When flying, where is it safer to sit? What to do if you encounter turbulence?

In recent days, civil aviation passenger plane accidents have occurred one after another around the world. According to statistics, the probability of air crashes is extremely low. However, when traveling by plane, many people have experienced risky moments such as turbulence and even forced landing. What principles should be followed to ensure safety to the greatest extent?

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The most frequently mentioned and most important safety tip in the civil aviation industry is: fasten your seat belts! Airplane passengers must not ignore the role of seat belts. According to information released by the Civil Aviation Administration of China, passengers must fasten their seat belts when the plane takes off, lands, or encounters turbulence in the air. Seat belts can not only prevent passengers from being injured by collisions, but also prevent passengers from being thrown upwards due to inertia when the plane descends rapidly.

Generally speaking, when an aircraft flies through clouds or encounters strong air currents, it will experience turbulence, which will cause the aircraft to shake or cause a sudden change in flight altitude. Paul Williams, a meteorological scientist at the University of Reading in the UK, said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency: "There is now strong evidence that turbulence is increasing significantly due to climate change."

Mark Prosser, a British expert on turbulence, said: "Turbulence is always a feature of flying. It is a natural feature of the atmosphere. You may encounter strong turbulence when flying, but the risk of causing death is still extremely small." He reminded: "It is obviously much safer to fasten your seat belt. If you are particularly worried about this kind of thing, it is best to fasten your seat belt throughout the flight, not just when the plane takes off or lands."

From the perspective of the seat distribution in the cabin of an aircraft, "where to sit is safer" has always been a controversial topic. Generally speaking, in the event of a fire, passengers sitting near the cabin's safety door are more likely to escape. In addition, the American magazine Popular Mechanics once concluded based on statistical data that, overall, the survival rate of passengers in the rear of the cabin is slightly higher than that in the middle and front of the cabin in an aircraft accident, but this is just one person's opinion.

Compared with choosing seats, a more practical risk avoidance strategy is to strictly abide by flight safety rules . For example, do not carry flammable and explosive items, excessive lithium batteries, etc., take various safety tips seriously after boarding, watch the on-board safety demonstration carefully, and be familiar with the location and use of oxygen masks and life jackets. In addition, passengers should also observe the location of the emergency exit of the aircraft and remember the number of seats between their position and the emergency exit.

If the plane makes an emergency landing and passengers need to evacuate the cabin, they should quickly take off their glasses, brooches, headphones and other sharp and hard objects to prevent being stabbed when landing, and to prevent puncturing the escape slide when escaping the cabin, which will affect the escape speed. At the same time, scarves, ties and other items that may cause suffocation should be removed quickly. In addition, do not carry luggage when escaping. Once an accident occurs, following the crew's instructions and escaping in an orderly manner will significantly improve efficiency and survival rate.

When a plane crashes, the casualties are often shocking, and in the short term, people will have doubts about the safety factor of flying. However, according to statistics, airplanes are still one of the safest means of transportation, and civil aviation safety has been steadily improving in recent years. According to data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), over the past decade, the overall accident rate of civil aviation has dropped from 2.06 accidents per million flights in 2014 to 0.8 accidents per million flights in 2023.

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Source: Xinhua News Agency

Editor: Wang Mengru

Proofread by Xu Lailinlin