Poor cabin air quality in planes could be affecting passengers' health, the Consumers' Association warned today.

Despite a number of cases of possible air contamination on BAe 146 aircraft, little was being done to improve the quality of air on planes generally, the association said.

There was "a worrying lack of research and in-flight testing of cabin air quality", according to a report in the association's Holiday Which? magazine. The report added:

· Pilots reduce airflow rates in the cabin to save fuel, despite denials by the airlines
· Substances banned in the USA are still used in cabin pesticide sprays
· Cabin pressure is supposed to be the equivalent of being at 8,000ft but some cabins have been set at higher than this
· There are no regulations on humidity or temperature

The magazine highlighted the number of well-reported air pollution incidents involving the BAe 146, including flight and cabin crew feeling faint on flights and one pilot needing oxygen.

Action has been taken by British Aerospace, now BAE Systems, but Holiday Which? reported that BAE had said it might not solve the problem completely.

"The failure of the airline industry to respond to repeated warnings around the world about cabin fumes on the BAe 146 aircraft doesn't give travellers much faith that their health is being sufficiently looked after," said Holiday Which? editor Patricia Yates.

She added: "Who knows how many other common complaints about cabin air quality will prove to be well founded? Until further research is carried out, and standards are enforced, the uncertainty will continue."