In 1972, only 14 out of 45 survived the Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 crash. But changes have since been made to prevent similar tragedies.
Of the 45 passengers and crew aboard Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 in 1972, only 14 survived 72 days after it crashed. So, has anything changed since to improve the odds?On October 13, 1972, Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 took off from Montevideo in Uruguay, carrying a team of amateur rugby players, along with family and friends, for a much-anticipated away game in Santiago, Chile.
Over the next seventy-two days, the survivors of the crash had to deal with severe hardship, including exposure to extreme temperatures, starvation, and avalanches. Combined, these pressures led to the deaths of thirteen more of the survivors. Famously, the survivors were forced to resort to extreme measures like cannibalism of the dead in their attempt to survive.
The aircraft involved in the accident, the Fairchild Hiller FH-227D, was fine in certain conditions but most likely inappropriate for the proposed flight plan on that fateful day. Today, various rules and regulations are in place to ensure that an aircraft is suitable for extreme conditions like those that occurred during the ill-fated “Andes flight disaster.” These include certification by an independent body to ensure the plane can fly at high altitudes.Other measures now include better route planning and risk assessment, pilot training for extreme conditions, and the establishment of more bodies like the3.
Once again, while not a guarantee of survival for anyone not outright killed during a crash, these measures can dramatically increase the survival chances of anyone stranded in extreme locations. The longer they can survive, the greater their chances of being found alive and rescued.Another major issue with the Uruguayan crash was the loss of life from passengers and crew being ejected from the fuselage just prior to and during impact.
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