Narrative:

I recently filed a report with regard to this issue; but the behavior happened again tonight's on flight. The purser made an announcement for customers to lower their window shades to enhance the sleeping environment in the cabin. The concern I have is that her announcement was made prior to take-off. So we are taxiing and every single window shade was pulled shut. I feel strongly that having the visibility of the outside environment hindered during a critical phase of flight is a safety issue. If an aircraft fire were to ensue while on the ground during taxi or the aircraft were to incur a runway excursion during the take-off; landing sequence; flight attendants would be inhibited from quickly assessing conditions outside the aircraft. The prism windows of the aircraft doors provide a very narrow view of conditions occurring outside the aircraft cabin.it's perfectly fine to have window shades pulled down once airborne; but it is problematic to not be able to assess conditions should the need arise to evacuate the aircraft. If the aircraft exterior is on fire; time is of the essence to initiate an evacuation. Both customers and cabin crews need to be able to assess outside conditions quickly and having all aircraft windows obstructed undermines best safety practices. It is SOP at many carriers that all window shades be open during the most critical critical phases of flight.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Flight Attendant reported that while taxiing the passenger window shades were pulled shut; consequently reducing the visual awareness and safety in the event of an emergency.

Narrative: I recently filed a report with regard to this issue; but the behavior happened again tonight's on flight. The Purser made an announcement for customers to lower their window shades to enhance the sleeping environment in the cabin. The concern I have is that her announcement was made prior to take-off. So we are taxiing and every single window shade was pulled shut. I feel strongly that having the visibility of the outside environment hindered during a critical phase of flight is a safety issue. If an aircraft fire were to ensue while on the ground during taxi or the aircraft were to incur a runway excursion during the take-off; landing sequence; flight attendants would be inhibited from quickly assessing conditions outside the aircraft. The prism windows of the aircraft doors provide a very narrow view of conditions occurring outside the aircraft cabin.It's perfectly fine to have window shades pulled down once airborne; but it is problematic to not be able to assess conditions should the need arise to evacuate the aircraft. If the aircraft exterior is on fire; time is of the essence to initiate an evacuation. Both customers and cabin crews need to be able to assess outside conditions quickly and having all aircraft windows obstructed undermines best safety practices. It is SOP at many carriers that all window shades be open during the most critical critical phases of flight.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.