And why do flight attendants enfore this like it’s life or death?
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In the event of an emergency that warrants evacuation off the plane, you want to get out ASAP.
When they say “leave everything behind and don’t block exits”, they mean it. If the plane’s on fire, a few extra seconds in an evacuation could mean additional lives lost.
If there’s any sort of emergency, people need to be able to get out of their seats and evacuate safely. It’s easiest to get out of your seat and move around if needed if the seat in front of you And in the event of a rough landing or a crash, when the seats are upright and locked in, they’re at their most stable, most able to protect the passengers who are braced, and least likely to cause further injury.
So 99.99% of the time it’s not life or death, but once in a long while, it might actually make the difference. These sorts of regulations are written in blood, so flight attendants take it seriously for the one time it might be very important.
In case of emergencies, it’s faster to evacuate the plane when everyone’s seat is upright.
Imagine if you are the person sitting at the window seat, and the seats next to you are reclined all the way down. It will slow you down from evacuating.
Most fatal airplane crashes occur during take off or landing. The first 90 seconds after a crash are vital as well. That is the average time it takes before the chances of survival plummet due to the spread of smoke or flames.
If you’ve ever tried to get out of your seat when the row in front of you is tilted back you know it can be challenging. Imagine doing that after being concussed and in a panic. So the seats need to be up to ensure rapid easy evacuation in under 90 seconds after a crash landing.
> And why do flight attendants enforce this like it’s life or death?
Aviation is as safe as it is because (1) it’s very heavily regulated; (2) those regulations are followed.
Seats upright is to make it safer for the passengers to evacuate and lessen the chance of passengers hitting the seat in front of them during a crash. Most crashes happen during take off and landing, which is why it’s only enforced then. Same with why tray tables must be stowed.
The other rule that is enforced during take off and landing is that blinds are supposed to opened. This is so that, in case of a crash, passengers can look out the windows to see if it’s safe to escape in that direction. Similarly, rescuers can look in to see the state of the interior of the plane.
They also open the curtains between the different flight classes for the same reasons: So passengers/rescuers can clearly see what’s happening elsewhere in the plane in case of an emergency.
>And why do flight attendants enforce this like it’s life or death?
The primary goal of a flight attendant is safety. All other things are secondary. That’s why the law gives flight attendants so much power and why you can be arrested for disobeying a flight attendant. They are basically safety officers while the flight is in the air (because there’s no one else who enforce the rules while you are mid-air.) For them, their number 1 job is to ensure your safety, so they are trained their jobs are life or death.
I think it’s more about giving the person behind you the space to curl into a fetal position.
A reclined seat narrows the escape aisle for the row behind you making it more difficult for them to escape. A difference of a few seconds could mean life or death. Planes are designed to completely evacuate the plane in 90 seconds.
I’m surprised no one mention this, but part of it has to do with the angle!
If the plane for any reason crashes, you will get launched forward if you are leaning back, feet first. As you can imagine, breaking your neck on your seat belt or best case scenario being swept under the chair of the person Infront of you is neither safe nor fun!
It’s not really what you think it is. It’s a way for the crew to make sure all the passengers are awake and aware the plane is landing. Also the people that don’t put their tray table away, and seat up for landing are also the same people that are horrible in emergency situations. I dunno if the flight attendants keep track, but I certainly do.
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