Chris, you're just full of questions these days!  And for some reason I feel
compelled to answer...

Regarding the "first impact" issue I remember seeing an article about ten
years ago bemoaning the fact that the first impact was often not the cause
of an airplane fatality.  Seats rip out of the floor (which rarely happens
in car crashes) or the roof buckles in causing head trauma.  Bear in mind
that this article may've applied in large part to smaller airplanes (20
passengers or less), not the big jet liners most people ride in.

Speeds tend to be higher in planes and the construction of the plane places
a much higher premium on "lighter weight" (which almost inevitably results
in "less strength") so the survivability tends to be less, I would think.

As a side note, my impression is that there has never been a successful
ocean ditching of a large airliner (does someone know of one?).  If they
can't accomplish that I'm not sure how many instances of crashes would
benefit from air bags.

In cars I believe the bags are pretty ineffective or downright dangerous if
you haven't got your seat belt and shoulder harness on.  Shoulder harnesses
would be hard to install in most airliners.  Think of the issue of the
seatbacks being reclined (I assume that's where the bag would have to be
mounted) and the proximity issue for smaller people that we have with cars.
Flinging items on the tray tables...

In many air crashes there is time to prepare the passengers for the impact
("put your head between your knees and wrap your arms around your legs") so
it might be possible to take care of many of these issues by only arming the
bags when a crash is imminent or when you're in the "seat backs and tray
tables in the fully raised position, please" mode as in takeoffs and
landings.

Do trains or buses have seat belts for the passengers (the highway coach I
took to the Yankees game last Saturday didn't)?  It seems like belts would
help to keep people from getting tossed around (and out broken windows) when
the vehicles roll over.  I imagine it would be hard to get people to wear
them...

Bruce St. Extemporaneous

-----Original Message-----
From: Met History [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Friday, August 16, 2002 8:41 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: And while we're at it (was Permastone)...


...would air bags help in plane crashes?  Or is first impace not the
mortality?

Christopher