Cyrus Mistry accident: How do airbags work? Did they deploy in the Mercedes?

The death of former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry has thrown the spotlight on the importance of airbags and seatbelts during a crash. Mistry (54) and Jahangir Pandole were killed when their vehicle hit a road divider in Maharashtra’s Palghar district on Sunday afternoon, while eminent gynaecologist Anahita Pandole (55), who was at the wheel, and her husband Darius Pandole (60), who was also sitting in front, were injured. While there have been conflicting reports about whether the rear airbags deployed, it has become clear the Mistry and Pandole, who were on the back seats of the luxury car, were not wearing their seatbelts. Let’s take a closer look how airbags and seatbelts are supposed to work: Speed kills First, a brief  look at the numbers. According to the latest NCRB data, of the 1.56 lakh deaths in traffic accidents, more than 85,000 people were killed due to vehicles speeding.

Which shows one axiom holds true – speed kills.

Which may have been the case in this instance. As per HT Auto, the preliminary inquiry by the Maharashtra Police points to the high speed of the luxury Mercedes-Benz GLC as one of the possible reasons for the accident. The car covered 20 kilometres in just nine minutes after crossing the Charoti check post in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, about 120 kms away from Mumbai, the police said. [caption id=“attachment_11184781” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] The mangled remains of the car in which Cyrus Mistry and others travelled. ANI[/caption] “As per preliminary investigation, over-speeding and the error of judgement caused the car accident. While analysing the footage captured by CCTV cameras at the Charoti check post, Palghar police found the car had crossed the check post at 2.21 pm and the accident took place 20 km ahead (in the direction of Mumbai),” an official said. How do airbags and seatbelts work? While every car in India comes with front and rear seatbelts, not every vehicle is equipped with rear airbags. Seatbelts and airbags are meant to work in concert to protect passengers in case of a crash as per News18. They are meant to hold the occupants in place and prevent them from being catapulted forward during an incident. While the seatbelt fastens an individual in place, the airbag is meant to protect the head and chest from impact. As per News18, using one without the other ‘significantly decreases’ the safety of occupants during a crash. However, it is important to note that seatbelts are meant to be the primary restraint.

A personal in an accident face even more severe injury if the airbag deploys and if he or she is not wearing a seatbelt.

As per Moneycontrol, if a human body at moment of impact slams into an airbag or even a feathery pillow at triple-digit speeds, the effects are likely to be less than desirable. Moneycontrol quoted an US-based non-profit IIHS report as showing that unbuckled rear-seat passengers are eight times more likely to be killed in a car accident than belted-up rear-seat passengers, often with airbags deployed. Experts thus recommend seat belts for both front and rear-seated passengers to ensure maximum safety, as per Business Today. As per HT Auto, though the Centre will soon make it mandatory for all cars to be equipped with at least six airbags, this won’t include airbags in the front headrests meant for rear passengers. Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) chairman RC Bhargava told Business Today such a norm would adversely hit the already shrinking small car market, making it even more difficult for two-wheeler users to upgrade to small cars.  Did the rear airbags deploy in the Mistry accident? The GLC comes with the standard seven airbags (with only side rear curtains at the back, while the front gets driver, passenger, and side and driver knee) and has a five star NHTSA and EuroNCAP rating, as per Moneycontrol.

As per Moneycontrol,  the side airbags on the GLC deployed effectively.

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While India Today has reported that the rear airbags did not deploy during the accident, automobile expert Rahul Ghosh, an associate editor with Auto Today said there were ‘no questions’ about the safety systems of Mistry’s car. Ghosh noted that the vehicle’s structure remained intact despite it making a head-on collision with the road divider and added that the car is one of the safest vehicles in the market. It has done its job when it comes to the safety systems installed in it, he further stated. [caption id=“attachment_11184451” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry. ANI[/caption] Ghosh said an investigation into the cause of the death and whether the two passengers who died from the accident wore seatbelts needs to be undertaken before jumping to conclusions. Parth Charan, writing for Moneycontrol, agrees, noting that the aftermath of the incident shows a dislodged front bumper presumably from the impact but that everything else is pure conjecture. “Until there are proper investigative reports, it is unwise to speculate on just what caused the accident, and furthermore, the unfortunate deaths of the occupants in the rear. All that we know is that the front occupants survived while the ones at the back didn’t. What can be looked at is probable causes that could have led to such a tragic result,” Charan wrote. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.