When we are several miles above the earth, staying in touch with ATC on the ground is extremely important to ensure that we stay safely separated from other aircraft. One of the 9 PTT switches in the 787 (Photo by Charlie Page/The Points Guy)
To access the switch, we must take the conscious action of lifting the guard before activating the evacuation command. On hearing this horn, the crew are trained to open their door and start evacuating passengers down the escape slides.Īs the consequence of flipping this switch is potentially life-threatening if done at the wrong time, the switch is covered by a guard to stop it from being accidentally activated. This causes a loud horn to beep at each cabin crew seat. The point of no return is making the PA to evacuate and flicking the Evacuation Command switch. However, even with these actions complete, there is a chance for us to stop the checklist if the situation has changed. This is designed to put the aircraft into a condition where it is safe for the crew to open the doors, inflate the slides and for passengers to exit down onto the ground.įor the most part, this involves depressurizing the aircraft so that the doors can be opened and shutting the engines down so that there is no danger to people once they are on the ground. When the decision has been made to evacuate the aircraft, we methodically work our way through the Emergency Evacuation checklist. The evacuation command switch (Photo by Charlie Page/The Points Guy)Īnother switch that we hope never to have to use, the Evac Command switch is used only in the event of the Captain ordering an emergency evacuation. This is to ensure that cabin crew or any infants on laps have access to a mask. Depending on the aircraft type, most rows will have more masks than seats. When we do this, the masks in the cabin drop out and must be worn immediately. To protect the passengers from this occurring, pressing the passenger oxygen switch is part of our drill when dealing with a loss of cabin pressurization. However, the threat of being affected by a lack of oxygen is still very real. In fact, most are slow events that are noticed by the pilots before anyone else does. That said, not all decompressions happen this dramatically. Should the cabin pressurization fail, the inside becomes the outside in an instant.Īs regular flyers will know, in these situations, masks will automatically drop from the panel above your head. The temperature can be as cold as minus 94☏ and the oxygen levels so low that without assistance, you would become unconscious in a matter of seconds. Just on the other side of that window, the atmospheric conditions are so harsh that they are unable to support human life. Relaxing in your seat at 43,000 feet, sipping a drink and enjoying a movie, you'd be forgiven for forgetting exactly where you are. The passenger oxygen switch (Photo by Charlie Page/The Points Guy) Related: How a flying cadet graduates to a fully qualified pilot Sometimes taking things back to basics is what is needed. They are the basic principles of flight and apply to all aircraft, no matter how big and how complex. The skills we all learned on those small aircraft in flight school were learned for a reason. They become overwhelmed with the situation and are unable to see it in its most simple form.īy pressing the autopilot disconnect button located on the control column, the pilot takes back responsibility for keeping the wings level from the aircraft. All too often, accidents have occurred because the pilots didn't understand what the automatics were doing and didn't take the correct action. However, with added complexity can come added confusion. Modern airliners are complicated machines with scores of computer systems designed to make the pilot's life easier. A pilot should always be in control of their aircraft, whether it's a two-seater Cessna or a 550 seat A380. When we fasten our safety harnesses when we take our seats, we are not strapping ourselves into the aircraft, we are strapping the aircraft to us. However, what this button represents is control. Used normally just once during a flight, it's used far less regularly than the altitude selector and has much less of an effect on the aircraft as the engine fire handle. You may be surprised to find this button at number one. The autopilot disconnect button on the left (Photo by Charlie Page/The Points Guy)
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