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What I don't get is why people are not using seatbelts. The only time I'm not using it is when I'm on the way to and from the bathroom. If I'm seated I'm using
by Tor3 3y ago
What I don't get is why people are not using seatbelts. The only time I'm not using it is when I'm on the way to and from the bathroom. If I'm seated I'm using the seatbelt.
- thelastparadise 3y agoMy god could you imagine if this happened when you were in the bathroom?
- wjnc 3y agoI'm a worrier about things like these. I always imagined that's why the roof in the bathroom is lower and curved. A lot less room for gaining vertical speed. So you'd be temporarily stuck to the ceiling and perhaps a bit dirtied, but less hurt than getting double struck by first the lockers and then the higher ceiling in the aisle.
- lm28469 3y agoIt's not the worst place actually, you can't pick up too much momentum since the cabin is so small
- RandomBacon 3y agoThey should install a gravity switch. A simply contact that uses gravity to either remain normally-open or normally-closed, and then when the opposite is true, automatically flush.
- InitialLastName 3y agoOpen question: to what extent does the flush mechanism in airplane toilets rely on the presence of gravity?
- account42 3y agoIt quire clearly uses a pressure differential to quickly suck your shit out of the bowl. I doubt gravity makes much of a difference.
- koolba 3y agoAfter the recent incidents, I’d love to see zip line style safety lines in planes. When you get up to use the lavatory, you’d connect your carabiner to the aisle ceiling and floor lines to keep you level in case of a sudden movement.
- beAbU 3y agoI think you can forget about using the loo succesfully if you can't even walk down the aisle without incident...
- bloomingeek 3y agoThis is a great point, I've often wondered why there are no seat belts on airplane toilets. Yes, there would be many obstacles to overcome (please, no course jokes) but there have been several times when I was using the facilities on a plane and turbulence ensued and I almost panicked thinking about all the possible bad things that could happen.
- HL33tibCe7 3y agoThis idea wouldn’t actually solve most of the biggest problems during turbulence, which is people hitting their heads on the ceiling, and people getting hit by luggage falling out of the overhead storage. I think having a cable flying around would actually be dangerous in itself. Wouldn’t want to get it caught around your neck…
- koolba 3y ago> This idea wouldn’t actually solve most of the biggest problems during turbulence, which is people hitting their heads on the ceiling, … It’s two cable lines, one on the ceiling and one on the floor. Each would be separately attached to the passengers harness so the freedom of movement is only up and down, limited to the amount of slack in the short length that connects the passenger to the plane. > … and people getting hit by luggage falling out of the overhead storage. We can give everyone a hard hat too.
- H8crilA 3y agoThis. Clear Air Turbulence can strike at any time, and you - as in your body - can get seriously damaged even with moderate turbulence. Few people have ever seen severe or extreme turbulence, including the flight crews, but that can happen as well.
- loceng 3y agoWhen I was 5 or 6 years old I was flying-sitting with my dad, as passengers, though he was an airline pilot, when we hit a pocket of "dead" air. Meals and drinks were just served. For what was at least 3-5 seconds all of the meal trays floated up, hovered and then thankfully relatively gently settled back down. My dad estimated we dropped 200 feet or so.
- mschuster91 3y agoYou've, technically, eaten food that was at zero gravity once for a short period of time.
- loceng 3y agoHehe. Thanks for that perspective.
- ceejayoz 3y agoFree-fall isn't zero-gravity, and anyone who observes the five-second rule has had a similar experience.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- colordrops 3y agoYes it is, didn't Einstein say that gravity and acceleration are indistinguishable
- 3y ago
- infecto 3y agoLatam is Chilean. I am not as well traveled in all SA countries but the exposure I have had suggested that seatbelts in cars are fairly optional still, I suspect on a plane you have less incentive.
- ztetranz 3y agoThey're optional for adults in cars here in New Hampshire where the official state motto is "Live free or die".
- AlexandrB 3y agoNH doesn't get enough credit for how weird it is. Between the state motto, the lack of sales or income tax, and stuff like this seatbelt rule it's like we're talking about a totally different country.
- ztetranz 3y agoThe other thing about cars in NH is that insurance is optional. I'm not sure what happens if someone legally driving in NH without liability insurance drives over the border into a neighboring state. I asked a lawyer friend once and he mumbled something about interstate commerce making it legal. I'm not how that debate would go when stopped by a cop in MA and asked to show proof of insurance.
- bloomingeek 3y agoIn my state, the arm pit of America, OKLA, auto insurance is mandatory. However, a certain amount of my fellow citizens treat it as optional.
- rsynnott 3y ago> I'm not sure what happens if someone legally driving in NH without liability insurance ... Wait, you don't need _liability insurance_?!
- progbits 3y ago> What I don't get is why people are not using seatbelts. The terrible UX doesn't help. There is a seatbelt icon on the sign, they announce it as "fasten seatbelt sign", which makes it sound like when it is off you don't have to have it fastened. But it really should be "remain seated" sign. Also some people don't wear seatbelts in cars as some idiotic macho thing. I assume there is no helping those.
- mianos 3y agoIt's my understanding this was mid flight and not a situation where the seatbelt sign was lit. I believe the original commenter is suggesting that people wear their seatbelt at all times, if possible, seatbelt sign lit, or not. (Which, as once a very frequent flyer, I do, others don't like to if they don't have to).
- progbits 3y agoYes I have it fastened all the time too. My point was the fact the "fasten seatbelt sign" was not lit in the middle of the flight makes people think it is OK to not have it fastened. Which isn't true.
- mianos 3y agoYes, maybe. I was on an international flight last week and they said, over the intercom, that they suggest you keep your seatbelts fastened all the time where possible. Maybe they should play some in flight video of one of these events.
- pc86 3y agoEvery single flight I've ever been on except LATAM says to keep your seatbelt fastened when seated even when the seatbelt sign is off. UX isn't the issue, people ignoring common sense things like "maybe my seatbelt should be on when I'm flying through the air at 500mph" is.
- ta1243 3y agoThere are also cases when you should not be wearing a seatbelt -- if you have just got on a plane and it's still being refilled the seatbelt sign is off and sometimes the crew will tell you not to put your seatbelt on while it's being refilled.
- rsynnott 3y agoThey have signs showing when you need to wear seatbelts, so when the seatbelt light goes out, well, what are people _supposed_ to think? I have noticed that it does seem to have gotten more common to just leave them on for the duration of the flight, in the last couple of decades.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- beAbU 3y agoI was under the impression that seatbelts are basically mandatory at all times. On my recent turkish airlines flight the safety video requested you put it on and leave it on, ans the staff would come by and ask you to put your seatbelt on, even when theres no turbulence. The "seat belt" indicator light should actually be changed to "dont get up and walk around"
- HL33tibCe7 3y agoOn the half dozen (European) airlines I’ve flown, it’s always been “seatbelts are recommended at all times”. Never a requirement.
- lostlogin 3y agoSurely required on takeoff/landing?
- zerkten 3y agoAbsolutely at takeoff, but the emphasis is often missing for the remainder of your time onboard. It's noticeable when crew add extra reminders. I've never looked for stats on these incidents involving clear air turbulence. The impression I got as a European was that this was a transatlantic and transpacific problem. It's obviously not, but those were the incidents reported on.
- Tor3 3y agoThere are occasionally "air holes" happening near my local airport. A friend onboard a particularly severe one told me that the captain said that they'd "fallen" some 160 meters. I also have another friend who, a long time ago, didn't use the seatbelt on a domestic flight - sudden turbulence made him hit his head and injure his neck badly. That's very dangerous. Personally the "worst" I've seen was just enough to break wine bottles in the overhead in front of me. Flight attendants gave out blankets for all of us nearby, as protection for dripping wine..
- 3y ago
- benjaminwootton 3y agoIt definitely seems like the wise thing to do. There are enough reports of these events even if your risk of being caught up in one is low.
- qwertox 3y agoI think the seatbelt-sign is outdated. Somehow it should be made clear that if a sign is on, it is not allowed to stand up and move around, and the general rule is that the seatbelt must be locked while sitting.
- chrisweekly 3y agoIn my 5 decades of flying regularly (US-based flights), this is made crystal clear by flight attendants and repeated PA announcements.
- gomox 3y agoIt needs to be safe and clear by design, not confusing to the point where systematic PA announcements are needed to clarify the fact that "seat belt sign is off" actually means "you should wear your seatbelt".
- pc86 3y agoAnd maybe on new planes they'll change the iconography (which would probably require FAA rules to be rewritten), but let's not downplay the role of just having common sense.
- Tor3 3y agoNowadays what they announce on European and Europe-Asian flights (the ones I have any recent experience with) is that, when the seat belt sign is turned off there's always an immediate announcement which says something like "The captain has now switched off the seat belt sign, however it is recommended to use the seat belt whenever seated".
- lm28469 3y agoProbably the same reason people don't use seatbelts in buses, I'm very often the only one wearing a seatbelt when I travel by bus I've seen aftermath videos and photos, I'm not taking my chances
- enlyth 3y agoInteresting, I've never seen a bus with seat belts
- Aardwolf 3y agoThe first few rows of seats sometimes have those, but not all the rows after that
- flohofwoe 3y agoIn Germany at least it depends on the type of bus. Long distance / travel busses (Google translates it to "coach") are required to have seatbelts, regular "city busses" don't.
- rsynnott 3y agoAs a general rule, buses that go on motorways (ie intercity, mostly) tend to have them; others usually don't.
- lm28469 3y agoNot in city buses, but flixbuses, school buses, &c.| These: https://www.usabuscharter.com/uploads/4/3/6/1/43615417/setra5_orig.jpg https://www.usabuscharter.com/uploads/4/3/6/1/43615417/setra...
- Tor3 3y agoIn my town only the intercity ones used to have them, but these days all the city buses have them too. I don't mind using the seatbelt, but their design isn't optimal - they're hard to put on, particularly if you're wearing a large jacket. A lot of fumbling is required.
- jgalt212 3y agoWhat I don't get is why they serve hot coffee on planes with these ever present risks.
- ThePowerOfFuet 3y agoThe coffee is generally not hot enough to cause burns, especially given that you will be drinking it immediately upon serving.
- jgalt212 3y agoThat hasn't been my experience. I mean it's not McDonald's hot, but it's hot enough to cause damaage.
- numpad0 3y agoI wear masks in public and I use seatbelts on airplanes, but that's not the shortest path to the boss ape of the town status, and I would guess a lot of people care more about that than their own life.
- ta1243 3y agoBathroom, stretching legs, getting something from overhead locker, and of course the cabin crew. I could see at least 20 people at a given time doing one of those things.
- dreamcompiler 3y agoSame here, but most passengers don't understand the issue. They think turbulence means "a bumpy flight" when it really means "you will -- without warning -- be slammed against the ceiling and then against the floor, and then against the ceiling again for good measure."