I hate it when this happens. There you are enjoying the smooth takeoff of your plane, and what’s that monstrous thing outside there flapping around? Why, it’s the damn evacuation slide. Seems the thing deployed in flight. Those crazy maintenance guys. But seriously, you have to wonder what was going through the minds of the folks on board when this happened recently. The slide deployment took place on a United Airlines flight at Portland International Airport.
You can see the photo here of the gargantuan slide jutting from the side of the plane. Thankfully, the pilot was experienced and kept his head about him, which is more than I can say about how I might have reacted.