Passengers taking their carry-on luggage with them during an emergency evacuation, including
while exiting the plane via inflatable slides, slowed the evacuation of a Qantas Airbus A330-200
in December 2019.
This was one of the findings included in the release of a report by the Australian Transport
Safety Bureau (ATSB).
The report's release in mid-June came after an investigation into the December 15th, 2019,
incident when the Perth-bound A330 returned to Sydney shortly after takeoff after haze
and fumes from a hydraulic leak entered the cabin.
Onboard the flight were 232 passengers and crew.
By the time the plane made it back to Sydney, everyone on board experienced problems with
the fumes, including eye and throat irritation.
Back at the gate, the Captain decided on an emergency evacuation while, unusually, the
jetbridge was also deployed.
The ATSB says 129 passengers left the plane via the jetbridge while the remaining 93 passengers
used one of the three slides deployed.
The problem was that many passengers ignored the standard instruction to leave their belongings
behind when evacuating a plane.
An ATSB investigation has ruled that passengers taking their carry-on with them slowed the
evacuation.
At the same time, the investigation found Qantas hadn't properly instructed passengers
on using the slides in the pre-departure safety briefing.
ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell had this to say on the matter:
"The ATSB found limitations and inconsistencies in how Qantas's safety video and briefing
card described emergency slide use and what to do with cabin baggage in an emergency…The
pre-flight video showed a passenger sitting down and placing their bag next to them, just
prior to sliding.”
Six passengers were injured because they incorrectly used the emergency evacuation slides.
One passenger suffered tendon ruptures in both knees, while others sustained minor injuries,
including knee sprains, friction burns, and elbow cuts and abrasions.
The ATSB found primary commands practiced by Qantas cabin crew to instruct passengers
in an evacuation did not include phrases such as 'leave everything behind' and 'jump and
slide'.
The investigation viewed CCTV footage that showed 40 passengers exited with carry-on,
while some took the time to collect their belongings after the Captain issued the evacuation
order.
"Some passengers also brought cabin baggage to the top of the emergency slides, and while
some complied with cabin crew and left them behind, others were shown on CCTV with their
luggage in hand, after using a slide," said Mr Mitchell.
In case you didn’t know, passengers should always leave their belongings behind during
an evacuation.
Despite acknowledging the complexity of this particular briefing, the ATSB report rebuked
Qantas for the limitations of its pre-departure safety briefing and the way the aircraft crew
managed the evacuation process.
In response to the incident and the ATSB investigation, Qantas has amended its passenger safety briefing
video and is looking to incorporate quote 'leave everything behind' into its primary
evacuation commands.
What do you think of this incident?
Let us know, by leaving
a comment!