Gadgetopia

more impressive was that (per the commentary track) that half of the exits in that video were blocked. probably helped that they were all being yelled at in german.

Tests like that are benchmarks for the regulatory agencies - reality checking would provide completely different numbers, as all the "passengers" on the demo were uninjured, the plane is in an upright position and not broken into pieces, and no fire and attendant smoke complicating matters is apparent. Being yelled at in any language might not get you moving if you sustained a leg injury in a crash.

It was impressive but add a little fire, smoke, panic, and a hint of the "Exorcist" type music from the video clip and I would be cheering.

Two things I found interesting:

1. The doors were wide-enough for people to go two-abreast. Since the doors are the bottle-neck, this alone effectively cuts the evac time in half.

2. The crew were all pushing people lightly on the back. It looks like they were trained to do that -- to have that physical contact to move people along.

I agree with the commentor above -- these were ideal conditions. While I think it's still impressive, things would be much less smooth under stress.

True; less than ideal conditions might have an effect on how quickly the evacuation goes, but a little smoke, fire, blood & a few dismembered body parts might actually hasten the process. I know I'd be even more motivated to get the heck outta there!