When flying on planes, why does your window blind need to be open on take off and landing?

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And I think they also make you shut them on some long distance journeys. Why is this?

― Ste (Fuzzy), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:14 (twenty years ago)

no, it doesn't.

― hstencil (hstencil), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:18 (twenty years ago)

on the four planes I've been on it does, they make you.

― Ste (Fuzzy), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:37 (twenty years ago)

someone's fucking with you, then.

― hstencil (hstencil), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:37 (twenty years ago)

I always thought it was because if it was a bumpy take-off/landing, the closed blind might fly open, come loose from its moorings and zip off around the plane, attacking people's faces like a weird bat. Thinking about it, that's probably NOT the reason.

― Archel (Archel), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:39 (twenty years ago)

If it's dark on take off or landing then there are controls on light escaping from the windows, so maybe your airline decided to make people close the blinds instead of just dimming the lights which is what most airlines do?

― Vicky (Vicky), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:39 (twenty years ago)

The pilot needs light so he can see the controls.

― n/a (Nick A.), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:40 (twenty years ago)

maybe its courtesy. like, ppl want to see out when the plan takes off or lands so the airlines just make the window-seaters open up for everyone else.

― geoff (gcannon), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:42 (twenty years ago)

From a conversation in the pub last night I'm not the only one being fucked. xxxpost

Vicky, no they tell you to *open* them. plus they also dim the lights.

― Ste (Fuzzy), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:42 (twenty years ago)

So no one can see you scream.

― Erick Dampier is better than Shaq (miloaukerman), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:42 (twenty years ago)

If the plane crashes, the attendants want you to see what's coming so they can take funny pictures of your screaming face and beam them into the black box for posterity.

― Dan (It's True!) Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:44 (twenty years ago)

x-post

doh, I just realised I completely misread the question.

But I found this:

Why are the lights switched off and the window shutters opened during take-off and landing?

At SN Brussels Airlines safety is a key priority, and all areas of operation we take preventive safety measures very seriously. While these take-off procedures may appear banal, they are actually quite important. Firstly, when the lights are dimmed, passengers eyes get used to a low level of brightness, and so in the event of an evacuation they will be able to see better in the low-level emergency lighting.

Secondly, the window blinds are kept open during take-off and landing to give better visibility, both from the inside out and vice versa - this way in the case of emergency both the crew and an eventual emergency team outside the plane can see what’s happening and make more informed decisions.

here: http://www.flysn.com/com/information-services/faq/ask_captain.aspx#tcm:26-10109

― Vicky (Vicky), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:45 (twenty years ago)

Firstly, when the lights are dimmed, passengers eyes get used to a low level of brightness, and so in the event of an evacuation they will be able to see better in the low-level emergency lighting.

And then when they evacuate into the bright sunlight reflecting off of the ocean, they will be blind! THANK YOU, SN BRUSSELS AIRLINES!

― Dan (One Size Fits All) Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:47 (twenty years ago)

I've been on planes were the attendants asked people to raise their window shades for landing. It does seems like a strange thing to ask for. In any case, it's been a while since I can remember being asked to do that. Maybe they don't do it any more.

On overnight flights, they also sometimes ask people to close their shades when people are still trying to sleep and its already light outside (due to time zone differences).

― o. nate (onate), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:48 (twenty years ago)

It may depend on the airline. When I was flying all the time on United, the blinds had to be up. I asked a flight attendant once, and the explanation was something like - if there is a crash (and these are most likely at takeoff and landing) and the blinds are up, they are more likely to stay up post-crash, allowing people to see out and judge whether it's safe to open the emergency exits. If the blinds are closed and the plane crashes, they may not be able to be opened. So, it's just a precaution.

― Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:50 (twenty years ago)

Ah Ha Vicky big kisses to yo! Thank you and goodnight!

― Ste (Fuzzy), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:50 (twenty years ago)

You actually buy that load of crap?

― Nathalie (stevie nixed), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 16:58 (twenty years ago)

the pilot has to be able to see to back out of the gate.

― Miss Misery xox (MissMiseryTX), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:49 (twenty years ago)

Firstly, when the lights are dimmed, passengers eyes get used to a low level of brightness, and so in the event of a giant flashing fireball, they will not be able to see the ground coming ever nearer as they plummet to into a fiery, twisted-metal pyre.

― D.I.Y. U.N.K.L.E. (dave225.3), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 17:57 (twenty years ago)

I think it helps people with motion sickness to be able to see the plane of the ground.

― GET EQUIPPED WITH BUBBLE LEAD (ex machina), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:11 (twenty years ago)

i have never heard of this. then again, i spend the whole flight with my nose pressed against the window looking at crop geometry and such.

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:23 (twenty years ago)

The motion sickness thing is SO true, especially as the plane is pushing back - one of several reasons I want the window seat.

― Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:27 (twenty years ago)

I'm pretty sure I heard somewhere the famous inflatable ramp thingies have not been used even a single time in the history of air travel.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 18:28 (twenty years ago)

really?? haha!

― s1ocki (slutsky), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 19:50 (twenty years ago)

On my flight to helsinki the little TV screens showed live footae of take off and landin shot from the nose. OK so it was dark and all you could see was the runway lights but it was pretty cool nonetheless. Blind position did not seem to be an issue.

― Ed (dali), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 19:55 (twenty years ago)

Tracer, I feel like I've seen footage of people getting shot down those suckers. Using them as rafts for ocean landings is a tougher proposition.

The windows-open thing makes perfect sense to me: most crashes/problems happen on takeoff and landing, right? And if there's gonna be mass confusion and in/out evacuation and all that stuff, it makes sense to have the windows open ahead of time, so you can tell where you are, what's going on outside, whether you're at some weird angle, and so on.

― nabisco (nabisco), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 20:01 (twenty years ago)

What nabisco said.

Plus, it's obvious to me that you people have never seen the famous William Shatner Twilight Zone episode.

― k/l (Ken L), Wednesday, 7 December 2005 20:10 (twenty years ago)

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