A321
Flight Attendant Current
Communication Breakdown; Distraction; Physiological - Other; Time Pressure
Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor
General None Reported / Taken
Company Policy; Aircraft; Human Factors; Procedure
Upon boarding; once APU was turned on; bad odors started coming from the whole ventilation system throughout the aircraft. Strong musty; wet socks smell kept coming; as passengers smelled it they all started to complain as well. All crewmembers felt nauseous; and notified the captain of this issue. Captain claimed it was just the filters that needed to be replaced. As it could have been burned hydraulic liquid without him being aware of this. Maintenance was not even called to inspect the aircraft due to pressure of on time performance.Inspection should be mandatory after any incidents [like this one.] Concerned crewmembers should not just be ignored. The company should care; and provide proper maintenance. Not wait for an incident to do something about it.
After APU start during preflight; the flight attendants and passengers detected a strong musky; wet sock odor making them nauseous. The Captain attributed the odor to dirty air filters and so ignored them. Historically; APU oil reservoir over service has been a known cause.