28 passengers survived the plane crash in Kazakhstan. The plane crashed and then caught fire, which begs the question: how is this possible? The answer came from SimpliFly Captain and CEO Alon Pereg.
According to Mako, he explained that aviation is becoming safer every year.
“In recent years, passenger traffic has tripled and the number of deaths has decreased tenfold,” Pereg said. — Aviation has become 30 times safer in 28 years. That’s why every incident causes such resonance. Accidents happen extremely rarely—one every two months.”
Most disasters occur outside the Western world. “In recent years, we have seen only one disaster in Kazakhstan, two in Nepal and China. In the Western world, accidents rarely occur, and conclusions are drawn from each tragedy. The last death in Western aviation was in 2015,” the expert noted.
70% of plane crashes are due to human fault. “Technology has come incredibly far, but the human element has remained the same,” Pereg explained.
The disaster in Kazakhstan remains to be investigated. It was initially thought that birds might have been the cause. However, according to Pereg, such a scenario is unlikely. “Natural phenomena such as bird strikes can cause accidents. But for both engines to fail at once is rare. The only known incident occurred in 2009, when a plane landed in the Hudson River after a bird strike.”
The possible cause of the incident is said to be damage from gunshots. “The photographs show that the crew tried to land the plane, but something prevented this,” the expert added.
Why were the passengers able to be saved? “If the plane remains controllable, even without engines, it can be landed,” Pereg said. — Problems begin if control is broken. For example, if the plane was shot at and the control mechanisms were damaged, the likelihood of a successful landing is minimal.”
The design of the aircraft may have been a key factor. “When the plane does not fall like a stone, but continues to be controlled, the chances of rescue increase. In the case of Kazakhstan, it is possible that one side of the plane remained relatively intact. The passengers on the uninjured side survived,” he concluded.
Earlier, Cursor wrote that Putin reacted to the plane crash in Kazakhstan.