Narrative:

Approximately one hour after departure from chicago to ZZZZ; I was sitting in the pilot rest seat when I was notified by the purser that a passenger in row 5 was complaining about an odor. I went back to business and walked around catching an occasional whiff of something unusual. It was very faint and not consistent enough to identify or locate. I spoke to approximately half a dozen passenger in the front of business class asking if they could smell anything and what they thought it smelled like. The smell identification was complicated by the meal service and its associated smells. I asked the passenger in the area of 5C to be aware of the condition and to notify us if any changes occurred. 30 minutes later we still had not found the source. I walked throughout the aircraft talking to the flight attendants in the galleys to inquire if any actions associated with the meal service may have induced an odor into the air conditioning system that was now being mixing throughout the cabin. We had a passenger with therapeutic oxygen sitting at approximately 12A. We examined his overhead bin for possibilities. Nothing hot or unusual was found. I spoke with the captain a few times updating him on our search progress. The passenger at 5C told me the top of right arm rest was hot. I agreed and contacted the cockpit with this information. We discussed the possibility of maintenance referencing a circuit breaker we could pull to isolate the electric power at 5C. I returned to 5C to monitor the situation and found the lumbar support control panel beginning to discolor slightly. I called the cockpit and advocated we shut down all the electrics to the seats in the cabin now; then attempt to isolate 5C. I also asked the purser to shut off the pes switch in the video closet and anything else she had available to get power off the seat. The cockpit crew told me they were working with maintenance to identify the best way to do that. When I returned to 5C there was now strong odor from the control panel where a melting point about the size and color of a lit cigar was working its way from the inside to out. At this point I concluded the situation was degrading quickly and chose to act without further contact with the cockpit. I took a dinner fork from a passenger's tray and used it to pry the lumbar support control panel out of the arm rest and then pulled the electric wires from the back of it. This immediately stopped the melting; heat; and associated odor. I did a thorough examination of the arm rest area focusing on the inside of the arm rest. Upon completion I informed the captain of the details. A flight attendant provided me with duct tape which I used to isolate each individual wire I had pulled from the back of the control panel and we placed the hot stinky control panel in a metal pan; then placed the pan in an empty; unused oven to cool. It was at this point the passenger in 5C informed me that he had burned his thumb on the hot panel and began to express his unhappiness about his meal being interrupted and that the volume on his entertainment system wasn't working. I informed the captain what had occurred and that I was very confident the situation was under control. This could have been very ugly.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B767-300 PAX BUSINESS CLASS SEAT'S LUMBAR CONTROL PANEL OVERHEATED AND MELTED. DAMAGE STOPPED AFTER PLT PULLED WIRES OUT.

Narrative: APPROX ONE HOUR AFTER DEP FROM CHICAGO TO ZZZZ; I WAS SITTING IN THE PLT REST SEAT WHEN I WAS NOTIFIED BY THE PURSER THAT A PAX IN ROW 5 WAS COMPLAINING ABOUT AN ODOR. I WENT BACK TO BUSINESS AND WALKED AROUND CATCHING AN OCCASIONAL WHIFF OF SOMETHING UNUSUAL. IT WAS VERY FAINT AND NOT CONSISTENT ENOUGH TO IDENTIFY OR LOCATE. I SPOKE TO APPROX HALF A DOZEN PAX IN THE FRONT OF BUSINESS CLASS ASKING IF THEY COULD SMELL ANYTHING AND WHAT THEY THOUGHT IT SMELLED LIKE. THE SMELL IDENTIFICATION WAS COMPLICATED BY THE MEAL SERVICE AND ITS ASSOCIATED SMELLS. I ASKED THE PAX IN THE AREA OF 5C TO BE AWARE OF THE CONDITION AND TO NOTIFY US IF ANY CHANGES OCCURRED. 30 MINUTES LATER WE STILL HAD NOT FOUND THE SOURCE. I WALKED THROUGHOUT THE ACFT TALKING TO THE FLT ATTENDANTS IN THE GALLEYS TO INQUIRE IF ANY ACTIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE MEAL SERVICE MAY HAVE INDUCED AN ODOR INTO THE AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM THAT WAS NOW BEING MIXING THROUGHOUT THE CABIN. WE HAD A PAX WITH THERAPEUTIC OXYGEN SITTING AT APPROX 12A. WE EXAMINED HIS OVERHEAD BIN FOR POSSIBILITIES. NOTHING HOT OR UNUSUAL WAS FOUND. I SPOKE WITH THE CAPT A FEW TIMES UPDATING HIM ON OUR SEARCH PROGRESS. THE PAX AT 5C TOLD ME THE TOP OF R ARM REST WAS HOT. I AGREED AND CONTACTED THE COCKPIT WITH THIS INFORMATION. WE DISCUSSED THE POSSIBILITY OF MAINT REFERENCING A CIRCUIT BREAKER WE COULD PULL TO ISOLATE THE ELECTRIC POWER AT 5C. I RETURNED TO 5C TO MONITOR THE SITUATION AND FOUND THE LUMBAR SUPPORT CONTROL PANEL BEGINNING TO DISCOLOR SLIGHTLY. I CALLED THE COCKPIT AND ADVOCATED WE SHUT DOWN ALL THE ELECTRICS TO THE SEATS IN THE CABIN NOW; THEN ATTEMPT TO ISOLATE 5C. I ALSO ASKED THE PURSER TO SHUT OFF THE PES SWITCH IN THE VIDEO CLOSET AND ANYTHING ELSE SHE HAD AVAILABLE TO GET POWER OFF THE SEAT. THE COCKPIT CREW TOLD ME THEY WERE WORKING WITH MAINT TO IDENTIFY THE BEST WAY TO DO THAT. WHEN I RETURNED TO 5C THERE WAS NOW STRONG ODOR FROM THE CONTROL PANEL WHERE A MELTING POINT ABOUT THE SIZE AND COLOR OF A LIT CIGAR WAS WORKING ITS WAY FROM THE INSIDE TO OUT. AT THIS POINT I CONCLUDED THE SITUATION WAS DEGRADING QUICKLY AND CHOSE TO ACT WITHOUT FURTHER CONTACT WITH THE COCKPIT. I TOOK A DINNER FORK FROM A PAX'S TRAY AND USED IT TO PRY THE LUMBAR SUPPORT CONTROL PANEL OUT OF THE ARM REST AND THEN PULLED THE ELECTRIC WIRES FROM THE BACK OF IT. THIS IMMEDIATELY STOPPED THE MELTING; HEAT; AND ASSOCIATED ODOR. I DID A THOROUGH EXAMINATION OF THE ARM REST AREA FOCUSING ON THE INSIDE OF THE ARM REST. UPON COMPLETION I INFORMED THE CAPT OF THE DETAILS. A FLT ATTENDANT PROVIDED ME WITH DUCT TAPE WHICH I USED TO ISOLATE EACH INDIVIDUAL WIRE I HAD PULLED FROM THE BACK OF THE CONTROL PANEL AND WE PLACED THE HOT STINKY CONTROL PANEL IN A METAL PAN; THEN PLACED THE PAN IN AN EMPTY; UNUSED OVEN TO COOL. IT WAS AT THIS POINT THE PAX IN 5C INFORMED ME THAT HE HAD BURNED HIS THUMB ON THE HOT PANEL AND BEGAN TO EXPRESS HIS UNHAPPINESS ABOUT HIS MEAL BEING INTERRUPTED AND THAT THE VOLUME ON HIS ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM WASN'T WORKING. I INFORMED THE CAPT WHAT HAD OCCURRED AND THAT I WAS VERY CONFIDENT THE SITUATION WAS UNDER CONTROL. THIS COULD HAVE BEEN VERY UGLY.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of January 2009 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.