How To Fall 35,000 Feet (and Survive)

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View in Browser    STAFF How To Fall 35,000 Feet (and Survive) You're six miles up, alone and falling without a parachute. Though the odds are long, a small number of people have found themselves in similar situations—and lived to tell the tale. BY: Dan Koeppel 6:59:00 A.M.: 35,000 Feet You have a late night and an early flight. Not long after takeoff, you drift to sleep. Suddenly, you're wide awake. There's cold air rushing everywhere, and sound. Intense, horrible sound. Where am I?, you think. Where's the plane?   You're 6 miles up. You're alone. You're falling.   Things are bad. But now's the time to focus on the good news. (Yes, it goes beyond surviving the destruction of your aircraft.) Although gravity is against you, another force is working in your favor: time. Believe it or not, you're better off up here than if you'd slipped from the balcony of your high-rise hotel room after one too many drinks last night.   Or at least you will be. Oxygen is scarce at these heights. By now, hypoxia is starting to set in. You'll be unconscious soon, and you'll cannonball at least a mile before waking up again. When that happens, remember what you are about to read. The ground, after all, is your next destination. This is a free preview of Pop Mech Pro. Join now for less than $1 a week to read the rest of the story and more of Popular Mechanics' most in-depth, exclusive features.  JOIN NOW MORE FROM POP MECH PRO SCIENCE READ NOW How Dynamite Shaped The World HOME READ NOW How to Make a Survival Knife Out of Stuff You Already Have in Your Garage TECH READ NOW The Long, Weird History of Strobe Weapons Follow Us Unsubscribe Privacy Notice PopularMechanics.com ©2021 Hearst Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Hearst Email Privacy, 300 W 57th St., Fl. 19 (sta 1-1), New York, NY 10019