If at any point they could have been shown that they save a life they have a useful function, the issue is if the marginal benefit they provide justifies the additional cost.
There was a suggestion that passengers be provided with some form of hood with an oxygen supply that they could wear should they need to evacuate the aircraft, I think this was dismissed on cost and complexity grounds. Given the choice between a hood and a life jacket I’d choose the hood, but I don’t know how much extra I’d be prepared to pay for the privilege.
Watch the airlines pick up on this thread and sell the life jackets with the headsets.
