In what is undoubtedly another publicity stunt, RyanAir CEO Michael O’Leary says that seatbelts on a plane don’t matter. According to NBC News, he said, “If there ever was a crash on an aircraft, God forbid, a seat belt won’t save you.” His goal, supposedly, is to take out the back ten rows on a plane to create a “standing zone” where passengers would, I don’t know, hang on to bars or straps like on a subway.
I call so much BS on this I don’t know where to start. On the one hand, if there is a major crash, a seatbelt may not help. But that doesn’t mean it definitely won’t. Remember the Miracle in the Hudson? I bet seatbelts helped those passengers a lot! Plus, crashes aren’t the only dangerous things that happen. A few months ago a pilot mistakenly sent a plane into a dive, and passengers who didn’t have seatbelts on hit the ceiling of the plane. Turbulence can cause all kinds of issues and injuries if you’re not strapped in.
There is no way any safety agency would let him do this, so it is assuredly just a ploy for attention. Just like O’Leary’s idea to charge for using the lav. But, like most of is insane suggestions, it’s out there enough to get people to notice. Oh well.
Readers, your thoughts? Is this a real idea or just a publicity stunt? Do you think seatbelts matter?
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it wouldnt help in a crash. the seatbelt would probably cut you in half. no scientic fact, just my opinion.
this seems plainly obvious. Of course they won’t help you in a crash, but that’s not their purpose. They are designed to stop you from moving vertically, which is why it is only a lap belt. If they wanted to keep you from moving horizontally, it would be a harness like the pilots have or at least like what you have in a car. Obviously the cost benefit of putting those in doesn’t play out because in a head on crash that would move you horizontally, it doesn’t matter what kind of seat belt you have (because you’re dead anyways).
I have been on a flight that had severe turbulence, and those that didn’t have their seat belts fastened became air borne!
This guy is trying to evoke a controversy. The seat belts matter to varying degrees, depending on what the aircraft is doing.
When landing at Newark yesterday the pilot of our RJ braked incredibly hard to make a particular exit off the runway. I was grateful for the seatbelt – without out it I would have smacked my head off the chair in front.