Former flight attendant sues British Airways for 'poisonous toxic fumes' ruining her health

A former flight attendant is suing British Airways over claims toxic fumes from aircraft ruined her health.

Trudie Dadd, 56, said she suffered "unbelievable fatigue", memory loss and numbness to her feet after being exposed to fumes twice during 2015.

She said she filed her complaint with BA but it was never followed up, adding: "In their eyes, it doesn't happen."

Dadd is one of 60 cabin crew workers who are suing BA over air pollution claims. Fourteen other cases involve airlines such as Virgin Atlantic, easyJet and Jet2.

Unite union is likening the situation to "the impact of asbestos on the building industry".

Dadd, who had worked for BA for 20 years, left the company in September.

"I couldn't remember simple things [like] people's names… I was in a fog, I just wasn't functioning," she told The Sunday Times.

She was advised by doctors not to fly for six months so she could recover her health.

"I have had to leave a job that I loved – a job I wanted to do since the age of 10," she said. "I am very angry that I have had to take that decision."

In a statement BA said it would not operate an aircraft "if we believed it posed a health or safety risk to our customers or crew", adding that: "We always encourage our colleagues to report any potential safety incidents to allow us to investigate them, and all reports are shared with the CAA."

According to the Sunday Times reports, at least 292 'fume or smoke' incidents occurred inside aircraft operated by British carriers between June 2014 and May 2015.

Howard Beckett, a Unite representative, said: "It is a health issue which the airline industry has been aware of for some time and is so serious that our members are likening it to the impact of asbestos on the building industry."