Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
Galley Gossip: Why flight attendants might not open an emergency exit during an evacuation
The first thing a flight attendant does before opening an emergency exit during an evacuation is assess the conditions outside. This is one reason why some airlines require passengers seated in the exit rows to keep their window shades up during takeoff and landing. The last thing you want to do is escape one bad situation only to find yourself in an even worse one. Think fire. Water. Captain Chesley Sullenberger.BRACE FOR IMPACT!
That's what everyone on board US Airways flight 1549 heard right before Captain Sully ditched the aircraft into the Hudson River after experiencing a double-engine failure while in route to Charlotte, North Carolina January 15, 2009. There were 150 passengers on board and 5 flight crew.
Flight attendant Doreen Walsh did exactly what she was trained to do. After unbuckling her belt and jumping out of her seat, she looked through the tiny porthole window to make sure it was safe outside to open the door. This is when she noticed they hadn't landed at an airport, and that there was water outside! For a split second she wondered if maybe, just maybe, she could get the slide raft inflated before the water became too high to safely do so, but then quickly realized it was already too late. Before she could begin directing passengers to another exit, a safe exit, the window exit only a few feet away, passengers pushed Doreen out of the way and cracked the door open. Water began flooding inside until it was all the way up to their necks. With only a few seconds left to escape, Doreen ordered everyone standing in the aisle to crawl over the seats.
Three years have passed since the Miracle on the Hudson flight crew gave their testimony to the Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation. And yet I just saw the video for the first time last week. I'm a flight attendant for a major US carrier. I write about travel. Usually I'm up on these things. So if I missed the short clip of the flight attendants detailing their experiences, chances are you probably did, too. That's why I've posted it here.
Flight attendants go through weeks of intensive training. We're also required to attend a yearly recurrent training program. During this time we role play medical scenarios and practice our emergency evacuation procedures. While we're yelling our commands, our instructors keep us on our toes by throwing things at us like fire, exits that won't open, slides that won't inflate, passengers too afraid to jump, which causes us to go into a whole other set of commands and procedures. Because of our training we're prepared to handle just about anything, including an evacuation in the Hudson River. Trust me, we'll ask for help if we need it. Until then please refrain from pushing us aside to open a door we would never in a million years open.
Photo courtesy of PhotoGiddy
Photo courtesy of PhotoGiddy
Filed under: Airlines, Galley Gossip
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Liz Feb 9th 2012 4:04PM
re: (Captain Chelsey Sullenberger)
"Chesley " Sullenberger
Good footage.
Rob Feb 10th 2012 1:23PM
I am a retired flight attendant and in my 35 years of flying, I never asked a passenger for help unless it was necessary....if we had military people on board, I would put them next to an exit and give them directions on how to open it....I was taught your first priority was to get every one out in 90 seconds or less....sometimes you had to scream "STAND BACK! DOOR OPENING! STAND BACK!!" then after the door opens and the slide in inflating "WAIT! WAIT!!SLIDE INFLATING!! WAIT WAIT!!!!" by holding up our arms to guard off passengers...in a split decision, sometimes you have to say "YOU....slide first HELP THE PASSENGERS OFF THE SLIDE.....YOU GUIDE THE PASSENGERS AWAY FROM THE AIRPLANE!" It's really for safety reasons. F/A"s are trained to do anything....now if they can just train them to smile a little that would be great....