Originally Posted by
StayingHomeIsBetter
Why is that?
Because the engines are closer to the fuselage on the MD-88?
Or, more people between you and the engine on a 737 to absorb the shrapnel when it comes apart (assuming you are in an aisle seat)?
All of the above?
On the MD-88 aircraft, the aft-mounted engines are directly in line with the mid-section passenger cabin. Thus, an uncontained engine failure (ie a fan disc rupture) would result in shrapnel dispersal directly into the passenger cabin at torso-level. This is more apt to create a fatal situation.
On the 737 aircraft, the engines are mounted forward and below the wing and in line with the lower cargo compartment and the floor of the passenger cabin. Any dispersal of shrapnel would most likely be absorbed by not only the fuselage skin, but parts of the wing and the cabin floor. Any shrapnel that penetrates the passenger cabin, would do so at a lower elevation (ie affect the lower limbs and feet, vice the head and torso).
Note that newer aircraft with tail-mounted engines (ie ERJ, CRJ, MRJ, etc...) locate the aft baggage compartment directly in line with the engines. This is in contrast to older designs (ie DC-9, B727, F100, etc...).