There is a common myth that the aircraft can completely burn in just a minute and a half. We decided to find out if this is so.

This opinion is spread by the media, for example, Readovka, "Tsargrad" And "Fontanka". Such information is on Portalsdedicated to travel, in posts on Picabu, on blogs on "Yandex.Zen". It is used in advertising Safety system manufacturers. This is told in an interview Boarded attendants.

There are really a lot of things in airplanes that can easily ignite. And it’s not only about fuel in the engines. These are technical fluids (for example, oil), and the supply of oxygen, and wiring (and in some planes its length can reach 100 km, and it burns perfectly!), And even just upholstery and armchairs in the cabin. It is precisely because of fire hazard (and already in the second place due to concern for the health of passengers) it is forbidden to smoke on board the aircraft. And that is why, by the way, despite the ban, there are still ashtrays in the toilets - so that the violator who nevertheless lit a cigarette, could safely extinguish the cigarette, and not throw it into the garbage bucket to napkins and toilet paper. But is it really a huge Boeing can really burn to the ground in just 90 seconds?

Not really. If it were so, passengers would hardly have a chance to escape in case of fire. And the Royal Aviation Society of Great Britain declaresthat 87.7% of aviation accidents and incidents are complete without the dead. So, if you follow the rules of flight safety and listen to the instructions of the flight attendants, there is a chance to survive even if the aircraft is covered with fire. So where did this myth come from?

The fact is that on international standards The evacuation of a aircraft, designed for more than 44 passengers (and these are almost all modern passenger aircraft) should occupy no more than 90 seconds. And the manufacturer during certification must prove that during this time all people can really be removed from the plane. Moreover, as stated on the International Information Portal Dedicated to the Security of Flights, Skybray, during the tests, only half of the evacuation exits should be involved in order to simulate the situation when, in the accident, part of the exits was blocked or several ramps failed.

In 1964, the Federal Civil Aviation Department of the United States (FAA) held a number of crash tests of passenger aircraft (one of these tests entered the documentary movie, removed FAA). Tests were aimed at modeling real accidents that ended with human victims. It was found that the fuselage of the aircraft, covered by fire, remains suitable for being in it for two minutes - after this time the temperature in the cabin rises to too high values, and the smoke becomes too strong, moreover, the fire can reach the engines and then the explosion will occur. Initially, it was two minutes and were recognized as the most acceptable evacuation time, but further tests led to a reduction in this time to 90 seconds, and in 1967 it was Accepted For the standard. As a result, these norms were supported by most countries, and soon this rule became international. It acts in Russia.

With each new plane crash that occurred as a result of the fire, the rules of evacuation are finalized, but so far the time remains the same as in 1967.

Of course, most often the real evacuation in the event of an accident takes more time. The evacuation modeling is very naturalistic: the entire interior is occupied by passengers, the “accident” occurs unexpectedly, sometimes the light is disconnected in the plane, the test participants do not know in advance what way out they will have to use, the flight attendants must perform the same actions and direct people, as in a real accident. It would seem like everything really. But in fact, everyone knows that nothing threatens their life, and therefore calmly and organizedly leave their places. With a real accident among passengers, a panic often begins, someone begins to grab bags from luggage shelves-all this strongly draws in the process of leaving the aircraft (and can cost someone life). Flight Security Fund Notesthat the problem of prolonging due to the baggage of evacuation, according to ICAO, is getting sharper, and Asks a question, is it worth it to at all remotely block the luggage shelves so that the passengers do not have a temptation in case of evacuation to climb their luggage and detain others. After all, like almost all aviation safety rules, a limit of 90 seconds is written in blood.

But returning to the question whether the plane can be completely burned in 90 seconds. - No, it cannot, if it comes to a fire, and not about the explosion. On the contrary, 90 seconds. - This is just the safe time that passengers and crew has before the fire begins to threaten their lives.