A Study on the Fire Risk in Airport Baggage Handling Area

The Baggage Handling System (BHS)—which automatically sorts, transports, tracks, and inspects passengers’ checked baggage—represents one of the most critical infrastructures in modern airport operations. Given the high potential for fire spread in the large-scale BHS, a vast network of conveyor belts interconnecting different airport zones, full-scale fire experiments were performed to identify ignition sources, combustible items, and associated hazards. Results revealed distinct variations in heat release rates and radiant heat characteristics depending on the type, size, and material of combustibles. Among them, the large basket (A10) posed the greatest hazard, producing a maximum heat release rate of 565.70 kW and radiant heat fluxes of 17.97 kW/m<sup>2</sup> at 1.0 m and 4.9 kW/m<sup>2</sup> at 2.0 m. These full-scale experiments provide a quantitative assessment of fire risks associated with checked baggage in BHS areas, offering foundational data for developing fire risk profiles and enhancing airport safety strategies.