Two people survived when a Jeju Air Flight 2216 crashed at a South Korean airport at the end of last year. The plane, which had suffered a bird strike, skidded into an embankment beyond the runway upon landing, and burst into flames. The remaining 179 people on board perished.
The two flight attendants who survived were seated in the very back of the plane, which was the only recognisable part of the aircraft left intact.
In over eight decades of commercial travel, there have been just 17 other crashes where planes carrying 80 or more occupants left a sole survivor or two, according to data collected by the Flight Safety Foundation.
The Jeju Air flight attendants were seated in rear jump seats a few steps from where the jet’s tail snapped apart. The man suffered bone fractures on the left side of his body and spinal injuries. The woman fractured her right ankle and other injuries on her right side.
The 29 people who survived the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines a few days earlier that killed 38 people were seated at the back.
Passengers in front in a nose-first crash bear the brunt of the impact, but other factors include how quickly fire spreads and how quickly people reach an exit.
Survival depends on the G-forces transmitted to occupants and the duration of the G-force, the structure of the aircraft surrounding the occupants remaining largely intact, and the direction of the plane.
If a Boeing 737 sustains less than 9 Gs in forward motion, occupants have a reasonable chance of escaping serious injury, according to University of North Dakota professors, Thomas Zeidlik and Nicholas Wilson.
“Crumple zones, much like cars, are built into modern airplanes to help with this, as well as air bags, seat belts and other devices”, said Zeidlik.
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