10 ms·

I don't know if this is actually true, but I read recently that in the case of a crash the seatbelt isn't there to stop you dying, its to keep your body attache

I don't know if this is actually true, but I read recently that in the case of a crash the seatbelt isn't there to stop you dying, its to keep your body attached to your assigned seat so that you can be identified afterwards.

deleted 10y ago
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stordoff 10y ago
Sounds like the old "brace position is to kill you rather than injure you" myth to me. Struggling for a better source, but: > And the seat belts that flight attendants urge you to wear during most of the flight also helped to keep head and neck injuries to a minimum, says Dr. David King, a trauma surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital and an assistant professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. “Clearly for the vertical deceleration [typical] of an airplane crash, the lap belt seems to be the most important restraint,” he says. http://healthland.time.com/2013/07/09/lessons-from-flight-214-should-airplane-seats-have-shoulder-belts/ http://healthland.time.com/2013/07/09/lessons-from-flight-21...
quirkafleeg 10y ago
Haven't heard that before, but even if true people often move seats, so it wouldn't be very accurate.
FabHK 10y ago
A myth. Sure, there are accidents where everyone perishes with or without seatbelt (and those make the headlines), but there are surprisingly many accidents where some or many people survive. > "between 1983 and 2000, more than 95 percent of people involved in U.S. plane crashes survived." http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=2619382&page=1 http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=2619382&page=1
- 4ad 10y ago
  I agree that it is a myth, but that statistic is misleading, the definition used for "plane crash" is not one most people would agree with.
  - FabHK 10y ago
    Fair enough, but bottom line is that lots can happen on a flight that might injure you, without necessarily being a prototypical plane crash. So better wear your seat belts. Similarly, I take off my shoes during long flights, but make sure to have them on for take-off and landing, in case of evacuation.

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

stordoff 10y ago

Sounds like the old "brace position is to kill you rather than injure you" myth to me. Struggling for a better source, but: > And the seat belts that flight attendants urge you to wear during most of the flight also helped to keep head and neck injuries to a minimum, says Dr. David King, a trauma surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital and an assistant professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. “Clearly for the vertical deceleration [typical] of an airplane crash, the lap belt seems to be the most important restraint,” he says. http://healthland.time.com/2013/07/09/lessons-from-flight-214-should-airplane-seats-have-shoulder-belts/ http://healthland.time.com/2013/07/09/lessons-from-flight-21...

quirkafleeg 10y ago

Haven't heard that before, but even if true people often move seats, so it wouldn't be very accurate.

FabHK 10y ago

A myth. Sure, there are accidents where everyone perishes with or without seatbelt (and those make the headlines), but there are surprisingly many accidents where some or many people survive. > "between 1983 and 2000, more than 95 percent of people involved in U.S. plane crashes survived." http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=2619382&page=1 http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=2619382&page=1

4ad 10y ago
I agree that it is a myth, but that statistic is misleading, the definition used for "plane crash" is not one most people would agree with.
- FabHK 10y ago
  Fair enough, but bottom line is that lots can happen on a flight that might injure you, without necessarily being a prototypical plane crash. So better wear your seat belts. Similarly, I take off my shoes during long flights, but make sure to have them on for take-off and landing, in case of evacuation.