18 Minutes to Evacuate a Burning Plane: Success Story or Cautionary Tale?

In Tuesday’s collision in Japan, the last crew member escaped the aircraft after 18 minutes—but there were still no casualties. The sizable discrepancy, for the moment, represents a puzzle for the industry: Does the safe and deliberate evacuation represent a triumph of new aircraft designs and improved procedures? Aircraft safety and evacuation experts are applauding Japan Airlines ’ cabin crew and passengers for escaping the burning wide-body plane without any loss of life before its fuselage collapsed.