Fri, Jun 11, 2010
Cathay Pacific And Air France-KLM Place Safety Devices In
Economy Class Cabins
In a effort to comply with new passenger safety regulations,
Cathay Pacific and Air France-KLM have started installing
seatbelt-mounted airbags in their economy-class cabins. The devices
are designed to improve survivability in the event an airplane goes
down.
Aircraft built in the U.S. after October of last year are
required to carry technology designed to keep passengers conscious
after deceleration of up to 16 G's. The thinking is that staying
conscious will allow the passengers to escape any ensuing fire.
EASA spokesman Jeremie Teahan said the same rules will be in effect
in Europe by next year.
Bloomberg News reports that airbags are already installed in
about two percent of seats, and that many are already manufactured
to comply with the 16g standard without them. But one manufacturer,
AmSafe, predicts that they will be standard for most seats in 10
years. The devices cost about $1,200, while a standard seatbelt is
about $25. Cathay Pacific CEO Tony Tyler said in an interview at
ILA Berlin this week that the major problem is the hard shell of
economy-class seats which cause head injuries. "Therefore, we need
airbags," he said.
A 2005 study by the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority for the FAA
shows that about 80 percent of plane crashes are survivable, and
that better restraints and stronger seats might have prevented 62
fatalities.
Cathay Pacific became the first airline to equip entire planes
with airbags, starting with their A340 and B777 aircraft. Air
France-KLM is also equipping its B777 aircraft, according to a
spokesperson.
But Bloomberg reports that the IATA is still looking into
whether the airbags make sense. IATA senior vice president for
safety, operations and infrastructure said "we need to have numbers
before we take any stance."
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