How many lives have life-jackets on planes saved?

Question

I've just got off a flight from Birmingham to Edinburgh. Considering this flight is mostly overland (if you forget the Firth of Forth), it seems strange that at least half of the safety briefing is about how to put the lifejacket on.

So while there are lots of statistics about how many plane crashes there are and how safe air travel is, I would like to know how many lives have ever been saved by those yellow life jackets? I'll bet it's very few.

I know that that plane might make journeys over water, but I meant for global air travel overall. I also appreciate that falling out of a plane from 13,000ft is not survivable even into water (unless you are the Hoff).

The assumption is that a plane will be able to crash land into a body of water in a controlled fashion that will allow the passengers to enetr the water and use the lifejackets to stay afloat until rescuers arrive. I doubt many people have ever survived a plane crash and thought, "few, if it hadn't been for that life jacket I would have been screwed!"

Answer 1

Enough to justify it, the Potomac river crash in 1982 springs to mind where the aircraft crashed on takeoff and into the river. If an aircraft can make a controlled landing on to water in some of the cases the aircraft does remain intact.
You will find that most safety equipment is there due to some accident in the past where the result was to put a piece of safety equipment on board. Seats are now made with fire resistant material due to the Manchester aircraft fire in the early 90's. where many people died due to toxic fumes Seats now have to meet very stringent load requirements due to a number of accidents where the crash was survivable but the seats failed and everyone was crushed to death at the front of the airplane. No smoking and smoke detectors in the toilets due to the loss of a couple of airplanes because of fire, and of course the reinforced bulletproof cockpit doors due to recent events.
The aviation safety industry is more reactive than proactive, I work in it, and it can be frustrating.

Just after I answered I did a quick search, here is another example where they are useful, not everyone survived, but if you can save one it is worth it http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/08/06/world/main763649.shtml

And here is another

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/11/10/world/main528802.shtml

Answer 2

would you bounce out of a superbly solid plane if it became 'gliding' to the floor or bounce out and scatter some dozen human beings over a higher search for and rescue section? ought to you imagine some three hundred LBS human being or an elderly woman with arthritus or someone respiration out of an oxygen tank attempting to strap on a parachute with distinctly a lot no head room, no leg room, and a cabin finished of scared-to-lack of existence human beings? The flight attendants dont clarify the thanks to operate a parachute and to boot, those should be 'packed' maximum acceptable or they gained't installation. additionally they should be checked, rechecked, and maintained like an plane also. Are parachutes custom equipped for the man's weight? A parachute gained't keep you afloat if the plane mandatory to ditch contained in the water the position as a existence jacket will. section word: Many plane doorways are designed now to not be opened throughout flight or at the same time as the engines are pressurizing the cabin. Its in basic terms how its 'bodily' designed.

Answer 3

Two things to consider: Most airplanes crash on either take off or landing and there are a lot of airports either on the water or that have approaches that take you over water.
So if I'm taking off from JFK and the pilot aborts the take off and puts us all in Jamaica Bay -yeah I want a life preserver.
Assuming that you were alive 2 minutes after the plane hit the water- I'm sure that a life preserver t would increase your chance of survival

Answer 4

Dont beleive any lives have ever been saved but in theory landing on water is a better option and probably a pilot would make for the sea in the event of an emergency.
However once an Aircraft reaches its cruise Fuel permitting it would travel in safety indefinatly because of the ideal conditions....Dont worry..Flying is ultra safe

Answer 5

I would guess that they have saved a fair number of military pilots who have crashed or ejected into the sea.
The only commercial flight that comes to mind is the Air Florida crash into the Potomac River. I can clearly remember on the news footage that one or two of the survivors had their life jackets on when pulled out.

Answer 6

I think if the plane is gonna crash you would be in such a panic the yellow jacket would be the last thing you would reach for.....I believe you are dead before the plane touches ground anyway, lack of air etc; guess I will stay away from them planes

Answer 7

hmmmm..........how true, even if you did survive the crash landing and getting out of the plane and into the water with your yellow life saver, how long would you survive being in the icy ocean water? Minutes perhaps? Not long enough for someone to come in and rescue you. Even if it wasn't icy water, warmer water tends to have more sharks in it.

Answer 8

all I know ..is your NOT supposed to inflate until you hit the water...you MUST keep the life jacket deflated so you can swim out of your chair, swim out of the plane...then and ONLY then do you inflate.

If you inflate before you have crash landed in the sea....your life jacket will shove you to the celling of the plane and make it very difficult to escape wreckage under water...

learnt that of air crash investigation on discovery

Answer 9

to my (limited knowledge i admit) life jackets have saved a grand total of 0 lives. Planes rarely do well landing on water.

add: in fact i heard that they merely serve as a way to make body recovery easier.

Answer 10

lifejackets on planes is useless. If you're 13,000 ft up in the air and you fall from that distance into the water you'll hit the water and die instantly.