NTSB Factual Report

On April 16, 2015, about 1910 eastern daylight time, a Dassault-Breguet, Mystere Falcon 900B, N610RL, received minor damage from an inflight electrical fire. The airplane had departed Westchester County Airport (HPN), White Plains, New York about 1715, destined for the Orlando International Airport (MCO), Orlando, Florida. The two flight crew members, flight attendant, and 12 passengers were not injured. The corporate flight was being operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91.

According to the cabin attendant, she noticed "a weird smell" in the galley area and started checking the appliances. She could find nothing wrong with them and asked the pilots if they had any idea where the smell was coming from. She turned around and opened the area in the galley that they kept the glasses in, and noticed "a glow behind it." The pilot then came back to assist her. He grabbed a fire extinguisher, used it all and then asked her for another one. She handed him the second one and he was able to put out the fire. The pilot then told her to watch the area.

According to the pilot, they noticed the strange odor when they were on the Standard Terminal Arrival Route (STAR) for MCO descending through 20,000 feet above mean sea level. They checked that all the ovens, microwaves, and warmers were in the "off" position. All were found to be "off" but the smell continued and then smoke appeared. The crew declared an emergency and asked for priority to the nearest airport. The pilot then "gave the flight controls" to the copilot who took over flying and the radio duties (the autopilot was on and engaged). The copilot then turned off the power to the cabin and to the galley. The pilot then used a fire extinguisher to extinguish fire. The fire was suppressed by getting behind the crystal storage and spraying the area with a Halon portable fire bottle. The crew decided to continue to Orlando as it had large runways with excellent fire and rescue capabilities. The landing was normal. The crew evacuated the passengers and fire personnel double checked the airplane for any signs of continued fire or hot spots. None were found.

According to the copilot, they noticed a smell at first and then smoke from somewhere in the airplane when they were on the STAR for MCO at approximately 1910. They determined that it was coming from the galley area, declared an emergency, and asked for vectors to the nearest airport. After the sight of smoke, and the cabin attendant assuring that everything was powered off, the pilot "gave the controls" to him. The pilot then went back into the cabin to assist the flight attendant by spraying the galley area with the fire extinguisher. The Halon did its job and no more smoking was noticed so they decided to continue to MCO for an "abnormal approach and landing" with priority from air traffic control. After landing they could see the signs of burnt wiring behind the galley.

Examination of the area in back of the crystal (glass) storage area of the galley revealed the presence behind the plenum ducting of sooting and the remains of a burnt wiring bundle.

Examination of the wiring bundle revealed that the bundle contained the 28 volt direct current wiring and ground wires for the cabin overhead lighting, and that the associated circuit breaker in the cockpit had been tripped. Further examination of the area also revealed that the wires had been routed over the insulation bags and not directly next to the airplane's structure, and that they had been in contact with, or in close proximity to, a soft oxygen line which had been completely burned through.

Examination of the oxygen system revealed that the burned oxygen line was part of the passenger oxygen system of the airplane, and that the line was not pressurized except when the passenger oxygen system was activated during situations that would require its use; such as cabin depressurization, or the presence of smoke, or unusual odors.

According to Federal Aviation Administration records, the airplane was manufactured in 1988. The airplane's most recent continuous airworthiness inspection was completed on April 13, 2015. At the time of the accident; the airplane had accrued approximately 9,949 total hours of operation.

Portions of the wiring bundle and the burnt oxygen line were retained by the NTSB for further examination.