Which is safer during a plane crash: first class or economy? The answer may surprise you
FLYING in first-class certainly has its perks but is a safe way out one of them? Aviation experts real which is the safest seat on a plane and it’s not where you’d think.
A first-class ticket buys you extra leg room, personalised care, and better food, but is it also safer?
First class seats are often located at the front of the plane, closer to the exit, whether this privilege also buys you an easier exact route is yet be proven.
Scott Pruitt, head of the Environmental Protection Agency in the US argued that it is.
The government official said that for the past year he has only ever flown in first class as he believes its the safest option on board.
He explained that it is his security team that manage his bookings but that they place him “where they think is best from a safety perspective.”
However, this statement has not been supported by Airline safety experts.
Fortunately for economy passengers, one pilot in particular strongly disagrees.
Retired pilot Chesley Sullenberger III, was rewarded for his skills after safely landing the Airbus A320 on the Hudson River back in 2009 without any casualties.
He is now the aviation and safety expert at CBS news and simply told the Washington Post "First class is not safer than economy.”
Further comment from another aviation expert supports this statement saying that the front is certainly not the safest spot on board.
Harro Ranter chief executive of the Aviation Safety Networt said: "I cannot think of anything that would make sitting upfront safer, in an actual accident, best chances of survival are usually in the rear."
In fact, research into the safest seat on a plane after a crash revealed there was a higher chance of survival at the back.
According to an article from TIME, the report found that the back third of the aircraft had a 32 per cent fatality rate, compared to the middle with 39 per cent and the front with 38 percent.
The report went on to reveal that the middle aisle seats had the highest fatality rate at 44 percent with the back middle seats proving safest at 28 per cent facility.
Martin Rottler, a further aviation expert explained that sitting in the front means you’ll be dealing with a smaller number of people and that this helps to "facilitate ease of entry and exit.”
It is incredibly hard to predict exactly what happens when a plane crashes meaning there is no ‘safe seat’ but in the unfortunate event that something does go wrong, first class isn’t any safer.
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