Photo: smemon
Today’s crash of Spanair flight JK5022 upon take off at Madrid’s Barajas Airport was the latest in a series of recent air disasters that have anxious passengers wondering about airline safety.
The cause of the crash, which killed at least 153 of the 172 people on board, has not yet been determined.
While most aspects of flight safety are beyond passengers’ control, experts do offer some tips to frequent flyers:
-Choose non-stop flights over multi-stop routes: Because most accidents, like today’s crash, occur during take-off or landing, reducing the number of take-off and landing events decreases the likelihood of crash potential.
-Choose larger planes over smaller ones: In major accidents, larger planes with greater passenger capacity offer statistically significant survival advantages compared to planes with fewer than 30 seats.
-Know your emergency exit: Simple enough, and though it won’t always save your life, it may increase your chances.
-Fly with safe airlines: Though any airline and any aircraft can experience adverse events, AirSafe.com maintains a list of the airlines that have had no fatalities since 1970. They even list airlines by region.
-Learn the six basic crash positions: Morbid? Yes. Life-saving? Potentially. Check out AirSafe.com’s video on the six basic crash positions:
Julie Schwietert
Julie Schwietert Collazo is a writer, editor, researcher, and translator currently in New York, formerly of Mexico City and San Juan. She is Matador's managing editor and is the lead faculty member of MatadorU's travel writing program.
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