Detroiter

If something is going to happen that is survivable, that is. After gear up, evacuation really isn't an issue anymore.

eng3

The safety video is already a joke, it's just a strange thing for the pilot to single out shoes during an evacuation. The flight ended up getting canceled but if we did have an incident and had to activate, I wonder how many people would be holding things up getting their shoes on.

Bear96

Lordy, what beaches do you go to that are like an airliner crash site?

VegasGambler

This is just too statistically unlikely of a situation for me to worry about.

It makes no sense to happily take a car to the airport and then worry about what might happen if you are not wearing your shoes during takeoff.

Do you wear shoes while you sleep at night? What if your house catches fire and you have to evacuate? I'm going to outright guess that even if you fly VERY frequently, you are much more likely to experience a house or hotel fire than an airplane evacuation.

ContinentalFan

Agreed. If the flight is over a few hours, it’s off with the shoes and on with the slippers.

Aussienarelle

I would be very happy if the pilot made such an Announcement on my flight. The pilot is correct about lack of shoes causing a problem if there is a need to evacuate, similar to leaving your personal belongings behind in an evacuation.

Now statiststatistically the best chance of surviving an incident with a plane is on landing as little fuel and reduced speed. Less likely on takeoff as speed and fuel and in the air well I would like a parachute rather than a life vest.

Now if the pilot would make an announcement that taking off your shoes on a flight can adversely impact your neighbors that would have been most helpful on my SFO-LAX flight last week as the stench when the woman in the window seat took off her shoes made my stomach turn.

SFO1974

I only take off my shoes if its a very long flight (over 6 hours) and I will be sleeping. I personally don't understand the aversion to footwear some have. And - PLEASE - wear socks.

mahasamatman

United abandoned any semblance of real safety videos years ago. Now they just show poorly produced TikTok videos with credit card ads.

We're in full agreement on all points.

Without a citation, I suspect that's exactly what it is - a story.

prestonh

Whataboutism aside, one of the reasons it may be statistically insignificant in your estimate is because of a host of safety/risk mitigation procedures such as the the suggested one which when combined lead to the safety of flight. it's easy to say...this one thing may not make a difference....but that is partly how safety has developed over time. Ymmv

cricketer

It makes sense, regardless of whether or not one personally wants to do it. You're wearing your shoes (I hope and pray) when you board the plane. It costs you nothing and hurts you in no way to keep them on for a few minutes extra, so that in the event of an emergency you are in no way an issue for yourself or anyone else. Yes, it's extremely unlikely to happen. But the cost to you is zero. Take your shoes off a few minutes later. This is how the social contract is fundamentally supposed to work.

You don't (or at least I don't) wear my shoes in the house normally. Putting them on at night and sleeping in them would be needless extra work. If I have to evacuate my house, I have to go out of the door or window and onto the street. You're right, if a 747 hits my house and I have to evacuate, shoes might help - but even in that case, I'm not impacting anyone else, only myself and my family.

We see idiots all the time holding up evacuations to get their luggage, phones, whatnot. Why add footwear to the list when there just isn't any need to?

sbrower

This is why smart people never use lie-flat seats. You need to be upright for the seat belt to work properly.

LarryJ

I'd have to look it up to find the figure, but there was only a few minutes from takeoff to the water landing on Sully's US 1549 flight.

I'd suggest waiting four or five minutes, or so, after takeoff. If an emergency happens after that you'll have time to put the shoes back on.

txaggiemiles

100% same. I had never really thought of it before I read that on here, but now I do. I also only ever even think about taking them off in lie flat seats, otherwise it just doesn’t cross my mind.

Never have heard it announced though. That’s out of the ordinary but not a bad idea.

PES_B1

Even for males? As an 85KG 178cm, wearing most long pants for me is painful, and instead I would wear sports shorts(soccer ones with pockets) whenever I travel

mahasamatman

One could say the same about wearing masks, but we all know what happens when people suggest it...

In a lie-flat seat, I always test the recline to fully flat (I have had broken seats before), and that's difficult at best with shoes on because of the tiny footwells. I can also probably put my shoes on at least as fast as I can unbuckle a seatbelt.