Although passengers are routinely reminded to keep their seat belts fastened during flight whenever they are seated, a significant number of passengers have not followed this advice. At the time of the first in-flight upset, more than 60 of the 303 passengers were seated without their seat belts fastened.
The action to be undertaken by the operator has the potential to increase seat belt use on that operator's flights. However, the issue is relevant to all operators.
In October 2011, the operator advised that it was evaluating the feasibility of measuring the seat belt use rate of passengers on a sample of flights. The measurements would include various stages of flight, and situations when the seat belt sign is illuminated and also when it is not illuminated. Based on the results, the operator could then determine if additional specific communications or actions were warranted.
