Cheating Gravity

When Airplanes Break, But People Don't

The Déjà Digest
January 11, 2024

Background:

A near-disaster unfolded in the skies above Portland, Oregon when a Boeing 737 Max 9 bound for California experienced a mid-air fuselage breach. While in flight, a large section of the plane's non-essential service door panel tore away, leaving a gaping hole and sending oxygen masks cascading down. The dramatic event, thankfully, did not result in any serious injuries, although passengers described a terrifying rush of wind and loud bangs. A few days later, a passenger's cell phone, ejected out of the plane due to the pressure change, was later found in working condition on the ground.

Deja Vu:

This incident echoes the story of Vesna Vulović, a Serbian flight attendant who survived the highest fall without a parachute – a staggering 33,000 feet after her plane exploded mid-air in 1972. The cell phone discovery brought some levity to an otherwise dangerous incident, but can you imagine what would have happened if Vesna’s miracle happened in the age of social media?

Fact:

Vulović suffered a fractured skull, broken legs, and was temporarily paralyzed, but she made an almost full recovery and even continued to fly. She was eventually fired by the airline over her political stance.

Quote:

“If you are looking for perfect safety, you will do well to sit on a fence and watch the birds; but if you really wish to learn, you must mount a machine and become acquainted with its tricks by actual trial.” - Wilbur Wright, Speech to the Western Society of Engineers (18 September 1901)

Stat:

15% - The odds you’ll recover your phone if you leave your phone on an airplane. Compare that to the 80% chance of recovery if you leave it at a restaurant.¹

Profile:

Want another fell from a plane and survived story? 1972, Juliana Koepke, a teenager, survived a plane crash in the Amazon rainforest. Not only did she survive the plane crash, but she survived over a week in the jungle on her own before encountering the fishermen who brought her back to safety.

https://www.statista.com/chart/19708/known-occasions-where-people-survived-falls/

List:

Places where a cell phone has been found:

Inside a Bag of Potato Chips: A woman in Wisconsin found a non-working Nokia cell phone in a bag of Clancy's Ripple Potato Chips. The phone contained a T-Mobile SIM card.
Inside a Fish: A businessman's phone, lost at a beach, was discovered inside a 25-pound cod by a fisherman a week later. Surprisingly, the phone was still functional after being dried
In a River, 10 months later: An iPhone lost in the River Wye in Drybrook, Gloucestershire was found 10 months later and returned to the owner.