A B737-300 flight crew detected a suspicious odor in the cockpit and their flight attendants concurr...

Narrative:

During the departure; the first officer and I smelled an odor in the flight deck. The odor was neither acrid nor oily; but more like a burnt smell from when birds are ingested into the engine or a lit match is extinguished. The check of the engine instruments and electrical systems showed that all were operating normally and within parameters. There were also no visible signs of smoke or irritation to the eyes and nose.the flight attendants said that they could smell the odor; but did not see any smoke. They also stated that the odor was strongest in the front part of the cabin and dissipated starting around row six. The first officer then directed the flight attendants to check the cabin and lavatories for any possible fires.while the flight attendants were checking the cabin; we began running the smoke/fire/fumes checklist. However; before we completed the checklist the odor began to subside. Shortly thereafter; the flight attendants called back and said that they did not find any evidence of a fire. They also informed us that there were two of our maintenance personnel onboard and that they also helped with checking the cabin.after completing the smoke/fire/fumes checklist; we also ran the cabin/lavatory fire checklist as a precaution. With no sign of smoke or fire onboard the aircraft; I elected to continue to our destination. Halfway into the flight one of the flight attendants said that he was starting to smell the odor again. However; we could not smell anything in the flight deck. At that point; we declared an emergency and asked for direct routing to our destination. The first officer requested fire trucks upon arrival and informed ATC that we were planning a normal landing and rollout. He then informed the passengers that fire trucks would be inspecting the aircraft after landing as a precaution due to the odor that was present in the cabin.after landing and clearing the runway the fire crew did a visual and thermal imaging check of the aircraft. Once the inspection was complete and no fire or hot spots were reported; we taxied back to the gate with the fire trucks in trail. After all the passengers deplaned; maintenance and the fire crew inspected the interior of the aircraft; but did not find any evidence of fire. A walkaround was also performed; but there was no indication of a bird strike. Maintenance personnel were debriefed; a logbook entry made; and dispatch notified.although we have a checklist for fire and/or fumes; this event dealt with an odor that smelled like something was burning; but no source or evidence of a fire was found airborne or on the ground. In this case; we used the applicable checklist that most closely matched our situation. I recommend continued training topics to include situations that are not clearly spelled out in the QRH.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B737-300 Flight Crew detected a suspicious odor in the cockpit and their Flight Attendants concurred with its presence in the cabin. They declared an emergency and expedited their arrival to their destination where no evidence of fire or overheated conditions were discovered.

Narrative: During the departure; the First Officer and I smelled an odor in the flight deck. The odor was neither acrid nor oily; but more like a burnt smell from when birds are ingested into the engine or a lit match is extinguished. The check of the engine instruments and electrical systems showed that all were operating normally and within parameters. There were also no visible signs of smoke or irritation to the eyes and nose.The Flight Attendants said that they could smell the odor; but did not see any smoke. They also stated that the odor was strongest in the front part of the cabin and dissipated starting around row six. The First Officer then directed the Flight Attendants to check the cabin and lavatories for any possible fires.While the Flight Attendants were checking the cabin; we began running the Smoke/Fire/Fumes checklist. However; before we completed the checklist the odor began to subside. Shortly thereafter; the Flight Attendants called back and said that they did not find any evidence of a fire. They also informed us that there were two of our Maintenance personnel onboard and that they also helped with checking the cabin.After completing the Smoke/Fire/Fumes checklist; we also ran the Cabin/Lavatory Fire checklist as a precaution. With no sign of smoke or fire onboard the aircraft; I elected to continue to our destination. Halfway into the flight one of the Flight Attendants said that he was starting to smell the odor again. However; we could not smell anything in the flight deck. At that point; we declared an emergency and asked for direct routing to our destination. The First Officer requested fire trucks upon arrival and informed ATC that we were planning a normal landing and rollout. He then informed the Passengers that fire trucks would be inspecting the aircraft after landing as a precaution due to the odor that was present in the cabin.After landing and clearing the runway the fire crew did a visual and thermal imaging check of the aircraft. Once the inspection was complete and no fire or hot spots were reported; we taxied back to the gate with the fire trucks in trail. After all the passengers deplaned; Maintenance and the fire crew inspected the interior of the aircraft; but did not find any evidence of fire. A walkaround was also performed; but there was no indication of a bird strike. Maintenance personnel were debriefed; a logbook entry made; and Dispatch notified.Although we have a checklist for fire and/or fumes; this event dealt with an odor that smelled like something was burning; but no source or evidence of a fire was found airborne or on the ground. In this case; we used the applicable checklist that most closely matched our situation. I recommend continued training topics to include situations that are not clearly spelled out in the QRH.

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	915690
Time
Date	201010
Local Time Of Day	1801-2400
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.ARTCC
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Night
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B737-300
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Cruise
Flight Plan	IFR
Person 1
Function	Captain
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 227
Events
Anomaly	Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor

A B737-300 flight crew detected a suspicious odor in the cockpit and their flight attendants concurred with its presence in the cabin. They declared an emergency and expedited their arrival to their destination where no evidence of fire or overheated conditions were discovered.