Most cabin windows consist of outer, middle and inner panes – all of which are made of a super strong synthetic resin. Typically, it’s the middle pane that has the mysterious little hole.
Only the outer and middle panels are actually structural, while the inner is pretty much there as a failsafe and to protect the other layers. It’s only there to maintain cabin pressure in the extremely rare event that the outer pane becomes fractured.
Cruising at 35,000 feet, the pressure is around 1.5 kilograms per square inch. This is too low for the human body to stay conscious, so the pressure is artificially maintained at around 3.5 kilograms per square inch. But of course, if you increase pressure inside, the structure has to be strong to hold the difference between the external pressure and internal pressure.
The outer pane is the thickest of these and is the primary layer that bears the pressure of the cabin. The little hole is there to act as “as a bleed valve, allowing pressure between the air in the passenger cabin and the air between the outer and middle panes to equilibrate.” Simply put, it ensures that only the strongest outer pane is bearing the pressure, leaving the middle pane available in case of an emergency.
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