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Why Cabin Crew Members Have Hands Behind Back When You Board

Why Cabin Crew Members Have Hands Behind Back When You Board

It's nothing too ominous. Honest.

Jake Massey

Jake Massey

For a lot of us, it's been a long time since we set foot on an airplane.

But cast your mind back a second - do you remember noticing any of the cabin crew standing with their hands behind their back as you board?

Why is that? Are they trying to look officious, or thoughtful?

They will be behind their backs in a minute.
PA

Nope, they're actually just counting, according to Bright Side.

Not on their hands, obviously, but using a little clicker like they do at nightclubs, to make sure the number of people boarding corresponds with the number of tickets sold.

So next time you get to jet set, give the flight attendant a knowing wink which says: "I know what you're doing, and I'm cool with it."

OK, but what about the brace position, what is all that about? Surely if you're plane crashes you're brown bread, no matter what position you're in?

Indeed, long-running rumours have suggested the position is actually designed to kill passengers immediately in the event of an emergency.

This theory is of course b******s, though.

Nick Eades, who is the world's most experienced Boeing 747 pilot, told LADbible it is in fact intended to protect people.

Eades confirmed the brace position conspiracy theory is a load of s***.
Nick Eades

He said: "What you're trying to do is to stop people breaking their necks in a big impact."

He continued: "You're just trying to get the body into a position that's going to suffer least damage.

"It's like whiplash - you're trying to avoid that sudden movement of the head, which can result in serious injury, if not death."

Eades, whose new book The Self Improver: A Pilot's Journey details his successful career as a pilot, also explained that the system has now changed, and that cabin crew will no longer tell people to brace.

Having been in the industry for more than 40 years, he recalled a number of occasions where he faced technical difficulties and had to instruct passengers to adopt the brace position.

Eades said: "I've had a couple where we had problems with the landing gear, and the cabin crew shout to all the passengers, 'Brace, brace!'

"Now, if you think about it, I would say at least half - probably three-quarters - of passengers on the aeroplane don't speak English as a first language. And if you think about it, what does 'brace' mean?

"It took a long time for the aviation world to realise if you're suddenly thrown into an emergency situation and people start shouting 'brace' at you, you might think, 'What the hell do they mean?'"

He explained that, while the position is the same, the instruction is changing.

Eades said: "The brace position is going to become redundant, so cabin crew won't shout 'brace' at you anymore.

"They'll say, 'Head down, hands over your head. Head down, hands over your head.'

"At least that gives somebody in probably the most stressful position they'll ever be in in their lives something to do."

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: flight, Interesting, Community