WSJ What’s News – Episode Summary
Episode Title: Why Toxic Fumes on Planes Are Being Blamed for Illnesses and Deaths
Date: December 22, 2025
Host: Alex Osila (The Wall Street Journal)
Guest/Interviewee: Ben Katz, WSJ Reporter
Overview
This episode of What’s News takes a deep dive into a rising health concern in commercial aviation: the presence of toxic fumes in airplane cabins and their alleged links to serious illnesses and deaths. WSJ reporter Ben Katz discusses new findings connecting so-called "fume events" to neurological disorders and highlights both what’s known and what remains disputed between health experts and the aviation industry.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. The Surge in Fume Events (06:00–06:30)
- Fume Events Defined: "Fume events" refer to incidents where toxic fumes from a jet's engines leak into the cockpit or the passenger cabin.
- Trend: Katz reports that such incidents have surged, happening “nearly 10 times as much in 2024 as a decade earlier” among the biggest US airlines.
2. Health Effects & Scientific Evidence (06:30–07:31)
- Potential Health Impact: Katz emphasizes that while causal connections remain difficult to prove in medical science, evidence is building:
- “We're starting to see these patterns where there are these potential links where what happens in a severe fume event could lead to or is associated with serious illnesses. So we highlighted in the piece that we did, neurodegenerative disorders like ALS, Alzheimer's, depression, and suicide also very much linked.” [Ben Katz, 06:44]
- Comparison to Other Fields: Doctors draw parallels between fume event effects and brain injuries experienced by soldiers (concussive blasts, chemical exposure) or athletes (NFL, soccer players) [C, 00:44 & 07:12]:
- Quote: “Doctors see the effects of fume events as potentially being very similar to the kind of brain injuries that soldiers experience when they're on the battlefield, either from concussive blasts or from chemical exposure, or even NFL players or soccer players on the pitch, on the field.”
3. Airline and Manufacturer Response (07:31–08:27)
- Undisputed Facts: All parties agree that engine oil, hydraulic fluid, and de-icing fluid can leak, become vaporized, and mix into the plane’s air supply.
- Industry Position: Airlines and manufacturers maintain that detected contamination levels “...are [not] high enough to warrant even close to anything of concern,” and they often point to a lack of definitive research.
- Critique of Industry Response: Katz counters, “We've come across multiple incidents of industry obfuscating, even blocking or lobbying against attempts to do that kind of research.” [Ben Katz, 08:20]
4. Risk to Passengers & Precautionary Measures (08:27–09:31)
- Likelihood: Out of thousands of daily flights in the US, about 22 are affected, making individual risk low.
- Quote: “The first thing to point out is that the chances of it happening to you on your aircraft is very low.” [Ben Katz, 08:38]
- Precaution: For concerned travelers (those with comorbidities), Katz suggests using a highly-rated mask (“rated both for gases and to filter out ultra fine particles”). N95 masks are not sufficient.
- Practical note: “They’re available for anywhere between 30 and $50 and you can buy them online...I don't want to make the recommendation. Again, the chance of you encountering this is very low. But if you are nervous about it, you know that that is one option.” [Ben Katz, 08:53–09:24]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On Difficulty of Proof:
- “Causation, especially in medical terms, is kind of a really high bar...that’s proven with cohort studies over a period of time.”
— Ben Katz, 06:35
- “Causation, especially in medical terms, is kind of a really high bar...that’s proven with cohort studies over a period of time.”
-
On Patterns Emerging:
- “We’re starting to see these patterns where there are...potential links...between severe fume events and serious illnesses.”
— Ben Katz, 06:44
- “We’re starting to see these patterns where there are...potential links...between severe fume events and serious illnesses.”
-
On Industry Resistance:
- “We've come across multiple incidents of industry obfuscating, even blocking or lobbying against attempts to do that kind of research.”
— Ben Katz, 08:20
- “We've come across multiple incidents of industry obfuscating, even blocking or lobbying against attempts to do that kind of research.”
-
On Minimizing Risk:
- "The first thing to point out is that the chances of it happening to you on your aircraft is very low...if you are nervous about it, you know that that is one option [high-rated mask]."
— Ben Katz, 08:38–09:24
- "The first thing to point out is that the chances of it happening to you on your aircraft is very low...if you are nervous about it, you know that that is one option [high-rated mask]."
Important Timestamps
- 06:00 – Introduction to rising fume events on planes
- 06:30 – Scientific debate on links between fumes and illnesses
- 07:12 – Parallels with brain injuries in soldiers and athletes
- 07:34 – Airline and manufacturer stance, and industry resistance to research
- 08:27 – Advice for concerned travelers
- 09:31 – Segment conclusion and sign-off
Tone and Style
- The tone is investigative yet accessible, balancing scientific caution with real-world practicality. Alex Osila asks pointed, clear questions while Ben Katz delivers nuanced, evidence-based responses, maintaining a neutral but concerned posture on passenger health.
Additional Resources
- Katz mentions he’s preparing another piece with more travel-specific advice, to be published on WSJ.com.