Do you ever consider which seat will provide you the most protection in case of an emergency? Most people don’t, but it’s certainly interesting to know.
Like most people, reserving seats generally revolve around more common factors like convenience, comfort with more leg room, having a bathroom nearby and of course closer to the exit to get off the plane faster. As a matter of fact, most people tend to avoid the last row as well as the middle seats. After all, there isn’t many of us who would like to be sandwiched between two strangers especially during a longer flight. Well in case you didn’t know, these seats are actually the safest seats on board.
Traveling by air is safe
Don’t get freaked out just yet. Traveling by plane is still one of the safest forms of transportation. There were only 287 deaths worldwide out of roughly 70 million flights that took place in 2019. The odds of you getting into a fatal accident on a plane is around 1 in 205,552 as apposed to 1 in 102 when traveling by car.
We may be interested in plane crashes because we want to know why they occur or what the chances that they will occur again. Perhaps it’s even a good thing since it guarantees a thorough investigation into these unfortunate events. On the long run, this helps maintain the safety when traveling by plane.
To be quite honest, there really isn’t a big concern about your safety when you board a commercial airline. But if you’re still curious and have that nagging question in your brain, keep reading.
The middle seat in the back is your answer
It’s important to keep in mind that accidents do not, by definition, follow fules. 184 out of 269 passengers on board United Flight 232, which crashed near Sioux City, Iowa in 1989, managed to escape the incident. The majority of survivors were seated at the front of the aircraft, behind first class.
However, a TIME research that examined 35 years worth of data on plane accidents discovered that the middle seat in the back had the lowest death rate: 28% as opposed to 44% for the middle aisle seats.
Another factor could be that there isn’t a fire on that side, sitting close to an exit row will always give you the fastest escape route in an emergency. Since the plane’s wings also serve as fuel storage spaces, the middle exit rows are no longer the safest seats.
Not all emergencies are equal
The likelihood of survival depends on the nature of the situation. Running into a mountain would obviously increase the odds of a fatality drastically. In addition, there are fewer survivors when a plane lands in the water nose-first, as was the case with Air France Flight 447 in 2009, which had 228 fatalities among everyone on board.
Pilots go through extensive training to reduce the risk as much as possible in an emergency situation. They will seek for a flat area, like an open field, to land as naturally as they can while attempting to avoid striking mountains. Assessing the surface conditions and attempting to land between waves at an ideal angle are required steps in the strategy for landing in water.
In an emergency, aircraft are built to be incredibly durable. In actuality, “clear air turbulence,” which can occur at any time at high altitudes, is the major reason the cabin crew reminds us to keep our seat belts fastened–not the possibility of a crash.
New aircrafts are being designed by manufacturers with more composite materials that can withstand stress during flight. These new designs allow the wings to bend and take heavy loads and prevent structural damage since they are not stiff.
Does the kind of aircraft matter?
It’s true that some factors, like the amount of airspeed, might change a little bit depending on the kind of aircraft. But for all planes, the mechanics of flying are essentially the same.
Larger aircraft often have more structural material, which gives them more capacity to withstand pressure buildup in the atmosphere. They might therefore offer some additional protection in an emergency, albeit, as before, much will depend on how serious the incident is.
With that being said, this doesn’t mean you need to book your next flight by choosing the biggest aircraft carrier you can find. As we’ve already indicated, flying is still incredibly safe. Therefore, it might be better to consider how long your flight is and what entertainment you’re going to need to keep yourself busy as well as snacks that you’d enjoy eating instead.
Most common things people worry about when flying:
- Safety: This is a top concern for many people when flying, especially after incidents involving planes. People worry about turbulence, mechanical failures, and other potential dangers during a flight.
- Delays and cancellations: Many people worry about their flights being delayed or cancelled, which can disrupt their plans and cause them to miss connections or appointments.
- Lost or delayed luggage: This is another common worry for travelers, especially if they have important items in their luggage or if they are traveling for a special occasion.
- Comfort: For some people, flying can be an uncomfortable experience. They may worry about cramped seats, long flights, and jet lag.
- Health issues: Some people have health concerns related to flying, such as the risk of getting sick on a plane, or being at higher altitudes with less oxygen.
- Cost: The cost of flying, including ticket prices and baggage fees, can also be a worry for some people.
- Turbulence: Some people have a fear of turbulence and worry about the turbulence during their flight.
