By Christian Colon
Co-Copy Editor
Have you ever wondered how effective the speech that flight attendants give every time the plane is about to depart is? They start off with a cheesy smile and a positive attitude to welcome you and suddenly they point out the emergency exits.
Next time you are boarding a plane, take a look at the seats in front of the exit doors and you will notice no one is usually sitting there. In what world would someone request to sit there? The best part is when they guarantee more legroom…if you decide to upgrade to these seats.
Yeah, sorry captain, you aren’t fooling me. I don’t need the responsibility of doorman if the plane goes down.
Not only are the exit doors a little intimidating, but the fact that they give you step-by-step directions on how to put on an oxygen mask is equally as nerve-racking.
They assume that in a situation where the masks are given, you will have the control to think about what string you should pull to make it tighter.
Friends and families are encouraged to secure their own masks before helping others, but realistically, can you blame a parent for trying to help their son or daughter with their mask first? It is also pretty frightening when they convince us that although the bag might not seem full, oxygen will still be flowing. Ha!
Before reiterating that there is no smoking on the flight, thanks for pointing out the obvious, they present the life vest that is located in a pouch under your seat. They urge passengers not to blow up the vest in the aircraft because you actually have to wait until you are out of the plane to do so. God forbid I am ever in an emergency landing, I will for sure inflate my vest as soon as I put it on. Do you think people will actually wait until the situation gets worst? Unfortunately, in the moment you won’t really remember the exact rules the attendants said, but as a young adult I will do everything to protect the greater good.
All these things come into play when you are faced with an emergency at an altitude of over 40,000 feet. But can there be a better way to prepare people before a flight?
Airlines have now gone digital and include a video demonstrating the instructions flight attendants used to act out. No matter what other invention comes, you can never be fully prepared for an emergency.
Since there are so many things that can occur, no one can ever be fully prepared to actually face them. It is like the movie “United 93,” based on the true story of United Flight 93, a plane hijacked by terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001.
The terrorists mission was to land in the Pentagon, but the passengers fought them and took control of the plane.
They weren’t all law enforcement officials, but they knew they needed to act fast. This is exactly what I mean. In today’s society you have to be vigilant of your surroundings because you never know what you will see.
No matter how much preparation you are given before entering a plane, the best weapon is common sense. The same common sense the Flight 93 passengers had.
