Pilot explains what all the 'dings' passengers hear during a flight mean
A former navy veteran turned airplane pilot has published a video in which he addresses a number of concerns passengers may have when flying.
One particular concern is one that many will not realise they have until they hear the question: What is with all the ‘dings’ that you hear during a flight?
The pilot, named Captain Steve, was a pilot in the Navy and then more recently has flown for commercial airlines, namely American Airlines.
He posted the second video in his series on YouTube titled ‘Ask the Captain’ in which viewers send in questions for him to answer.
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Steve responded to someone asking what all the ‘chimes and dings’ throughout flights signify, saying: “I ding the flight attendants when we’re going out to the runway to tell them we’ve cleared the runway.
"That’s their last chance to sit down.
“The next time I ding them is after we take off and we’re going past 10,000 feet, they stay seated until we climb through 10,000 feet.”
He stated he would ding flight attendants again when it’s safe for them to get out and continue with their services.
The next time he will ding them is to let them know to put away their belongings and get seated because they will be landing in ‘the next 12 to 15 minutes’.
He says that any other dings heard throughout flying are customers trying to get the attention of flight attendants for whatever reason.
As a personally anxious flier who is convinced any loud dings or noises is the plane coming down, Captain Steve’s explanation will surely be a reassuring one for many nervous passengers.
This was not, however, the only question you didn’t realise you had that he answered in this video.
The commercial pilot revealed the secrets of what’s actually in a ‘black box’.
The first may be obvious in retrospect but what will be shocking for many is that they aren’t actually black, but instead are orange.
Once you discover why this is obvious however, with the design made to make them easier to find in the ocean or a place where it might be covered by mud.
He stated that inside the box is a ‘hard copy digital recording device’ that covers ‘all parameters’ of the plane.
It is designed to survive a 25G impact, and while he clarifies he doesn’t know how scientists then are able to get the data out after a crash, they are.
So, if you've ever wondered what's in a black box and what all the dings on a plane are, wonder no longer.
Topics: Travel, Flight attendants
Michael Slavin