The fine hand of Marketing!
When you are up there at FL280, that demands consideration, when the first order of business should be putting the oxygen mask on any time you even think you have a problem. BUT ....
You are trying to sell a multi-million dollar product to a non-professional pilot, a product that might just try to kill him?! "What is this nonsense? You mean I have to put that stupid-looking thing on, or else I might die? How can this be allowed?"
I bet that while depressurization, TUC, etc., are all covered in the training course for the aircraft, training that is not necessarily a legal requirement, it is not given a great deal of emphasis.
This unfortunate was probably sat there feeling perfectly fine, just trying to figure out why that red light came on, not understanding that was his cue to grab that mask and fit it to his face, that he had three minutes, tops, to do that or else die, because his training had not really made a big thing of telling him that. That's just my guess, of course.
That said, that warning light might come on at a pressure altitude of 13 thousand feet, say, when you could stay there for 30 minutes before descending to 10 thousand or below. Best practice might be to make the use of the mask at 100% the first order of business any time you get that light, but it might not always be absolutely necessary.
I couldn't find a checklist item that reads that the pilot should check the masks for flow and check the oxygen quantity on the first flight of the day. There's just "Front oxygen masks ... Checked," (Page 4.3.11, Item 43) which must be taken as just checking that they are present and properly stowed. I couldn't find a "First flight of the day checks" checklist.
Last edited by chuks; 9th Sep 2014 at 05:36.