The Malaysian flight MH17 with 283 passengers and 15 crew members on board crashed Thursday in Ukraine near the Ukraine-Russia border. It has been confirmed that nobody in the flight survived the accident. U.S. officials told media that they have concluded that the plane was shot down by a missile. We couldn't help but ask what could happen to the flight and what kind of situation the passengers could face between the aircraft was shot and it finally touching the ground.

A Ph.D. in physics from Beijing Normal University described to us several possible situations.

The first possibility is instant disintegration.

The second possibility would be, if we assume that the plane had partly disintegrated in the air, passengers losing consciousness the moment they were thrown out of the cabin. Within the few minutes from high-altitude to the ground, most passengers would remain unconscious. It is because at an altitude of more than 9000 meters, air pressure is only 30% of that close to the ground. If people were suddenly thrown out from the originally sealed and pressurized cabin, they would not be able to breathe. Moreover, the air within the human body would flow outward due to the pressure loss. People would instantly faint.

If the plane was hit in part and the cabin remained relatively complete, passengers would experience no g-force as they rapidly fall from the air. In that case, they may feel very uncomfortable. Data shows that people feeling weightless may sweat and vomit like they are suffering seasickness. Their cardiovascular system may also go through changes during the process.  

This article is edited and translated from 飞机被击中到坠毁，可能发生什么？Source: Beijing News