Originally Posted by SchmeckFlyer
I would imagine if the airplane is on fire and the cabin is filled with toxic smoke, or a situation occurs that is so serious as to warrent evacuation with slides, most pax would be willing to forget about the height and simply get on the slide. If not, the FAs will give them a gentle push out the door, as the linked report in the OP stated they are trained to "use physical force" where necessary to ensure a successful evacuation.
It's been estimated that a mere second's hesitation per pax may well cause the evacuation test to fail - and evacuees can't be shoved down the slide fast enough. I believe there's some shield around the slide on the upper deck doors so pax will not see how far they are above the ground.
The upper deck of a 747 is also quite high, yet never seems to have presented much of a problem.
A 744/3 (no means of quick top deck egress from 747-100s, -200s, SPs and Fs) in top deck seat far fewer than a A380 - which is essentially a 330 stacked ontop of a 777 as far as capacity and size goes.
Anyway, the evacuation tests will determine if 550 pax (what it'll be certified for at least for J.A.A. jurisdiction) can be evacuated through 1/2 the doors in 90 seconds. Airbus wanted to do this by computer stimulation (ostensibly to prevent injuries - there were some cases of paralysing injuries ont he MD-11 test) but I believe the J.A.A. wants the human factor thrown in.