Aviation Innovator & Safety Crusader | Elevating Standards with CLIMAX Aviation | Pilot, Consultant, Leader
I am probably just one among many to react to this topic: the Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore which faced severe turbulence, leading to a tragic fatality and several serious injuries among passengers and crew. As always when something happens in aviation, people want immediate answers and, unfortunately, often rush to assign guilt. I've read some extreme and unfounded claims online, from so-called "experts" or people who believe their theories are more important. Some blame climate change alone, calling it the result of "mankind's stupidity." We must remember that turbulence has always existed and will continue to exist. We don't know exactly what happened on that flight at the moment. We need to give all the involved stakeholders the time that is vital to analyse all the information available. This includes crew reports, passenger reports, Flight Data, reports from other aircraft flying in the same region, weather reports, ATC reports, and more. Aviation is a data-driven world, but data needs to be collected, sorted, classified, analysed, and given meaning that will allow the industry to learn and improve. This event highlights why safety needs to be a mindset and a culture, not just a checklist or a set of protocols applied without common sense. Passengers must remember that the crew’s main job is to keep everyone safe. The fact that several crew members were injured while doing their jobs on this flight shows how unpredictable and risky their work can be. They deserve the utmost respect and appreciation for their dedication to our safety. Many airlines now recommend that passengers keep their seatbelts fastened whenever they are seated. I strongly adhere to that and would even recommend it to become a "rule". I always do this when I fly as passenger (and obviously, as pilot too). Just like we wear seatbelts in cars for unexpected events, the same goes for planes. This incident reminds us how important this simple safety step is. While extreme turbulence is rare, it happens more often than many people think. Modern planes are incredibly strong and built to handle significant shocks and stresses. However, clear air turbulence (CAT) is hard to predict. Technology is improving, and there are ongoing projects to better detect turbulence and avoid it, but we’re not quite there yet. On a personal note, I’ve seen Singapore Airlines’ regular updates about this incident on social media. I found their communication steady, consistent and respectful. However, it was sad to see negative comments on these posts, especially when people bring up unrelated complaints. We need more compassion and understanding in times like these. In the end, while media coverage is inevitable, I believe it is crucial to focus on verified information and the well-being of everyone involved. Let’s keep working together to build a safer, more respectful aviation community. #AviationSafety #Turbulence #SafetyCulture #Safety #SingaporeAirlines
Graham Hamilton
5mo
Agree with everything except the ‘mandate’ of making it a rule that passengers MUST wear a seatbelt when seated. Firstly, as humans and human factors we know that compliance based safety is the last bastion of the damned but more importantly, how is it enforced and what about the unintended consequences of an increase in unruly passengers. There has to be a better more proactive approach which doesn’t need an additional layer of compliance but great post highlighting this issue! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Alessio Olivieri
5mo
sorry is this Ryanair flight?!?
Michael Doherty
5mo
I’ve been on test flights doing stalls and all I can say is that it it like being pushed off a 20 storey building. I was wearing a seatbelt but it was clear what would have happened if I wasn’t. People may not like wearing a seatbelt but being bounced around the cabin like a rag doll would not be a pleasant experience. Fortunately bad turbulence doesn’t happen often but when it does you want to be strapped in. Loose bags, phones etc could be very dangerous flying around during bad turbulence so that is a risk too. Ideally you would wear a 5 point harness like those used on child car seats but that’s not going to happen any time soon. Wearing the current belts will keep you relatively safe but you’ll probably still crack your head on the seat in front.
Jörg Wolf
5mo
Heute wird leider auch inflationär mit gelben Balken auf Websites gearbeitet, auf denen eine so genannte "+++ EILMELDUNG +++" -läuft. Die gewählte Schlagzeile suggeriert dann etwas, was dessen darunter befindlicher Artikel nicht ansatzweise hält. Zu oft. Leider. "Nicht damit zusammenhängende Beschwerden", das ist genauso schlimm und despektierlich wie E-Mails, bei denen, weil man zu faul ist eine Adresse herauszusuchen, ein altes E-Mail hernimmt, um per "AW" ein Anliegen zu formulieren, wobei man sich dann nicht mal die Mühe macht, den "Betreff" anzupassen. Der Betreff hat demzufolge überhaupt nichts mit dem E-Mail-Inhalt zu tun. Was macht ihr mit solchen E-Mails - einfach "weghauen"? (....könnte auch ein Kunde sein... 🤔)
Agree Maxime. Good thoughts. Same actually applies when an aircraft has come to a stop at the gate. Seatbelt is still on, but passengers already stand up, take their bags out of the bins. However, the seat belt sign is still on for a reason. The aircraft may still have to move and is not necessarily correctly at the parking spot. The flight is over when the engines are shut down and the seat belt sign is off.
Harold Wirtz
5mo
Spot on, thank you for sharing your thoughts and opinion. We need more of this than all the nonsense published by social medias "experts"...
You have spoken very well Sir and I like the fact that you considered every aspect regarding the unfortunate incident. I also agree with the suggestion you made on having passengers fasten their seatbelts at all times because turbulence can happen at any time. Incidents like this highlights why safety is always paramount in the aviation industry and I hope regulatory bodies can take a cue from this to further improve the safety measures to be taken during flight.
Your comments are perfect, Maxime. Most curious says a lot of nonsense things. We have to fasten seat belts permanently while seated during the flight. From my experience with Cabin Safety, some deep discussion about extra occupant protection may arise. I believe we are in a good way nowadays, and the current cabins take care of occupant protection, like delethalization around the seats, for example.
Ali Bazyar
5mo
losing altitude for 54 meter in less than 5 seconds (as quoted in the news and medias) is unpredictable and unbelievable. 100% agree with wearing the safety belt during the flight.
Aviation Innovator & Safety Crusader | Elevating Standards with CLIMAX Aviation | Pilot, Consultant, Leader
5moHi everyone, Thank you for the incredible responses and feedback on my post. Your insights are truly appreciated and add great value to the discussion. I wasn't really expecting this, to be honest 🙂 Some key takeaways from all your comments and reactions: 1. Expert opinions matter: It's crucial to rely on real experts for informed discussions on aviation safety. 2. Seatbelt Safety: Keep seatbelts fastened whenever seated seems to be a commonly shared vision, just like in a car (even though we know it's going to be hard to apply this across the industry... Just like for cars 😶) 3. Safety is a mindset: It goes beyond rules; it’s a way of thinking, acting, communicating and behaving. 4. Continuous Improvement: We must keep learning and improving our safety measures, in the most proactive way possible. 5. Human Factors: Balancing enforcement with practicality is key. Predicting and avoiding turbulence is obviously a better approach, but still difficult/challenging. Thanks again for your engagement and support. Let’s keep promoting a culture of safety and respect. Best, Maxime