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jonny999
20th Jan 2016, 13:31
As a passenger I'm always puzzled as to why we get this instruction when we are boarded during refuelling. Presumably it is because there is deemed to be an increased fire hazard, but if this is the case then why board passengers during refuelling? And if sitting with your seat belt unfastened facilitates quick evacuation, then surely even more effective would be giving instructions on operating emergency exit doors. It all seems a bit pointless. Or am I missing something . . . .?

AerocatS2A
20th Jan 2016, 20:08
It's just so you can get out in a hurry. If you do need to get out you are expect to exit via the passenger doors, not the emergency exits. Rules don't always make perfect sense but they are what they are.

LlamaFarmer
20th Jan 2016, 20:16
If there's a fire during refuelling you don't want pax jumping out emergency exits right into the fire... particularly over wing exits as thats likely where the flames/smoke/fuel will be.

Better to get them back up the air bridge (assuming there is an airbridge) and into the terminal building again.



Side note, I always wondered how difficult the logistics of a rapid disembarkment during boarding would be... particularly on a bigger a/c like a wide body... you could have a couple hundred people coming down to the aircraft at the same time as a couple hundred people trying to run back up away from it.

FlightDetent
20th Jan 2016, 23:02
Old company rules (airline): no refuelling whilst boarding pax with jetty, if steps used pax not allowed to form queue on them. Some handling agents and/or airport operators applying similar restrictions.

Uplinker
23rd Jan 2016, 16:34
Hi jonny,

Refuelling can take 20 mins or more, (A320/321), and that is simply too much of the 45-50 minutes turnaround to 'waste' by doing it separately.

Some airports mandate the attendance of a fire tender whilst refuelling with passengers on board.

Instructions on how to operate the doors are on the safety card in front of your seat - it is always worth studying this - as soon as you've sat down.

Passengers would not be able to watch and listen to a safety brief given while they were still boarding.

Rwy in Sight
23rd Jan 2016, 20:24
Some airlines mandate the presence of a fire engine during refueling with pax on board too - not only airports.

I thought the main reason regarding "the remain seated with your belt undone" instruction was to help evacuation (no seat belts) by keeping the aisle clear (remain seated). I have done it once and it was very annoying since I kept fastening my seat belt. I had a developed sense of aviation safety even some ten years before joining pprune.