# Best Seat On An Aircraft



## Pique318 (7 Oct 2009)

Hi,

just thought that this may be of help if people are planning a flight soon:

http://www.seatguru.com/

You can check the legroom, pros and cons of certain seats, availability of seatback TVs, etc.

Very handy.

Enjoy.


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## Caveat (7 Oct 2009)

Thanks - good idea.


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## spursman (7 Oct 2009)

i always sit at the very back as there is less turbulence there and a lot less noises from the landing gear etc.

its also safer in the event of a crash landing


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## tallpaul (7 Oct 2009)

spursman said:


> i always sit at the very back as there is less turbulence there and a lot less noises from the landing gear etc.


 
 You are travelling in metal tube only a couple of hundred feet long. I can't see how there would be less turbulence at the back of an aircraft than at the front (or anywhere else for that matter). Given that airflow over the body of the plane and more importantly the wings is uniform, the aircraft will shake, rattle (and roll) in unison. The 'noises' from the landing gear last about ten seconds on take-off and landing...


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## bren1916 (7 Oct 2009)

Back seats are handy though for exiting quickly - beverages first and of course close proximity to the toilets!

PS. spursman obviously has enough problems..


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## Purple (7 Oct 2009)

spursman said:


> its also safer in the event of a crash landing


Yes, you will be engulfed by the fireball last... or in the event of a mid-air break-up you will not be killed by the explosion but have the pleasure of finding out if freezing solid at -50C will kill you faster than multiple organ rupture caused by violent decompression. You’ll see bugger all though because your eyes will have popped out and frozen solid


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## MANTO (7 Oct 2009)

Purple said:


> Yes, you will be engulfed by the fireball last... or in the event of a mid-air break-up you will not be killed by the explosion but have the pleasure of finding out if freezing solid at -50C will kill you faster than multiple organ rupture caused by violent decompression. You’ll see bugger all though because your eyes will have popped out and frozen solid


 
haha


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## jhegarty (7 Oct 2009)

Purple said:


> Yes, you will be engulfed by the fireball last... or in the event of a mid-air break-up you will not be killed by the explosion but have the pleasure of finding out if freezing solid at -50C will kill you faster than multiple organ rupture caused by violent decompression. You’ll see bugger all though because your eyes will have popped out and frozen solid



That sounds like an average flight with Ryanair.


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## spursman (7 Oct 2009)

guys in all fairness it has been proven that the back seats are the safest. last year a place landed in amsterdam and broke in half!. 9 people died and none were at the back of the plane. i said they are safer in the event of a crash landing which they are , not being engulfed in flames at 30000 feet

also most people who die in an aircraft crash die from smoke inhalation due to not using their masks adn trampling all over each other. if you sit at the back then you also avoid all of this so the back seats are far far safer


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## spursman (7 Oct 2009)

a plane , not a place.

typo


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## MANTO (7 Oct 2009)

Could be argued 


*The Results of the Safest Seats Research*

A seat up to five rows from an emergency exit offers a good chance of escaping from a fire on board. When seated six or more rows from an exit, however, the chances of perishing outweigh those of surviving. An aisle seat is safer than any other, but the difference is not great. However, if safety is the passenger’s prime concern, he or she should forget about looking at the view and choose a seat next to the aisle. Passengers at the front of the aircraft have a higher chance of survival than those at the rear.
*What About Seats by Emergency Exits?*


Read more: http://airplanes.suite101.com/article.cfm/which_is_the_safest_seat_on_a_plane#ixzz0TFzDz2O9


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## spursman (7 Oct 2009)

saying the front seats are safer makes no sense at all.

if the plane crash lands on a runway or veers off then its going to hit a building head first. the seats will break forward and everyone in the front will be crushed. 

im just saying that at the back you have a better chance


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## becky (7 Oct 2009)

spursman said:


> saying the front seats are safer makes no sense at all.
> 
> if the plane crash lands on a runway or veers off then its going to hit a building head first. the seats will break forward and everyone in the front will be crushed.
> 
> im just saying that at the back you have a better chance


 
I get as much comfort out of that as I do when I see the little window in the toilet is frosted.

I always try and pick the aisle seat in front of the wings, so I don't see them in the window.  I also close my eyes and hope for the best.


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## undo (7 Oct 2009)

Personally, I always pick a seat as far front as possible. Not for some dubious safety reason but because it lets you get off the plane faster. Whenever there is an airbridge at the airport and often also if there are stairs, you can only use the front doors. The closer you sit to the front, the quicker you get off the plane - and if you are flying without luggage, the quicker you are out of the airport and on your way home/to the hotel.


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## Caveat (7 Oct 2009)

I don't know why they can't just makes planes with same stuff they make the indestructible black box out of...


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## undo (7 Oct 2009)

Caveat said:


> I don't know why they can't just makes planes with same stuff they make the indestructible black box out of...



You could make planes arbitrarily more sturdy - but they would weigh more, be less economical... and in the end, the G-forces on impact would kill you anyway, even if the plane remains undamaged.


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## Caveat (7 Oct 2009)

Errr...it was a joke.  Not a great one I admit.


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## djsim (7 Oct 2009)

According to Air Crash Investigation (fav. prog), Statistically you have better odds surviving a crash sitting at the back of the plane, so there


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## undo (7 Oct 2009)

Someone should run some statistics on where you will be furthest away from parents with crying babies. Those would be the best seats on any plane.


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## callybags (7 Oct 2009)

I've yet to hear of a plane reversing into a mountain...


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## Purple (7 Oct 2009)

djsim said:


> According to Air Crash Investigation (fav. prog), Statistically you have better odds surviving a crash sitting at the back of the plane, so there


 86% of statistics are just made up on the spot


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## Sumatra (7 Oct 2009)

Seat guru is fine although many airlines change the operational equipment at last minute so a good seat could become a bad seat due to a different configuration.

Back of the aircraft is noisier and the effects of turbulence is much greater. (that's why first class is up at the pointy end). The pilots seat isn't great and most find it hard to nap. 

Seats near the bulkheads have screaming babies (but much better than sitting close to an inebriated adult).

Exit seats are freezing. The rearmost seats have no recline. Upstairs in business class is where they put families.

No seats are immune from excessive flatulence. Most planes don't crash.


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## Purple (7 Oct 2009)

Sumatra said:


> Upstairs in business class is where they put families.


Eh?


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## spursman (7 Oct 2009)

is that a double decker bus ur thinking of??


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## MANTO (7 Oct 2009)

spursman said:


> is that a double decker bus ur thinking of??


 
The one from Harry Potter that flies?


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## Sumatra (7 Oct 2009)

LOL   You're right it was on a bus - The A380 bus. They still show Harry Potter on the IFE.


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## shesells (8 Oct 2009)

Seatguru seat plans are regularly out of date..I gave up trusting them a long time ago!


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## Bluebells (8 Oct 2009)

spursman said:


> also most people who die in an aircraft crash die from smoke inhalation due to not using their masks adn trampling all over each other. if you sit at the back then you also avoid all of this so the back seats are far far safer



The masks are for oxygen - not breathing apparatus for a fire, and, as you can't predict  where a fire might occur, you cannot predict what door would be used.


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## Pique318 (8 Oct 2009)

shesells said:


> Seatguru seat plans are regularly out of date..I gave up trusting them a long time ago!


I found out about them when travelling to the states on Delta about 5 years ago. They were accurate that time and this year when travelling to SA with SAA.

No idea what they're like for short-haul, but I suspect that maybe those aircraft are more likely to be changed regularly (seat arrangements/facilities etc) especially on Ryanair & AL.


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## shesells (8 Oct 2009)

I never fly Aer Lingus and very rarely Ryanair. The seating plans for Delta in the US, Northwest, Air France and KLM have all been wrong for me in the past 18 months and not due to change of aircraft. Often the issue is not listing the ER versions of the 767s etc


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## John Rambo (10 Oct 2009)

The front of the plane is the safest...in the event of a crash landing the pilots will deliberately crash the plane in the way that gives them the greatest chance of survival. Therefore, the safest place to be is as close as possible to the pilots.


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## Pique318 (15 Oct 2009)

John Rambo said:


> The front of the plane is the safest...in the event of a crash landing the pilots will deliberately crash the plane in the way that gives them the greatest chance of survival. Therefore, the safest place to be is as close as possible to the pilots.


There are so many things wrong with your post that it's hard to know whether you're being serious or not!


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## EvilDoctorK (16 Oct 2009)

Per the other thread re: the Japanese airline apparently emptying your bladder is a good idea as the violent deceleration forces in a survivable plane crash can cause internal injuries if you are "full" ..  also be sure to brace your feet against the retaining brackets of the seat infront when adopting the brace position .. as if you do survive the impact it's not much good if your legs are broken and you then can't get out.

But realistically on that cheery note I wouldn't spend much time worrying about it ... the risks are so low 

 - Apparently if you boarded a random flight somewhere in the world every day it would take something like 50,000 years before you were involved in a fatal crash.. and even then you'd have a better than 50/50 chance of surviving .. 

 -Also the old stat was that you're more likely to be kicked to death by a donkey than die in a plane crash ... And I don't know about you but donkeys are not something I spend much time worrying about!

Concentrate on something else instead where your choice of action is likely to have a much greater chance of affecting the outcome


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## John Rambo (17 Oct 2009)

Pique318 said:


> There are so many things wrong with your post that it's hard to know whether you're being serious or not!


 
Such as?

If a plane is going to crash, who has the greatest chance of influencing the way in which it crashes? The pilots of course. So surely, given the chance, they'll try and ensure it crashes in the way that gives them the greatest chance of survival. Therefore, the safest place to be on a plane is as close to the pilots as possible, i.e. the front of the plane.


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## so-crates (17 Oct 2009)

Pique318 said:


> No idea what they're like for short-haul, but I suspect that maybe those aircraft are more likely to be changed regularly (seat arrangements/facilities etc) especially on Ryanair & AL.


 
Both RyanAir and Aer Lingus have a limited number of variant aircraft (AL have more as they have A320-214, A321-211 on short haul and a few different A330 mostly on long haul whereas RA have pretty much so universally B737-800 with the same seat configuration). You are far more likely to encounter aircraft seat arrangment variations long-haul on AL that short-haul. Even if they substitute one aircraft for another you are likely to encounter the same configuration when flying short-haul.


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## Complainer (18 Oct 2009)

John Rambo said:


> Such as?
> 
> If a plane is going to crash, who has the greatest chance of influencing the way in which it crashes? The pilots of course. So surely, given the chance, they'll try and ensure it crashes in the way that gives them the greatest chance of survival. Therefore, the safest place to be on a plane is as close to the pilots as possible, i.e. the front of the plane.


It the pilots were still in control, then it wouldn't be crashing.


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