Originally Posted By: AKSAR
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The first and overriding priority in a commercial passenger aircraft crash is to get out of the wreckage before it burns (or sinks). ANYTHING that slows you down in this, even for one second, is a bad choice. If grabbing a kit only endangered you, that might be your prerogative. However, any delay on your part, even seconds, endangers everyone else behind you who is trying to exit the aircraft.
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First and foremost, ALWAYS FOCUS ON GETTING OUT OF THE AIRCRAFT AS FAST AS POSSIBLE! While other considerations are also important, anything that interferes with escaping the crash (even for a couple of seconds) is counterproductive. The best survival kit in the world does you no good if you are already dead!


Excellent post! I totally agree with your reasoning and conclusions.

I've had a few mildly unpleasant experiences on helos and small commuter planes. Nothing bad actually happened, but they counted as close calls. So I'm a little bit neurotic about flight safety, which causes me to generally do the following:

- I try to eyeball the aircraft before and during boarding, looking for things like obvious leaks, damage, ice buildup, etc. [A passenger on the Hawaiian flight that lost a major section of the upper fuselage actually noticed a crack in the fuselage while boarding, but she boarded anyway!]

- I prefer to wear natural fiber clothing with long sleeves and sturdy shoes, whenever possible. This offers some protection from flash fire and plastic material melting into your skin.

- I try to book an exit aisle or nearby seat, over the wings or toward the rear. Statistically, experts say it makes little difference where in the A/C your seat is, but the wing area is the structurally strongest part, and in the rear, you'll probably at least live a small fraction of a second longer than those up front. ;-)

- I pay attention to the safety briefing and carefully read the safety card, so I know exactly how to open the specific emergency exits on that aircraft.

- I jot the number of rows to the exits ahead and behind on my wrist.

- I try to make some assessment of my fellow passengers as I walk down the aisle. I'm generally trying to guess who might be a problem, or an asset, in an emergency; anyone who appears ill, ill at ease, intoxicated, likely to have mobility issues, or is already uncooperative with cabin crew instructions; and other potential issues in an emergency or evacuation.