4 ms·

The Safest Seat To Sit On A Plane Is...

10 points by neilc 18y ago

chris_l 18y ago
So a security-conscious traveler should avoid first class? I find it quite ironic that one pays for a less safe but more comfortable seat
- davidw 18y ago
  You'd want to look at the stats another way too, though: per air mile traveled, how much more likely are you to die sitting in first class. The answer is probably "not that much", so it makes sense to enjoy the comfort.
  - yangyang42 18y ago
    > "not that much" true. but, the issue here could be life&death! ...just another justification for living frugal and paying for cheap airline tickets.
    - davidw 18y ago
      If the difference is .0000001 % vs .0000002 %, then it doesn't really matter, does it? You're probably more likely to increase your statistical lifespan by taking a bus to the airport instead of driving, or eating a bit less fatty foods, or something else.
      - neilc 18y ago
        One thing that always annoys me a bit is when people say "life is priceless" -- because our behavior is certainly not consistent with that. We could save many human lives via a myriad of expensive policies -- for example, requiring all cars to have tank-like protective shielding. The fact that these policies are not implemented implies that we're perfectly happy to place a price on human life -- it's just a question of which particular policies save enough lives to justify the cost.
bigtoga 18y ago
Thank you for posting this here - this is exactly the type of news that "Hacker News" is missing!
technoguyrob 18y ago
I am at the airport right now and will be boarding a flight in 40 minutes. Thank you!
hugh 18y ago
What about the top deck on a 747? Or an A380, but I'm sure there aren't any stats for that just yet.
smalter 18y ago
i dunno about the safest seat on the plane, but i recently found out that the most comfortable seatw on the plane--first class aside--are the exit rows seats because you get extra legroom. i used to avoid them because i thought the window seats were more uncomfortable, because they had all that exit row safety junk on them, but that's not the case.
yagibear 18y ago
I saw a reasonable TV documentary on this topic some time ago entitled "Survivors Guide to Plane Crashes", which is briefly summarised at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5402342.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5402342.stm One of the more interesting aspects IMHO was the reason for turning off cabin lights when approaching for night landings: to acclimatise your eyes to the ambient light in case of crash. Of course the cabin crew don't disclose that... A simple Google search reveals more tips: http://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+survive+a+plane+crash http://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+survive+a+plane+crash

10 points by neilc 18y ago

So a security-conscious traveler should avoid first class? I find it quite ironic that one pays for a less safe but more comfortable seat

davidw 18y ago
You'd want to look at the stats another way too, though: per air mile traveled, how much more likely are you to die sitting in first class. The answer is probably "not that much", so it makes sense to enjoy the comfort.
- yangyang42 18y ago
  > "not that much" true. but, the issue here could be life&death! ...just another justification for living frugal and paying for cheap airline tickets.
  - davidw 18y ago
    If the difference is .0000001 % vs .0000002 %, then it doesn't really matter, does it? You're probably more likely to increase your statistical lifespan by taking a bus to the airport instead of driving, or eating a bit less fatty foods, or something else.
    - neilc 18y ago
      One thing that always annoys me a bit is when people say "life is priceless" -- because our behavior is certainly not consistent with that. We could save many human lives via a myriad of expensive policies -- for example, requiring all cars to have tank-like protective shielding. The fact that these policies are not implemented implies that we're perfectly happy to place a price on human life -- it's just a question of which particular policies save enough lives to justify the cost.

bigtoga 18y ago

Thank you for posting this here - this is exactly the type of news that "Hacker News" is missing!

technoguyrob 18y ago

I am at the airport right now and will be boarding a flight in 40 minutes. Thank you!

hugh 18y ago

What about the top deck on a 747? Or an A380, but I'm sure there aren't any stats for that just yet.

smalter 18y ago

i dunno about the safest seat on the plane, but i recently found out that the most comfortable seatw on the plane--first class aside--are the exit rows seats because you get extra legroom. i used to avoid them because i thought the window seats were more uncomfortable, because they had all that exit row safety junk on them, but that's not the case.

yagibear 18y ago

I saw a reasonable TV documentary on this topic some time ago entitled "Survivors Guide to Plane Crashes", which is briefly summarised at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5402342.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5402342.stm One of the more interesting aspects IMHO was the reason for turning off cabin lights when approaching for night landings: to acclimatise your eyes to the ambient light in case of crash. Of course the cabin crew don't disclose that... A simple Google search reveals more tips: http://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+survive+a+plane+crash http://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+survive+a+plane+crash