When booking a flight, are you wondering which seat will best protect you in an emergency? Probably not.
Most people reserve seats for comfort, like legroom, convenience, or easy access to the restroom. Frequent flyers (myself included) sometimes reserve their seat as far forward on the plane as possible to get off the plane faster.
We rarely book a flight expecting to get a middle seat in the last row. Guess what? These seats are statistically the safest on an airplane.
Air travel is safe
Before I get to the heart of the matter, I would like to remind you that air transport is the safest mode of transport. In 2022 there were almost 70 million flights worldwide with only 174 fatalities.
According to an analysis of US National Security Council census data, the odds of dying on an airplane are about 1 in 205,552, compared to 1 in 102 in a car. Even so, we pay little attention to traffic fatalities, but when we hear about a plane crash, it makes the headlines.
Our interest in plane crashes may stem from our desire to understand why they happen or the likelihood that they will happen again. And maybe that’s not so bad: our interest helps ensure that these tragic incidents are thoroughly investigated, which contributes to air traffic safety.
You really don’t have to worry about safety when boarding a commercial flight. But if you still have that nagging question in your mind, driven by sheer curiosity, read on.
In the middle, behind
It is worth remembering that accidents, by their very nature, are not standard. When United Flight 232 crashed in Sioux City, Iowa in 1989, 184 of the 269 people on board survived the crash. Most of the survivors sat behind first class in the front of the plane.
Still, a Time magazine survey looking at 35 years of plane crash data found that the middle rear seats of an airplane had the lowest fatality rate: 28%, compared to 44% for the center aisle seats.
It’s also logical. Sitting next to an exit row always gives you the quickest exit in an emergency, provided there is no fire on that side. But an airplane’s wings store fuel, which disqualifies center exit rows as the safest row option.
At the same time, it means you’re closer to the front before the rear ones get hit, giving us the last row. Why middle seats are safer than window or aisle seats is, as you might expect, due to the buffer, which has people on each side.
Commercial aircraft wings store fuel, which can make this area a bit more dangerous in the very unlikely event of an emergency.
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Some emergencies are worse than others
The nature of the emergency also determines survivability. Hitting a mountain will reduce the chances of survival exponentially, as happened in a tragic 1979 disaster in New Zealand. Air New Zealand Flight TE901 crashed into the slopes of Mount Erebus, Antarctica, killing 257 passengers and crew.
Landing nose-first in the ocean also reduces the chances of survival, as demonstrated by Air France Flight 447 in 2009, which killed 228 passengers and crew.
Pilots are trained to minimize potential risks in an emergency. You will try to avoid mountains and look for a flat place like an open field to land as normally as possible. Water landing technique involves assessing surface conditions and attempting to land between waves at a normal landing angle.
Airplanes are designed to be very robust in emergency situations. In fact, the main reason cabin crew reminds us to keep our seatbelts on is not because of the risk of crushing, but because of the “clear air turbulence” that can occur at any time at high altitude. It is this meteorological phenomenon that can cause the greatest damage to passengers and aircraft.
Manufacturers are designing new aircraft with more composite materials that can withstand the stresses of flight. In these designs, the wings are not rigid and can flex to absorb extreme loads and prevent structural failure.
Does the aircraft type make a difference?
It is true that some variables, such as B. the influence of speed, may vary slightly from one type of aircraft to another. However, flight physics are more or less the same for all aircraft.
In general, larger aircraft have more structural materials and therefore greater strength to withstand pressurization at altitude. This means they can provide additional protection in an emergency, but again this depends on the severity of the emergency.
That doesn’t mean you have to book your next flight on the biggest plane you can find. As I mentioned earlier, air travel remains very safe.