A number of years ago, I was flying into Cameroon and we just about bought the farm! We had a long slow, low altitude approach that was repeated by the pilot as he couldn’t land the first time. On the second try, the plane missed the runway—the wing went smashing into the ground and the plane came close to flipping—we crashed into a grove of small trees. The plane was unflyable after but luckily no one was killed. This experience caused me to have a plan to cover all worst case scenarios while flying.
Once I am seated, I write a fraction on my hand E.g. 2/4 that indicates how many rows to the closest forward exit and how many rows to the back exit—that way, if there is a situation where there is smoke, poor lighting, and I can't see in the plane, I will still know where to find the exit. Also, I try to sit on the exit row or near it, ideally on an aisle and to the back of the plane as generally the back takes less impact in a crash. I believe it is critical to have shoes on at takeoff and landing. Have situational awareness—don’t close the window blind at takeoff or landing. Finally, avoid flammable clothing like nylon or polyester—flying isn’t about fashion.
