If you like to sit by the window on an airplane, you probably noticed that during takeoff and landing, flight attendants ask you to open the blinds. This is done not only to enjoy the views, but also for safety reasons. Disobedience in this case could cost the lives of passengers, News Week warned.
“The open blinds on the windows during taxiing, takeoff and landing allow both the crew and passengers to control the external conditions during these critical stages of the flight,” said Professor and expert in civil aviation from the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University.
According to the latest safety report released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in February, 2023 was “the safest year for flights in several ways.” The total accident rate was 0.80 per million flights, which is the lowest in the last ten years.
There were no fatal accidents involving passenger jet airliners in 2023, and the risk of mortality decreased from 0.11 in the last five years to 0.03 in 2023. “With this level of safety, a person would have to travel by air every day for 103,239 years to experience a fatal accident,” the IATA report said.
Dan Bubb, a professor at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas, a historian and former airline pilot, told the publication that open blinds will help flight attendants quickly assess the situation outside the aircraft. For example, if there is a fire on one of the aircraft engines, flight attendants will be able to make sure that passengers are evacuated on the opposite side. “This rule has been in effect since passenger planes began to be equipped with louvered windows,” Babb said.
The former pilot also stressed that in the event of an emergency evacuation, open blinds will allow passengers to get used to the light or darkness outside faster. “This will help them evacuate faster and avoid collisions with other passengers and objects,” he added.
At the same time, Professor Avrenli clarified that opening the blinds during taxiing, takeoff and landing is not mandatory by law, but many airlines recommend it in their instructions for flight attendants. For example, the International Civil Aviation Organization in its documents clearly advises the crew to ensure that the blinds are open at critical moments of flight, which include taxiing on the runway and takeoff.
Avrenli also explained that closed blinds can prevent passengers and crew from noticing important external problems in a timely manner, such as smoke or fire in the engine, icing of the wing or a punctured wheel. In addition, closed blinds make it difficult for the eyes to adapt to light, which slows down evacuation and increases the risk of collisions with people and objects.
Earlier, TURPROM reported on another aviation problem. Travelers often complain about the quality of on-board meals. Now there is an explanation for why they don’t like this food, and most importantly, how to fix it. Dr. Karan Raj shared incredible advice and tricks on how to make food on the plane tastier, and without seasonings (details here).
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