Is there a trick to falling out of an airplane and surviving?
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00:00 30,000 feet (9,144 m)
00:08 9 km (5.7 mi)
00:13 So far, only one person has survived a free fall from that height.
00:18 Would you be as lucky?
00:21 This is WHAT IF,
00:23 and here's what would happen
00:24 if you fell out of an airplane at 30,000 feet (1,000 m)
00:29 On January 26, 1972,
00:36 an explosion aboard JAT Airways Flight 367 resulted in the impossible.
00:42 22-year-old flight attendant Vesna Vulović fell from 10,000 m (1,000 ft) in the air,
00:48 setting a world record for surviving the highest fall without a parachute.
00:53 How did she survive?
00:55 Is there a trick to falling out of an airplane and surviving?
00:59 And what does it feel like?
01:01 If you're a frequent flyer,
01:03 you might want to pay close attention to what's coming up.
01:07 Since the 1940s, there have been almost 50 cases of people surviving falls from airplanes.
01:14 In all of those cases,
01:15 the survivors were lucky enough to have something to cushion their fall.
01:20 Vesna Vulović, for example, was in the back of the plane when the explosion happened.
01:25 When the plane broke apart,
01:26 the tail section remained intact,
01:28 and pinned by a food cart,
01:30 Vulović was prevented from being sucked out into the open air.
01:35 The detached tail of the airplane landed in deep snow in the mountains of Czechoslovakia.
01:41 Vulović suffered several broken bones,
01:43 but the airplane wreckage and layers of deep, soft snow ultimately saved her life.
01:50 The second highest fall without a parachute that someone survived happened in 1943.
01:56 Air Force gunner Alan Magee's bomber was hit by enemy fire over France.
02:01 His plane burst into flames and propelled Magee out of the plane before he could grab a parachute.
02:07 Magee fell about 6,700 m (1,000 ft).
02:11 Apparently, he smashed through the glass roof of a train station,
02:15 and was found hanging from the steel girders that held up the roof.
02:18 You wouldn't think that a glass roof would cushion any kind of fall,
02:21 but if it hadn't have been there, Magee might not have survived.
02:26 So if you ever find yourself falling from an airplane without a parachute,
02:31 grab onto something, anything, and use it to break your fall.
02:36 Of course, that's easier said than done.
02:38 When you're in free fall from 9,144 m (1,000 ft) in the air,
02:43 a soft landing is probably the last thing on your mind.
02:46 (Bang!)
02:48 (Bang!)
02:50 It all happens so fast.
02:52 From the moment you're outside the plane, it's only 170 seconds until you hit the ground.
02:58 During that time, you will be extremely cold and deprived of oxygen.
03:03 The average temperature at 9,144 m (1,000 ft) in the sky
03:07 ranges between -40°C (1,000°F) to -57°C (1,000°F)
03:11 But you wouldn't feel it for long, because you'd pass out soon after leaving the aircraft.
03:16 While all air contains 20.9% oxygen,
03:20 at higher altitudes, there is lower air pressure,
03:23 so it feels as if there's a lot less oxygen.
03:27 This will cause you to lose consciousness, at least for a while.
03:31 The air pressure will gradually rise as you get closer to the ground,
03:35 so you would probably wake up again after about a minute of free fall.
03:40 As you fall, your speed will increase by 9.8 m/s (1.8 ft/s) every second,
03:47 because that's the Earth's gravity.
03:50 Eventually, you would stop accelerating and reach a constant speed known as terminal velocity.
03:56 This results from a buildup of air pressure below you as you fall,
04:00 because air can't get out of your way fast enough.
04:03 And at the same time, the air behind you doesn't fill in fast enough,
04:07 creating a sort of vacuum.
04:09 The difference in the air pressure below you and the air pressure above you
04:13 creates drag, or air resistance.
04:16 When the force exerted by this air resistance equals the force of gravity,
04:21 you've reached terminal velocity, and you'll be moving at a constant speed.
04:26 Falling from 30,000 ft (1,000 m), you're likely to reach terminal velocity at 190 km/h (115 mph).
04:32 Of course, your actual terminal velocity will depend on your size and weight.
04:36 The heavier you are, the faster you'll fall.
04:39 But if you spread your arms and legs out wide,
04:42 you can increase the amount of drag exerted on you.
04:45 That might slow you down a bit.
04:47 You'd enjoy it a lot more if you had a parachute, though.
04:50 Parachutes are lightweight and very wide.
04:53 A parachute would cut your falling speed from 45 m/s (1,000 ft/s)
04:58 down to about 5 m/s (1,000 ft/s).
05:01 If you don't have a parachute, it would help to know where to land.
05:06 Look for somewhere that's soft, so there's a chance of breaking your fall.
05:10 A lot of people who have fallen from airplanes and lived
05:13 have survived due to landing in deep snow, or being cushioned by trees or bushes.
05:18 Unfortunately, a tree can either be really good or really, really bad.
05:25 If you don't see anything soft below,
05:27 your best bet is to try to land feet first, with your legs together, slightly bent.
05:32 When you hit the ground, you'll likely crumple to the side or back.
05:37 This is known as the five-point impact sequence.
05:40 And while it will be incredibly painful, it will save everything above your waist,
05:45 mainly your vital organs and your brain.
05:49 Of course, these are all just recommendations,
05:52 tips to make the best out of a bad and severely unlucky situation.
05:56 Humans aren't really built for 9,144 m (1,000 ft) free falls.
06:01 And yet, every year, we seem to achieve something that we thought was impossible.
06:06 So before your next flight, you might want to pack a four-leaf clover, just in case.
06:12 And for more ways to survive freak accidents, paranormal activities, or apocalyptic events,
06:18 just keep watching WHAT IF.
06:21 ♪ ♪ ♪
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