LOS ANGELES - Seattle attorneys pulled Southwest Airlines into a Los Angeles courtroom Friday morning flexing some legal muscle to try to find answers for their clients.
Twin sisters Valerie and Victoria Vaughn say they became seriously ill after their flight left Los Angeles earlier this year. A mysterious mist filled the cabin forcing a sudden landing.
In court, Southwest agreed to hand over evidence it removed from the grounded plane including ductwork and fabric. The twins' attorneys want it for lab tests.
"We want to test those materials to see what chemical is on those materials. It's common after a bleed air or fume air event there are chemicals that will stick around in quantities that are far greater than you would ever find on a normal airplane," said Alisa Brodkowoitz, plaintiff's attorney.
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The Vaughn sisters say Southwest was uncooperative when they tried to find out more about the fumes that they say caused ongoing breathing problems, headaches and tremors.
Such illnesses have also been reported by others. The Vaughns' court case is the latest is a series of legal and scientific developments ratcheting up against the airlines and airplane manufacturers.
Some experts believe flyers are being poisoned by fumes because of the design of virtually all types of jetliners.
The air intake system is located right near the jet engines. There's concern oil vapors are being sucked into the air delivery system and passengers and crew are inhaling a toxin in the oil.
There are many critics of this theory - people who ask why often it's only some people on a flight who get sick and how can you prove it was fumes that made them ill.
A researcher at the University of Washington has spent years trying to come up with answers.
Dr. Clem Furlong says he could be close to developing a blood test that would show the presence of the jet oil toxin in people who are sick - the first solid scientific link.
Late Friday, a Southwest spokesperson wouldn't say if the airline had any theories about what could have made the twins sick. She did say they're not aware of any other sick passengers from that flight.
