Cheaper airplane seats safest?
2012-09-19 08:44
An organised crash of an unmanned Boeing 747, has revealed encouraging news for budget travellers: it could be safer to sit in the cheap seats
Wanderlust reports that as part of an experiment for Channel 4, the aircraft contained cameras and crash-test dummies to help scientists evaluate where the safest parts are. They found that the further you are from the cockpit the higher your chances of survival - though Boeing's own site says that one seat is as safe as another.
Experts concluded that none of the passengers in first-class would have survived the crash, but 78% of the other passengers would have, with the chance of survival increasing the closer they were sitting to the rear of the aircraft.
Three dummies on the aircraft were also positioned in various ways, to experiment with the safest way to sit at impact. The dummy in the classic 'brace' position with a seat belt fastened would have survived; another dummy with just the seat belt fastened would have suffered severe head injuries; while the final dummy, which had neither, would have died.
The silver lining for budget-conscious travellers? If economy seats begin to attract premium price tags for safety reasons you might get to enjoy cut-class, Business Class comfort on your next flight...
The programme is set to be aired on Channel 4 next month.
