Eli5: why do plane fleets get grounded after accidents but car fleets remain on the road even though they may have serious issues?

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Outside of a brief aside in the movie Fight Club and what I assume are economic reasons, I’ve never seen good compelling reasons why airplanes are grounded for accidents, while cars do not seem to undergo the same level of scrutiny?

Is it just because cars are tested more before they enter the market?

From an outsider’s perspective, it seems that airplanes are already much safer than cars- so what gives?

In: Engineering

30 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Because if a car stops working there is a good chance you can just stop. If a plane stop working well you are 30,000 feet in the air. Oh yeah and also could be carrying 1000 people. 

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