy of Lightspeed Aviation]
Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • A fatal aviation accident involving a Cessna 170 was attributed to carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning and drowning, highlighting the danger of this odorless, colorless gas in aircraft cabins.
  • Despite 31 CO-related accidents (23 fatal, killing 42 people) between 1982 and 2020 and repeated NTSB recommendations since 2004, the FAA has not yet mandated active CO detection systems in aircraft.
  • Lightspeed Aviation's Delta Zulu headset offers an innovative solution by integrating an audible CO warning system that alerts pilots before critical levels, with over 100 reported instances of potentially saving lives since its September 2022 release.
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A man I had met at the flight school the previous Saturday was missing. He flew a Cessna 170. He was one of those lucky folks who lived at an airpark, but on Saturdays he stopped in at the municipal field for the coffee and company.

On February 29 around 3:45 p.m., the aircraft owner and a friend launched from the airpark with the intent of heading to a nontowered airport about an hour away. The route entailed a flight over the Puget Sound. They did not make it. I am not mentioning his name because his family doesn’t need to relive that experience, but suffice to say they reported him missing, instigating a search.

Meg Godlewski

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.

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