The Brace Position

[xk8ix]

Is it really true that the brace position we are told 2 go into if a plane is going crash, is really designed 2 break your neck and kill u instantly. Therefore you would not have 2 suffer a painful death if the plane goes up in flames etc???

[charlandy]

I dont really know... Id like to know myself. Probably its nearer to the seat in front so the imact is not as great.

But I have heard somewhere it suppose to keep your head attached to your body to make it easier for dental records if needed for body id. And its easier to kiss your a*se goodbye.

[xk8ix]

haha!! yeh. i jus heard it on the radio 2day,, so i was wondering

[jno]

this has been asked in Travel too - is this a rumour going around? Anyway, no, airlines seldom profit by killing their passengers.

[gary baldy]

Airlines would actually prefer a fatality than a serious injury because the insurance payouts are less - i'm not making this up i saw a programme about it last year.

[xk8ix]

yeh, if the person is dead they cant sue the airline

[VINNY100_2]

I always sit in the back...well..you've never heard of a plane going into a mountain side backwards...!!( :)

[funkymoped]

Sometimes i worry. whats the point of wearing a seat belt or getting into "crash position" when the aluminiun tube you are traveling in, is about to hit the ocean at 600mph.

i think given the choice ide rather join the mile high club. the three quaters of a mile club. the half a mile high club. the quater of a mile high club, and the submariners club all in the space of 10.1 seconds...

alternatively, ide like to run up and down the plane screaming "WERE ALL GONNA DIE !" :-)

[spudqueen]

Was once on a plane which did an emergency landing where we were all told to adopt the brace position. I think that there is less jarring to your neck and back than if you were sat upright. Luckily we were all alright though it did look like a scene from a movie when we looked out of the windows and saw all the airports fire engines rushing towards us. Were quite a long way from the airport aswell!

[joko]

it may be to prevent whiplash and stop any debris, shrapnel and bits of plane flying back through the carriage and lopping your head off - or scalping you, and if anything fell from the over head lockers they may feel its better to hit you on the back than the head&neck

[seacam]

Both Gary Baldy & Joko are on the right track.

The simple and clear reason for the brace position is in the event of a crash,( and not all crashes are or have fatalities), is to stop bodies from flying around.

seacam

[joko]

i suppose its also better to have some sort of position to tell people is best to keep people organised, than have them twisting and flailing around and climbing the walls, lying on the floor etc etc

[jake-the-peg]

Excuse the expression but what a load of tosh!

Of the initial 87 survivors of the East Midlands Boeing 737/400 aircraft, 77 sustained head and facial trauma during the crash, 45 of whom were rendered unconscious. There were 21 who received injuries to the back of their head, including 5 of the 6 severely head-injured adults. Those passengers who adopted the fully flexed "brace" position for crash-landing achieved significant protection against head injury, concussion, and injuries from behind irrespective of local aircraft structural damage.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrie ve&db=PubMed&list_uids=8431182&dopt=Citation

[rescuer]

Maybe the best thing would be to see what postion the various crew members adopt -- and copy them. That is, of course, if you are in a reasonably calm state of mind.

[funkymoped]

the funny thing about aeroplanes is that the human body can withstand more "g force" than the seat you trust your life to... so in effect you could withstand a crash landing and have the chair you or another passenger are sitting in, kill you !

i think that was a finding of the East Midland crash. also lots of people had massive leg injuries. this, i believe was because of the nature of crash,(belly flopping on to a steep enbankment) and due to the fact that seating collapsed.

[Sequin]

There would be far fewre fatalities in a crash if the seats were facing the other way - with your back to the direction of travel. Surveys have shown, however, that people wouldn't like to travel that way

[stevie-p]

if your a small person...sit in the flight recorder box..its always found un-damaged!!!!

[charlandy]

I think they should put air bags in the back of the seat in front of you, then if there is a crash then it would do the same as a car would. If not fit an ejector seat and a parachute.......whaaaay.

[xk8ix]

wow! i didnt think this would get any attention!! i found out that it was to protect your teeth, so they could identify you through your dental records. So, if they want to protect your teeth for dental records, somethings telling me your not gonna be alive. Just an idea

[bluejonjo]

To be honest your going to hit the ground like a ******* dart, I dont think it matters how you sit.