What if you’re a Passenger in an Emergency?

So, what do you do if you happen to be a passenger in an emergency? I’ll try to give you some thoughts.

1. First, listen to the predeparture safety demonstration. I know that you can buckle your seatbelt, but where will you escape if the airplane is on fire? Where will you go if the plane ditches on the water? Is the airplane equipped with rafts and lifevests? Not all are, and it’s not always demonstrated. If the lifevest wasn’t demonstrated, feel under your seat to see if one is actually there. How will you find an exit if it’s smoky? All airplanes have emergency lights located near or on the floor. These lights change pattern or color near an exit. Also, next time you fly, look at the moulding under the overhead compartments, you may see some bumps molded into the surface near the exits.
2. Second, learn about the oxygen system. The MD-80 has chemical oxygen generators, and other airplanes may have a compressed oxygen, or even a liquid oxygen system. In all cases, you must pull down on the oxygen mask in order to pull a pin to start the oxygen flowing — it doesn’t happen automatically. Also, it isn’t a pressure system, so you may lose consciousness anyway. This is why they tell you to put on your own mask before assisting others. The pilots use a different system which will pressure feed the oxygen into their lungs.
3. If there’s an emergency, listen to the flight attendants, not to your fellow passengers and not even me, unless I’m your captain. If there’s time before the landing, the flight attendants will show you the ditching position, likely with your head in your lap, or whit your head on crossed arms with hands on the headrest of the seat in front of you. If he can, the pilot will call on the PA to brace for impace, we use the terminology “Brace! Brace! Brace!”. Don’t leave this position until the airplane has fully stopped — it may take a while.
4. After the airplane has stopped, I know it sounds funny, but open your seatbelt. It may not be the first thing that you think about, and I’ve heard stories of people struggling to leave their seats with their seatbelt still buckled. You may hear “Open Your Seatbelt — Come this way — Jump and Slide!” Follow the instructions of uniformed crew members. Some exits may be unusable. There may be fire, it may be underwater or it may be jammed. To continue pushing toward an unusable exit doesn’t help anybody. Leave your luggage! If you have to slide, and you’re a woman, remove your high heels and realize that you nylons may burn against the slide friction. Remove them if practical.
5. Jump onto the slide into the seated position. Don’t jump onto your feet - you may tumble. Don’t sit on the edge and then slide like on a child’s slide — it takes too much time and a burning airplane may give you only a minute or two for everybody to get out. After you are out, assist other people at the base of the slide if needed and you are able. Direct people away from the airplane and into a group. Rescue vehicles can always hit stray survivors. Consider moving people away at a 45 degree angle, as exploding engines always seem to throw metal pieces foreward, backward and sideways.
6. If in the water, put on your lifevest, but don’t inflate it yet. Here’s why. If the only exit you can use is submerged, you won’t be able to use it if you’re already wearing an inflated lifevest. To prevent entering the water with a defective lifevest, inflate it just before exiting.
7. If exiting through a window, realize that the window is heavy and not hinged — it comes completely out. Put it someplace out of the way — it’s permissible to throw it out the window if that’s the best way. To exit through the window, use the leg-body-leg procedure. After getting through, slide down the back of the wing on the flap, or walk out on the wing away from the exit if on the water. Look for arrows on the wing surface pointing you in the right direction and be careful of things on the wing surface, like open spoilers.
8. If climbing into a raft, be prepared to be cramped. Some of these rafts can hold 50 people or more, but not in luxury.

Your airline’s instructions take precedence over anything that you read here. Also, if you have anything to add, email me and I’ll tack it on.

Len