Scientists once crashed a large-sized passenger plane into the ground deliberately so that they could get an idea for which seats on-board would have the best chance of surviving the crash.
You can see some footage from their experiment in the video below:
Scientists are always out there seeking answers to the big questions, aren’t they?
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Whilst some of what they do might be considered to be a bit trivial, there was nothing silly about this experiment, which aimed to determine which passengers might be the most likely to survive a plane crash.
So, where do you think has the best chance of survival?
The test - which was looked into on Channel 4's The Plane Crash - drew in a bit of controversy because the US government refused to let the company in charge, called Broken Wing, attempt the experiment on their land.
They eventually managed to get the Mexican government to let them do it over there, choosing a big dry lake for their site in the end.
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What’s more, there were other hoops that had to be jumped through.
The idea was to fly the plane remotely before then crashing it into the big desolate space on purpose in order to complete their simulation.
However, because the plane had to fly over some populated areas, the Mexican government demanded that the plane be flown for that time by a human pilot.
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That meant that Captain Jim Bob Slocum had the job of flying the plane into the wilderness before leaving the aircraft – presumably via a parachute – and leaving it to be remotely crashed by another pilot.
On April 27 2012, the Boeing 727 plane took off from an airport in Mexicali, before flying into the desert and being deliberately crashed into the floor at 140 miles per hour.
But, you’re mostly here to find out the results, aren’t you?
Well, it might not surprise you to learn that the people at the front of the plane would be the most likely to die in a real crash.
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Then, those who were seated over the wings of the plane would most likely receive survivable but serious injuries – broken bones and the like – whereas most of the test dummies at the back of the plane remained intact, meaning that those passengers could very well have survived.
However, it’s worth pointing out that if the plane had crashed tail first the circumstances would likely have been reversed.
The test also found that the brace position – which is the subject of much speculation – would likely have prevented head and spinal injuries, but would have created more pressure on legs, which could have resulted in more breakages there.
Basically, there’s no ideal place to be in a plane crash, other than not present on the plane that isn’t crashing.
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What’s more, evacuation could have been a problem too, as bits of the plane had moved into the passenger compartment during the collision, creating potential hazards and evacuation blockages.
Let’s not forget that planes carry a lot of fuel, too.
That could cause further issues.
Either way, the crash test did come up with some interesting results, and therefore has to be thought of as a valuable – if expensive – piece of science.
The whole thing was also filmed for a TV show called Curiosity as well, in case you want to get a more in-depth look into what actually went on.
Afterwards, the whole site was cleaned up properly, and the bits of debris were taken away and left next to a road, where they were still situated as of May 2022, reports claim.
If this article hasn’t exactly done much to assuage your fear of flying, just remember, it’s very unlikely.
Don’t bank on your seat selection saving your life though, as there’s a lot of variables to consider.
Just try to put it out of your head. That’s the best thing to do.
Featured Image Credit: Channel 4Topics: Weird, Travel, Science, World News