Stronger planes can mean fewer fatalities
Mexico city: Passengers in plane crashes like the Aeromexico accident – in which no one died – have better chances of survival due to better aircraft construction and safety standards, experts say.
People are now less likely to be trapped by collapsed seats and floors, especially if the plane comes to rest more or less level and the accident occurs on flat ground and at lower speeds, as happened with Tuesday’s crash in northern Mexico.
Survival rates are higher than ever in part because “airplanes are stronger than ever”, said Adrian Young, an air-safety investigator from the Netherlands-based consultancy To70.
Other improvements in recent decades include wider use of materials that burn more slowly and without giving off toxic fumes, and smarter airport layouts that eliminate obstacles near runways.
In the end, though, “Good fortune is crucial in any accident,” Young said on Wednesday.
Authorities in Mexico said there were no fatalities among the 97 passengers and four crew members aboard the Embraer 190 jet that crashed moments after takeoff in Durango, sending plumes of black and grey smoke into the sky.
Rescuers took 49 people to hospitals; most of them had minor injuries.
On average, about 56% of passen- gers survive airline accidents in which at least one person is killed.
Takeoff accidents occur on or near the runway, so obstacles on the ground – runway lights, fences, ditches and embankments – can lead to more extensive damage to the plane and increase the risk of an immediate fire, said Harro Ranter, CEO of Aviation Safety Network, which compiles a database on accidents.
“Luckily the area around the runway at Durango was relatively flat and covered with some bushes and no hazardous obstacles or ditches,” Ranter said.
“This likely caused all on board to survive (or) else it could have ended up a whole lot worse.”
The improved odds of surviving a crash are partly due to advances in technology. Aircraft engineers have reinforced areas that proved to be weak in previous crashes.
Seats are stronger to withstand violent impact.
Seat materials and carpets are treated with fire-retardant chemicals to give passengers more precious time to escape before fires spread. Fire-suppression systems in cargo holds are now mandatory.
Many of those improvements involved learning from investigations into past disasters.
That has led to fewer airline accidents and fewer fatal crashes.
“You have less aircraft that are running into mountaintops” because of systems that warn pilots if they are close to the ground, said Mark Millam with the US-based Flight Safety Foundation.
“This is coming from things that were witnessed in other accidents. It is decades of effort.”