We all have
wondered, what are those colored, single piece clothing, which has many sophisticated
things on it worn by pilots, and what does it do? Well this article is for
those, who want to quench their thirst for this question. Those colored
overalls, worn by a pilot while flying, and has sophisticated “stuff” all over
it is called as a “Flying Suit” or “Flight Suit “.
Evolution of
the flight suit:
We all remember
seeing in old movies, where the pilots wear leather jacket, leather pants
leather boots, a leather skull cap and goggles while flying. This was the very
first flying suit.
During the initial days, when flying was done at low levels,
the need for a flying suit wasn’t much of a requirement. But as flying began
reaching higher altitude, it was discovered that the air became colder and less
dense, due to which the pilot could also freeze; or even suffer a frost bite. Hence
to protect him, the primitive flying suit was created. It comprised of a
leather jacket, gloves, leather trousers and leather boots, to protect the pilot
from cold winds, as early planes lacked canopies.
Now you’d wonder why does he
wear a leather skullcap(its actually a helmet) and goggles. As we go higher into
the air, due to low pressure our ears start to hurt and hearing becomes tough.
The helmet prevents this from happening. As for the goggles, it is used to
prevent the pilots eyes from propwash.
Flying suits
during WWII:
In WWII also, the
traditional flying suit was retained, with significant changes made only in the
helmet. The newer helmets used during WWII incorporated a radio for
communications and an oxygen mask, which enabled the pilots to fly higher. Aircrafts
began to be equipped with canopies, to protect the pilot from propwash. But was
it the same case for bombers?
While the
introduction of pressurized cabins made the pilots and navigators safe from the
cold and thin air of the stratosphere, the gunners who manned the turret guns
were in danger. These gunners were constantly in contact with the cold air as
their turrets had openings for the machine gun barrels, which allowed cold air
to enter inside. Hence the gunners still retained their leather suits. WWII
flying suits also featured a parachute harness, which allowed the pilot to bail
out of the aircraft when jeopardized.
As the end of
WWII neared, a new form of aviation emerged, THE JET ERA, which enabled pilots
to fly faster than in propeller planes. This meant that the requirements of the
flying suit also changed.
Jet era
flying suit(Korea and Vietnam era, 1947-1975;):
As the jets
entered into combat use, it was observed that the pilot was at a risk of catching
flames due to the highly inflammable fuel being used. Another factor was
“g-load”. In layman’s terms, when an aircraft flies faster in the air, its momentum increases: meaning its mass
multiplies with gravity. When pulling tight curves, the gravitational pull
increases on the aircraft, causing the blood from the pilot’s brain to gush
towards his feet; which momentarily causes him to black out. To prevent this,
the blood is retained in the upper part of the body by pressurizing the lower
part of the body so that blood doesn’t enter the legs. The equipment, which is
used for this is called a “G-suit “or “anti G trousers”. This gear consists of
a pair of trousers, which is inflated by fluids and is worn on the lower half
of the pilots flying suit, like a trouser. Along with this, the suit has to be fireproof,
keeping in mind the reason cited earlier.
The traditional leather
helmet and goggles, were replaced with a bone dome/crash helmet and a tinted
visor respectively. The bone dome was made out of composite fiber, is used to
protect the pilot from high velocity ejection, while the tinted visor is used
to protect the pilots vision from harmful UV rays. The helmet consists of an
improved communication system and an oxygen mask.
High
Altitude flying : An era of near space flying :
During the 1960s
and 70s, planes became 3 times faster than the speed of sound and flew twice
the service ceiling of conventional fighters. These selectively built fighter
planes are used for high speed and high altitude reconnaissance. This made the
pilot more vulnerable to g forces and extreme temperatures. Hence normal flying
suits used for altitude flying weren't sufficient to protect the pilot from these
factors. These needs were catered by a fully pressurized, high altitude flying
suit, which resembles to a space suit. The bone dome consists of a full face covering
visor, which had a oxygen supply from the lower left part of the helmet. The
suit is pressurized internally.
Modern day
flying suit and its components :
This list
contains all those elements of the flying suit :
1. Bone Dome: This is the helmet worn by pilots. It protects the
pilots head from high g or high velocity ejections. It consists of a communications
system, a tinted visor for protection against UV rays , and an oxygen mask.
Modern bone domes also include Night vision equipment, Helmet Mounted Cueing
system and intelligent data processing and display system.
2. Upper Torso: This consists of the ejection seat harness, the
oxygen supply cable, an upper body anti g gear(which resembles a vest with
bloated cushions on it). Pilots while flying over the sea don additional
inflatable bladders, to keep them afloat if they eject over the sea. Pilots,
while flying over combat zone, carry a sidearm(a pistol) in a holster located generally to the right hand
pocket of the suit.
3. G Suit/ Anti G Trousers: same as what was explained earlier in this article.
4. Pilots knee board : This consists of a white board which is strapped on
to the thighs of the pilot. This board consists of important navigational cues,
mission details, a brief flight plan or payload load out etc.
5. Abrasion proof
boots: For protection
against ejecting over uneven terrain. While flying over cold weather/terrain,
pilots wear snow boots In case they have to eject.
6. Gloves
7. Overall one piece suit: This refers to the one piece overalls worn by all
pilots and aircraft technicians. This is fire and abrasion proof. It’s color is
generally olive/dark green and varies from country’s standard. For flying over
desert pilots wear desert tan colored suit. Test pilots, aerobatic pilots and
pilots flying over peaceful territories wear orange color suit. This helps the
rescue team to identify the downed pilot easily. But the inverse happens during
combat, where pilots where green/grey/blue over the terrain they’re flying. This
is to camouflage the pilot in case he’s downed behind enemy lines. This suit
has pockets on the chest and shin region, which can be opened/closed using a
zipper. It is made in such a eay way that it makes the pilot feel comfortable
while flying, hence is a bit loose.
Smart flying suits:
Fighters top of the current generation line, such as
F-22, F-35 and DassaultRafale, feature a smart flying suit for the pilot. This
regulates the fluid density and flow according to the maneuver performed, so
that maximum g limits can be achieved with minimum g load effect.
-#SilverCross
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