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Accident Survival and Evacuation

6 investigationsFrom the official reportsUpdated Sep 2026

Survival factors decide whether the occupants of an aircraft live through an accident once it has happened: the strength of the seats and restraints, the crashworthiness of the cabin, the fire resistance of its materials, the emergency exits and lighting, the evacuation itself, and the rescue and firefighting response. Most accidents to airliners are survivable, and investigators study each one to understand why people lived or died.

Certification requires that a full aircraft can be evacuated within 90 seconds with half of its exits available, yet in real evacuations passengers stop to collect their bags, smoke fills the cabin and exits jam. Many improvements now taken for granted came from these reports: floor proximity lighting, fire-blocking seat covers, seats tested to 16 g, better access to overwing exits, and cabin crew commands that are short, loud and assertive. For pilots, the reports show the importance of a timely decision to evacuate and of clear communication with the cabin crew. The investigations below look at what helped people get out, and what stood in their way.

The investigations

A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 registered N772SW on the ground at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
NTSB · 2018

Southwest Airlines Flight 1380

· Boeing 737-7H4 (737-700)
How a fatigue crack in one CFM56-7B fan blade led to a lost cabin window, a rapid decompression and an emergency landing at Philadelphia.
Engine failurePressurisationStructural failureSurvival
A US Airways Airbus A320, registration N106US.
NTSB · 2009

US Airways Flight 1549

· Airbus A320-214
Both engines of an A320 ingested Canada geese at 2,818 ft above ground; the crew glided to a ditching on the Hudson River and all 155 people on board survived.
Engine failureDitchingCRMSurvival
The Qantas Airbus A330-303 registered VH-QPA.
ATSB · 2008

Qantas Flight 72

· Airbus A330-303
Faulty angle of attack spikes from one of three air data units, and a rare gap in the flight control software, made an A330 pitch down twice in cruise, injuring many unbelted occupants.
Air dataFlight controlsAutomationSurvival
A British Airways Boeing 777-236ER registered G-YMMM at London Heathrow.
AAIB · 2008

British Airways Flight 38

· Boeing 777-236ER
How ice that built up inside a Boeing 777's fuel system on a cold flight from Beijing blocked the fuel flow to both engines on final approach to Heathrow.
FuelEngine failureApproach and landingSurvival
The United Airlines McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 registered N1819U, a three-engined wide-body airliner with one engine in the tail.
NTSB · 1989

United Airlines Flight 232

· McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10
A DC-10's tail engine fan disk burst in cruise and cut all three hydraulic systems; the crew steered it to Sioux City using engine thrust alone.
Engine failureFlight controlsMaintenanceCRMSurvival
The British Midland Boeing 737-400 G-OBME at London Heathrow.
AAIB · 1989

British Midland Flight 92 (Kegworth)

· Boeing 737-400
After a fan blade failure in the left engine, the crew of a Boeing 737-400 shut down the right engine; the damaged engine failed on final approach and the aircraft crashed beside the M1.
Engine failureCRMHuman factorsSurvival

The theory in the Library

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Picture credits

  1. Southwest Airlines Flight 1380: Werner Lehmann · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  2. US Airways Flight 1549: Edmund Seeger · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  3. Qantas Flight 72: Hawkeye UK · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  4. British Airways Flight 38: Aero Icarus from Zürich, Switzerland · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  5. United Airlines Flight 232: Paul Seymour · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
  6. British Midland Flight 92 (Kegworth): Leslie Snelleman · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Crash Investigations pages summarise official investigation reports for study and exam preparation. The investigating body's report is the authoritative account and prevails wherever it differs from this page. Under ICAO Annex 13, an investigation exists to prevent accidents, not to apportion blame or liability.