Cabin crew shouted ‘brace’ and ‘crash position’ inappropriately when plane lost pressure, finds report

The commands ‘probably increased the level of confusion and panic amongst some passengers’, notes aviation watchdog

Cabin crew shouted inappropriate commands such as “brace” and “crash position” to passengers when the aircraft lost cabin pressurisation, according to a safety report.

These incorrect commands “probably increased the level of confusion and panic amongst some passengers”, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) found.

The AirAsia Indonesia flight was en route to Bali from Perth, Western Australia, in October 2017.

Around 30 minutes after take-off, the Airbus A320 aircraft suddenly lost cabin pressure. The decision was then made to make an emergency descent to 10,000ft.

However, some passenger oxygen masks failed to drop automatically or transmit oxygen. The report also noted that the seatbelt signs were activated intermittently.

“Consequently, several passengers moved around the cabin to secure a spare oxygen mask,” noted the ATSB.

Cabin crew then shouted commands such as “brace”, “get down” and “crash position”, which “probably increased the level of confusion and panic amongst some passengers”, the ATSB said.

The report noted: “An important aspect of managing abnormal passenger responses is the cabin crew’s ability to recall and use the appropriate standard commands.

“In this case, the passengers generally responded well when appropriate commands were used, but incorrect commands resulted in some confusion and panic among the passengers.”

The flight returned to Perth and no damage or injuries were reported.

According to a survey of onboard passengers after the incident, around half of the passengers were unsure if oxygen was flowing from their masks, and several said they didn’t know how the equipment worked.

In addition, 56 per cent reported the instructions provided during the emergency descent were not clear due to the cabin crew appearing distressed.

The ATSB has asked AirAsia Indonesia to review its pre-flight safety briefing and safety information card to make sure passengers know how to activate the flow of oxygen from masks.

A spokesperson for AirAsia told the Daily Mail: “Safety underpins AirAsia’s operations and we have cooperated fully with the ATSB throughout the review process.

“Since this incident in 2017, AirAsia has reviewed our processes to ensure we always remain fully compliant and that our safety procedures continue to be robust.”

The Independent has contacted AirAsia for comment.