I Just Found Out How Long A Plane's Oxygen Mask Actually Lasts, And I'm Slightly Terrified

We’ve already shared at HuffPost UK which parts of the plane are secretly the filthiest, as well as the seats flight attendants would never choose. 

We’ve even revealed that flight attendants don’t just greet you onto a plane to be polite ― they actually have a secret side quest.

But even that hadn’t prepared me for the fact I recently discovered on Reddit – then rushed to verify ― oxygen masks really, really don’t work like I thought they did. 

More specifically, they offer a lot less of the precious gas than I thought.

How much oxygen is in an oxygen mask on a flight? 

According to aerospace manufacturing and repair company HRD Aero Systems, which specialises in safety equipment, “Oxygen masks supply roughly 10-14 minutes of oxygen” – sorry, what?!

Though it’s a lot less time than many of us probably think, though, the experts reassure us that it’s designed to give us enough oxygen to safely land. 

Their site reads that the quarter-hour timeframe “is more than enough time for a pilot to descend below 10,000 feet, where the atmosphere has enough oxygen.”

Condé Nast Traveler confirmed the manufacturer’s info, saying, “Once you’ve secured the mask, there’s anywhere from ten to 20 minutes’ worth of life-preserving oxygen in them.” 

The publication also spoke to the Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson Allen Kenitzer, who said, “The frequency of occurrences necessitating the use of oxygen is approximately ten events per one billion flight hours.”

That means oxygen masks have been needed “roughly 2,800 times over a 40-year period [on US airlines],” Kenitzer shared in 2017.

Oh. Uh ― anything else?

Yep! Apparently, the oxygen in the tanks isn’t even oxygen (at least not all the time, according to HRD Aero Systems). 

“Many people imagine that the masks connect to oxygen tanks similar to what you might see with a respiratory patient or scuba diver. While some planes do use tanks like this, especially for crew members, they are incredibly heavy,” they shared. 

So, “To save space and weight, most aircraft emergency oxygen systems don’t have bottled oxygen for passenger masks. Instead, they have a cocktail of chemicals, usually sodium perchlorate and iron oxide, that produce oxygen when burned.” 

Don’t worry ― this still means “the air filtering into the bag and through the tubes into the mask is oxygen.” 

It may, however, provide a “burning smell” while working ― that’s not a sign of malfunction, the experts say, but rather a sign the oxygen generator is working well. 

Again, both the amount of oxygen and its source has been approved by experts who know what they’re doing. “While it may not sound like a lot, this amount is more than enough,” the pros say. 

Still, I couldn’t help but clam up writing this...