There’s Been an Airplane Emergency. Here’s What Flight Attendants Do Next.
But recent airplane emergencies serve as abrupt reminders that flight attendants are first responders who train rigorously to save lives.
Alaska Airlines flight attendants put on oxygen masks during a training demonstration in a mock airplane cabin designed to resemble a Boeing 737-900.
Christine Chung, a travel reporter, flew to Seattle to join a class about Alaska’s flight attendant safety training.
We recently visited Alaska in Seattle to learn about flight attendant training, which includes exercises that simulated emergency landings, fire outbreaks and in-flight medical issues. Here’s what we saw.
Administering Aid in Medical Emergencies
The Federal Aviation Administration mandates that commercial airplanes carry an arsenal of intravenous and diagnostic equipment, and various medications including analgesics, antihistamines and epinephrine. They must also have onboard automated external defibrillators, machines that deliver an electric shock through the chest to the heart.
Some medications, such as Benadryl and epinephrine, can only be administered by flight attendants once an on-call medical professional on the ground has given approval.
Fighting Fires
When fighting in-flight fires, flight attendants use fire extinguishers (which use water and the chemical agent halon) and fire gloves.
Personal smoke hoods are also used, which inflate and provide up to 15 minutes of oxygen.
Last year, there were 63 lithium battery fires caused by passengers, according to the F.A.A. Battery packs and e-cigarettes are the biggest culprits.
Leading Evacuations
Planes also hold rafts, safety vests, oxygen masks, flashlights, a crash axe and an escape rope.
Alaska mostly flies Boeing 737 aircraft, which have four door exits and four window exits. Opening these can be tricky – the doors weigh about 150 pounds.
But recent evacuations have taken far longer. In the Tokyo runway collision in January, the 379 passengers and crew members aboard one plane evacuated in about 18 minutes.
An exit row in a mock airplane cabin at Alaska’s training facility. This overwing exit door weighs about 60 lbs.
“You're much more likely to be able to hear instructions from flight attendants or be able to respond faster. Even if you think ‘Oh, I've heard this a million times.’”