A B737-700 flight attendant notified the crew about a burning electrical smell in the aft half of th...

Narrative:

We received two chimes from the flight attendants; and we were notified about fumes described as burning electrical odor in the back half cabin (row 15 and aft). Our position was approximately 50 miles northwest of our departure city. The captain and I discussed our options and he made the decision to return. We notified ATC and declared an emergency. We received clearance to start our descent and received vectors back. The captain maintained a high speed to expedite our landing. I completed and complied with the QRH for our issue. The captain sent an ACARS message to dispatch notifying them about our problem; and that we were returning. We contacted the flight attendants a couple of times during our return flight. They reported that the fumes and odor seemed to have diminished. The captain made a PA to our customers informing them about the unidentified odor in the back cabin and that we would make a precautionary landing. After we landed; the fire and rescue personnel inspected the aircraft exterior; and we were given the all clear to proceed to the gate. After we parked; a logbook entry was made; and maintenance and dispatch briefed. The customers seemed fine upon arriving. Out of 68 passengers; 64 boarded for our next flight in a new aircraft. On a side note; the coordination between tower; crash fire rescue equipment vehicles and our aircraft was seamless. We were able to talk to tower and the crash fire rescue equipment chief on the same frequency; so we were all on the same page.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B737-700 Flight Attendant notified the crew about a burning electrical smell in the aft half of the aircraft during climbout. An emergency was declared and the aircraft returned to land.

Narrative: We received two chimes from the flight attendants; and we were notified about fumes described as burning electrical odor in the back half cabin (Row 15 and aft). Our position was approximately 50 miles northwest of our departure city. The Captain and I discussed our options and he made the decision to return. We notified ATC and declared an emergency. We received clearance to start our descent and received vectors back. The Captain maintained a high speed to expedite our landing. I completed and complied with the QRH for our issue. The Captain sent an ACARS message to Dispatch notifying them about our problem; and that we were returning. We contacted the flight attendants a couple of times during our return flight. They reported that the fumes and odor seemed to have diminished. The Captain made a PA to our customers informing them about the unidentified odor in the back cabin and that we would make a precautionary landing. After we landed; the fire and rescue personnel inspected the aircraft exterior; and we were given the all clear to proceed to the gate. After we parked; a logbook entry was made; and Maintenance and Dispatch briefed. The customers seemed fine upon arriving. Out of 68 passengers; 64 boarded for our next flight in a new aircraft. On a side note; the coordination between Tower; CFR vehicles and our aircraft was seamless. We were able to talk to Tower and the CFR Chief on the same frequency; so we were all on the same page.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.

Attributes
ACN	834505
Time
Date	200905
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B737-700
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Climb
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Electrical Power
Person 1
Function	First Officer
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 230 Flight Crew Type 2800
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor

A B737-700 flight attendant notified the crew about a burning electrical smell in the aft half of the aircraft during climbout. An emergency was declared and the aircraft returned to land.