I flew US Air last weekend and sat in an emergency row. Before we took off, the flight attendant seated facing us was very descriptive about her training and how they go through a yearly certification. Random people are recruited and paid to act as if they’re in an emergency situation. She was very graphic, detailing how everyone screams, that there’s always smoke and loud explosions, etc. She said the sound effects were deafening. They get 90 seconds to get everyone out safely. If they fail, they can’t fly anymore and have to go through re-training and pass the test again. I found the conversation very informative, but my wife and the lady next to me weren’t so thrilled by the looks on their faces. Can’t say I didn’t think about what she had just told us however as we took off.

Looks like the training paid off here. Kudos to the crew and passengers of this flight!