What Color Is An Airplane's Black Box? Hint: It's Not Black

The best part about traveling via airplane is that it can help you reach your destination faster than other modes of transportation. However, a big risk that comes while traveling via airplane is that even a small miscalculation by the pilot or a malfunction in the plane's engine can result in a severe accident. 

In case of any such mishap, it's important to figure out what exactly was the reason behind the accident. This helps the aviation department to implement new safety precautions to ensure that such aviation accidents do not happen again. The black box in all airplanes helps the experts determine and reconstruct the circumstances that led to the accident. 

Despite its name, you might be surprised to know that the black box isn't actually black in color, but rather bright orange. But if that's the case, then why do aviation departments continue to refer to it as the black box instead of calling it the orange box? 

There are two main theories behind the naming of the black box. The first theory traces back to the late 1930s, when François Hussenot invented the first flight recorders. Unlike modern black boxes, those recorders were based on photographs that used to project almost 10 parameters onto a photographic film run in a light-tight box. This box was referred to as the black box, which survived all these years. 

The other theory says that the term black box was first used by the British Royal Air Force during World War II. At the time, all the electronic navigation devices that the British used to carry on their aircraft were kept inside a black box. These boxes were non-reflective to ensure they couldn't easily be traced by enemies.

It doesn't matter which theory you believe; the black box remains one of those things with a name that, while technically incorrect, is still commonly used. The orange color of the black box allows it to easily get identified among debris or even in extreme locations like at the bottom of the ocean. If the black box was actually black in color, it would easily blend in with the environment, making it very difficult to spot.

The black box is one of the most important safety devices on an aircraft, and it contains two main pieces of equipment—a cockpit voice recorder and a flight data recorder. The former equipment captures all the noise inside the cockpit, including the conversation between the plane's pilots. The latter equipment, on the other hand, records data such as the speed, altitude, acceleration, and other technical details of the plane. 

The black box is made up of stainless steel or titanium, and it can easily survive the impact of 3,400 Gs. Furthermore, it can survive temperatures up to 2000 °F (1,093.33 °C) for at least half an hour. In addition to being physically strong, the black boxes are mainly placed in the tail of an aircraft, where they have the highest possibility of surviving an accident. 

In case an aircraft runs into an accident, experts use its black box to find out what caused the accident. However, the main issue with black boxes is that they are physically attached to the aircraft. This means that in an incident where the flight disappears, like what happened with the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, there's no way to retrieve the data collected by the black box. The solution to this problem is to develop a technology that sends real-time flight information to the ground. Considering the importance of such innovation, it won't be long before we actually have something like that on our flights.