AIRCRAFT EJECTION PODS & CAPSULES - High-performance U.S. aircraft escape systems, 1950s and 1960s.
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- čas přidán 5. 07. 2021
- An in-depth look at aircraft emergency escape devices used for pilot survivability as jet and rocket-powered aircraft flew faster than Mach 2. Video covers nose cones, ejectable crew compartments, and pilot ejection capsules, showing which ones worked and which ones didn't!
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I was stationed at Cannon AFB when an F-111 went down just off base. When I saw the capsule come down I thought, "I'll be damned. It works."
Was it on final just over the fence and had a mid-air with a Cessna flow by a real estate agent that showing some people a ranch?
@@infectedvector It was on final and fuel two both engines shut off killing both engines. It was weird because it was super windy that day, it was Cannon after all, and I was servicing a -86 when all the the vehicles on the ramp flew by me with sirens blaring. I looked around the generator to see a fireball in a field and a big parachute with the capsule under it.
Never heard the explosion.
@Captain Chaos better than dying…they’ll live for another day, aspirin and a cold beer with a few days off will cure that!
@Captain Chaos Yeah, the chief concern I heard was that the airbags underneath didn't always reply to cushion the landing (or keep it afloat).
@@britishrocklovingyank3491 When I was at Cannon the Wing C/O (Col. Bud Jones) flew an attack on the flight line during a wing exercise. Afterwards every unit on base got called into the base theater for a debrief. We were shown a HUD film of the bombing run and it turned out he had a compressor stall during the high speed run. Jones had a civilian VIP in the right seat (who obviously was not certified), so he had to deal with it by himself (at 300 feet over the base). That was the only time I saw a F-111 doing it's thing in real life. I was going out onto the flight line and I happened to look to the east, towards Clovis. I saw a black dot coming in fast and getting bigger. Before I could really register what was happening, Jones and his VIP passed overhead but totally silent. They were crossing over the west fence line and then the roar caught up. It rattled my bones and about two seconds later the air raid siren started up. It was then that I almost decided to re-enlist.
I remember as a kid reading the F111 escape capsule had fishing equipment in it for the crew to use if it landed at sea for a length of time.
I built a model F111 where the capsule was a separate component so that made me realise it was odd and read up about it.
Funny what sticks in your mind, but that certainly did!
As a pilot once told me while strapping in to a Martin Baker MK-J5 seat, "I will slap you on your chest and yell Eject, Eject Eject and if you are still here after the third time, you will be by yourself."
I got "I will say eject, eject, eject - but you won't hear the third one as I will be gone" 😜
I recieved an incentive ride in a A-37 while stationed at Davis Monthan AFB. The pilot of the jet basically said the same thing if you look over and see a smoking hole where I used to be thats your clue to to get out.
My briefing was, "if you hear the third eject it will be an echo".
I was fortunate enough (or unfortunate enough depending on how you look at it) to be in a very small MOS in the Army, working on the only aircraft in the Army that had an ejection seat. To say that I knew the pilots (and other aircrew) personally , would be more than a bit of an understatement. It was a small enough MOS that I worked daily with multiple people that I had gone to both Basic and AIT with for 9 years including two permanent changes of station to different units, in another country, and getting out of the Army for over a year before re-enlisting. We were "those weird looking planes" that nobody had ever seen before, or knew anything about. When I was sent to the ALSE (Aviation Life Support Equipment) course, I was the only fixed wing Crewchief in the course. One time the instructor held up the parachute for our ejection seat stating "this is a rigid parachute pack, you will never see one again" to which I had to point out that I did, in fact see 36 of them every day. he simply sighed and said, "oh, YOU'RE the reason that I had to drag this and all of the other stuff out". The rest of the course was ...interesting. Different harness, different helmet, different survival vest, different survival kits, and a couple of extra items that you would need if you ejected and landed hanging in a tree.
@@MrSirwolf2001 OV-6 Mohawk?
The XB-70s capsules also doubled as the emergency pressure capsule so if the plane depressurized then it would pull the limbs in from the pilot and close and then they would used a few controls in the capsule to get down to 10k feet where they can breath. They didn't use pressure suits. Interesting lil side bit.
The plan was that in production B-70 aircraft, the cockpit would indeed be a "shirt-sleeve environment". But in the only two experimental XB-70 aircraft built, pressure suits were always used for high altitude flights, as far as I know.
As a kid I read an illustrated book about the B-70 program, which was then under development. It showed the escape pod doubling as a canoe in case you landed in the water.
As did the F-111's. IIRC there was a pump to remove any water leaking in that was connected to control column.
@@neiloflongbeck5705 I watched an interview recently with an F-111 pilot who elected, and he did mention the bilge pump. I thought it was an interesting feature
I likely read that same book as a kid! ( im 1962 vintage)
@@p99guy I wish I could find a copy of it, but I don't remember the title.
@@Paladin1873 same here.. but I do remember it. Also the B52 Capsules, 2 ejected downward, 2 upward
Another wonderfully presented subject Mike! Thanks! I read in Rich Graham's book "SR-71 Revealed" that ejecting from an SR-71 at Mach 3.0 and 75,000 feet was a lot less violent than ejecting from an F-16 at 500 knots and 3000 feet simply due to the extremely thin air at 75,000 feet. Of course it was a 7 minute free fall under a drogue chute before main chute deployment at 15,000 feet!
Neat info, thanks Walt!
Damn, imagine counting to past three thousand whilst in free fall the whole while
Cool,I haven't heard aces II since the late 70' when I was a rigger in the First TAC Fighter Wing. Packed a few, only once a pilot came to see us with case of beer and a bottle of Jack D.
I worked on F-15 and A-10. 77-95 . Retired U.S.A.F Egress Technician
I was a Rigger in both SAC and TAC up to 1977.
Wasn't that the acceptable method of saying thanks... the rigger includes a card for the aircrew
While at Edwards AFB, I had the distinct pleasure of talking with Doug Benefield about the B-1B he was testing. He was gracious enough to spend quite a few minutes with me, as we discussed that gorgeous bomber. I'll never forget that encounter. RIP, Doug Benefield.
Thanks for the comment, and yes, many people who knew Benefield had similar stories. Terrific guy and a sad loss to aviation.
The Number One Rule of a test pilot is to never get anything named after you. The BAF at Edwards is named for him.
@@dahawk8574 That is the general rule in the military as well. It was even mentioned in the movie The Green Berets when Sgt Provo was trying to figure out what would go with his last name. The answer revealed at the end was Provo's Privy because "it sings".
Doug didn't follow the test procedure and got the CG too far aft.
Also one of the pyro's did not fire, that is why the capsule came down at an angle.
@@timothybrummer8476 The cause of death was determined to be a sheared jackscrew (or other attachment) on the seat.
On the B-1accident, one of the pyro's did not fire, that is why the capsule came down at an angle. That complicated system is why the Air Force switched to ejection seats.
I helped to design the new cockpit with ejection seats for B-1A ship #4, that is the one with a camo paint job.
Thanks for this information.
That Republic phone booth idea is excellent. You can just call the rescuers and tell them where you are.
The Funniest Comment I’ve read all weekend!!! 😹😹😹 Cheers for the Belly Laughs!!! 👍
The aircrew always had change so they could make a phone call once on the ground, safe
I worked on F-111 in the late 80's into the 90's. Fantastic aircraft.
The B-1b also had a rocket in the crew entry ladder to open a bottom bail out option for the 2 additional “jump seats”. These seats where intended for 2 instructors complications with the opening sequence and crew members fears of getting caught in doors or antennas and actual accidents where crew members died finally made those 2 extra seats permanently empty until finally being removed in mid 2000’s. I was part of a team that removed all seat escape hatches for an ejection seat replacement and after seeing the charge that was intended to blast open those hatches, I had even more fear to fly in one. I know that it was plenty, it just doesn’t look like it compared to all the fasteners holding them in place….(I knew the back seater who had the aft hatch actually ripped off mid flight.. he had just snapped his buckle back up from using the lavatory which was probably the only reason he didn’t piss himself).
This is one heck of an interesting video. There is something wrong though ha ha. Mr. Machat actually gives us facts that are backed up by some remarkable photos. Lately there seems to be only a few channels that aren't basically click bait. Thanks Mr. Machat.
Really appreciate your comment, and thanks for watching the channel!
The difference between "Truth" and "Facts"...
Mike: Interesting episode. I loved the design of the XB-70 and got to see the remaining protype at Wright Patterson in 1976.
Thank you Mike as always little story on the F111. back in the day in Norfolk England I was at school at USAF Sculthorpe when an F111 got in to trouble I watched the whole thing from the play ground as you’ve said the whole pod ejected and landed at Binham a small village near by where my dad was a tractor driver and spoke to the two crew men I believe a local lady even brought them a cup of tea out too one of the pilots had hurt his back in the landing but was able to walk away just a little story to back up the F111 pod ejection .PS the parachute was red and white I’ll remember that as long as I live I was 9 at the time. until my dad said both pilots were ok I was worried only one had ejected as we only saw one parachute not knowing until the evening when dad got home that both were ok and it was a pod not individual seats any how thank you Mike as always…… UK out 🇬🇧 🇺🇸❤️💪🏻🫡
Wonderful comment and story, thanks!
First time ever that I have seen actual photos of the tragic mishap while it happened. I knew they must have existed, but all I ever have seen were drawn illustrations.
Seeing how intensely shocking these photos are I can understand why they have been rarely publicized.
Thanks, Mike, for sharing these unique images.
These is also motion picture film of the accident, although not the entire sequence.
Sometime (still in the Sixties) after this accident I read a Readers Digest article complete with photos and with the story of how the survivor narrowly escaped. I was an Air Force brat and the Valkyrie Program spurred my interest. I had read something about the Powers U-2 shootdown over the USSR but didn't know about the SR-71 yet and wondered if the XB-70 could be used as a photo-recon platform. LBJ had announced the existence of the SR71 in 1964 but I missed that announcement--in 1964 I was in the first grade. I wasn't exactly fully read on with all the latest when the XB-70 crash happened but I think I read that Reader's Digest article in 1967, a few months after.
I joke that I read almanacs to catch up on the news. Blink, and miss important milestones. The crash of the XB-70 nailed shut the coffin on the XB-70 and was a factor in President Carter's decision to cancel the B-1A project a decade later.
@@alancranford3398 I've read that 1960s RD article too. Iirc, the illustrations in that article weren't photos but artist's impressions. As I remember it, RD only started adding photo page sections (on glossy paper) from early 1980s onward.
@@bosoerjadi2838 You may be right because that was almost sixty years ago--I don't trust memories that old and prefer looking up things whenever possible.
Another great video on aviation history regarding "ejection seats" vs "escape pods".
Always liked the look of the XB-70, something about it.
(Nice "shout out" to David Clark of Worcester, Mass.)
About 40+ years ago, my family moved to Dayton Ohio where the National Museum of the US Airforce is located. The first morning I woke up and stepped outside our motel to be faced with the site of the XB-70 right in front of me! I spent countless thousands of hours at that museum! Disney World for aviation enthusiasts!
The Hustler was cool too. Better safety record anyway.
@@MrSirwolf2001 - It's on my bucket list.
@@anotherdave5107 It is WELL worth it! I first saw it in June of 1977 (found an old pic from that very day, today in fact) and I was 11 yo. At that time the XB-70 was outside and they only had the front building, Once I got my DL I visited the museum several times a month. I actually knew and regularly interacted with some of the people involved with, contributors to, or mentioned in/by this museum, on a personal and for several of them, an Instructor/student level. I do not think that I even realized at the time JUST how lucky I was ...From what I know know about several of them, after searching their bios after their deaths...Just WOW!
Now the museum is 4 buildings!
That B70 crash still makes me sad. Loss of life and aircraft so sad. I built so many YF12s and Aurora B70s. Those pilots were so talented that teenagers dreamed of filling their shoes to fly those aircraft! Great time in that amazing decade.
Aurora dont exist lol
@@codered5431 Aurora Models existed in 1965. They had the first B 70 kit.
@@codered5431 of course they exist, great model kits. it's Blackstar that "doesnt exist".
Absolutely fantastic video/series/content in general, as per usual! =) I'm super stoked that you do what you do, and am incredibly thankfull.
Joe Walker was the first person to fly into space twice -- X-15 flight 90 and 91 were both flown by him and he crossed the Karman Line (the boundary of space) at 100 km/62 mi both times. Both of these flights were also the ONLY X-15 flights to cross the Karman Line.
Just stumbled across this ... EXCELLENT! Production and narration are superb!
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Whenever I hear Grumman or Republic Aviation I get homesick for a place that doesn't exist anymore, not like it used to. (70's kid of Grumman engineer...lol) Great videos.
This made me remember the video I watched when I went to the Naval Officer Recruiting Office before college graduation. After testing, etc., and qualifying as a Naval Flight Officer, he sat me down to watch a video about what to expect in training and afterward, as well as why the training was the way it was. Referencing that last statement, the narrator of the video points out that pilots need to react to orders immediately. The video then cut to the deck of a carrier with active flight ops; specifically, the view from the bridge of Cat 1 and Cat 2 with an F-14A on Cat 1. The shooter then launches the F-14, but its not moving quite as fast as it should. Then, just as the nose of the aircraft reaches the bow, you hear: "Tomcat on Cat 1 Eject! Eject! Eject!" It was a cold Cat shot. If there was a Tomcat on another Catapult, he needed to know that the order wasn't for him just as the Cat 1 Tomcat Pilot and RIO needed to react without question to the orders directed at them.
Terrific comment, thanks, and "FLY NAVY!"
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 I'm not military , though my Father flew a Horsa glider at Arnhem . I remember saying to my step-children then my son . It would be useful if you learn't obedience , it might save you're life .
Again another Great Presentation! I taught aeromedical aspects of ejection & post ejection parachuting techniques in the Navy. Even though the a/c NATOPS manual gave a step by step progression "for the you have plenty of time" emergency, most ejection decisions had to be preset in the aviator's mind because when things went south, it went south very quickly. Ejections seats capabilities are like brakes on a car, you had to use them within the operational spectrum to increase your chances of survival. Sometimes that was a fine line. Again great job, enjoy the aviation history lessons, and the great aviation art works!
Appreciate the good information and nice comment. Many thanks!
That was a wonderful presentation, showing insider pics and details that I have never seen or heard before. Thanks for sharing, and I will definitely be checking out more, thank you.
Appreciate the comment and thanks for watching!
You have a great channel. You do a really good job of explaining complex battle maneuvers, programs and parts without making us feel dumb
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Mike, your attention to detail is exceptional. Thanks for your insightful videos.
Thank you for sharing your vast knowledge. You’re filling lots of knowledge gaps for many of us.
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Great Video Mike. I always liked the B-70 as a kid and didn't really find out about the crash until years later when my neighbor shared an old Aviation Week magazine which contained the story and a number of photo's from the tragedy. I'm looking forward to the rocket sleds!
Many thanks!
Excellent content. You provide well researched and produced programs that are exactly the deep level of technical and historic detail your audience is looking for. Thank you very much.
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Thank you for a great presentation. Never knew any details of ejection seats, ejection capsules, and the other crew ejection systems. in the old days I just took it as being a simple procedure to pull the emergency eject button and the crew were ejected safety. Never new the complications involved, or that sad tragedy of crew losing their lives using a system that was to save lives. Looking forward to part three.
Wow!!! Great info, super presentation. And thanks for addressing the SR-71 ejection "system". Possibly the ultimate example of KISS.
Agreed 100%!
Thanks Mike
Well done and very interesting. I especially like all the test flight photos and history of Edwards AFB
Well done as usual Mike, always a pleasure to follow your channel
Appreciate the comment, thanks Stefano!
Thanks again for all you do. Great video. Something I will never do during a Mike Machat video is eject eject eject. Love them all. God bless you sir, always! 🇺🇸👍☺️
Thanks Martin!
Thanks for the great show.
Lots of gutsy pioneers out there in history.
Thank you for sharing their stories.
Seems like it was always a lowly enlisted men that ended up being test subjects... except for Col Paul Stapp MD
Including the wildlife, I wonder where the bears were sourced ? The wild ?
Another great one, Mike! Some additional remarks:
- As far as I know the first airplane to use a detachable nosecone was the German WW2 Bachem Natter point defence rocket fighter, of which the seperation of it's main three sections was actually part of the retrieval concept. In other words: It was not even intended to land conventionaly! Not surprisingly it proved to be a deathtrap durign testing.
- In XB70 Valkyrie - Ride To Valhalla by Jeanette Remak and Joe Ventolo Jr. it is claimed that he actual photoshoot was not authorized an thus basically an illegal affair. Without that shoot disaster would not have struck so this still makes it a very painfull affair.
Adding the photo mission to the scheduled test flight that day was requested by GE and approved at Base level. The subsequent crash investigation uncovered operational procedures that should have been modified and Command Level decisions that played a role in that accident. A tragedy nonetheless. Thanks for watching!
The Natter was supposed to launch vertically, climb to altitude, then dump the nose cone to reveal the unguided missiles packed in behind. If the pilot survived the launch, he would fire the missiles in the general direction of the bomber stream, essentially while falling back down. The ejection system only recovered the rocket engine and the pilot. Everything else but these two bits was disposable, and recovered examples were quite primitive in construction. The Natter was never operational, and its total tally was one Luftwaffe pilot killed.
I’m enjoying this site…GOOD HISTORY…
Glad this is a new one…
Still catching up…
KISS… great motto , I keep telling people
July 6th 2021. CHRIS
I enjoyed this video. Well done and very professional. Thank you sir.
Such an awesome video, thank you. This is by far the best documentary about ejection seats I’ve ever seen
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
There is a rather interesting video by the US Navy on CZcams on ejecting and when to do so, the general opinion is about five seconds before you did, their studies show pilots in active duty situations punch out sooner than those in peace time flying and so have a higher survivability. A much underrated topic and a very interesting one.
Thank you for this awesome video. I always thought that the serious injuries of Al White were from his crushed elbow, I never knew his airbag malfunctioned.
Thanks Mike! This was fascinating.
Another very well done video, with important vidio. I spent 31 years at Edwards in a very important flight test program, thankfully we never had to use the seats in an emergency.
Many thanks, and congrats on your Edwards career. Excellent that no seats were ever used during your program!
Thank you again, for all your effort. It is a beautiful lecture. Greeting from your ukrainian fan.
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
The B-1A dates from before Carter and the crash happened after the B-1B programme was launched B-1A 74-1059 was fitted with the B-1B's flight control system and was in the process of testing it when this tragedy struck. From what I've read there were only 3 in board, the chief test pilot for the B-1 Tommie Benegiekd, Major Richard Reynolds (co-pilot) and Captain Otto Waniczek (test engineer). They were conducting low altitude low speed tests but had forgotten to shift fuel forward using the automated fuel transfer system which meant there was too much fuel in an aft fuel tank causing the pitch up to 70 degrees, the wing to stall and drop into the spin. No right thinking test pilot would conduct aft CG tests at low level.
This crash occured on 29th August 1984 and the first B-1B was rolled out of the Rockwell factory on 4th September 1984.
First class as usual, top notch content!
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Love it !!!
Thank.
Waiting to see the 3rd part..
Very entertaining and informative video. Thanks for sharing your wisdom with us. History and model building go hand in hand. I did a display of a Mig-21 pilot ejecting. In the research process, I found out the canopy provided a wind break as the chair rocketed away and the drag chute deployed.
Fantastic presentation, very informative looking forward to seeing the next one 👍🇦🇺
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Fantastic video about a very obscure subject. Interesting rare images and especially like that you chased down the names of the folks in them for posterity. The XB-70 - wow built in 1960's and wouldnt look out of place in 2050.
Great series! Many of us are fascinated with these things, arguably the most complex, compact, and fastidiously built single-purpose "human-rated" fireworks in history.
Many plastic models in the late 60's and early 70's like the Revell 1/72 scale F-111 "TFX" prototype and the Lindberg 1/48 F-104, F-8, F-100 and 1/144 B-1A had "functional" escape systems. For the F-111 and B-1A the escape capsule was modeled, and for the Lindberg kits the seat and pilot ejected with a rubber band if your model came to grief while you were running around in the back-yard, or botching a "carrier trap" on the coffee-table in the living-room. The Lindberg seats were detailed, but all based on the North American or Republic F-100 seat, from the look of them. The F-104 escape arrangement was based on the "A" model Starfighter, and ejected downwards in that kit!
Mad-fun for a kid, and very serious business for grownups!
Nowadays, intricate resin re-creations of most of these legendary seats can be had in many scales, for super-detailing the interiors of aircraft models. If you really want to go nuts with details, there are 1/12 scale ACES and Martin Baker GQ7 seats for the very fine 1/12th scale F-16 and late F-104 cockpits from Italeri.
Thank you for this video!
Another great one...enjoyed it...thanks.
Very well narrated!
Another great video. And very informative and interesting.
Thanks John - hope you're doing well.
Neat Info! Thank you for sharing
Nice work!
Good vid!!!
A good summary of seats and escape systems. In the '70's and '80's I flew several models of the A-4 Skyhawk which were equipped with the excellent Douglas ESCAPAC seat. A minor note, I always heard and spoke the seat name pronounced "Ess Kay Pack" or "Escape Ack" (sound alike) vice "Ess Kah Pack".
Looking forward to more of your videos, thanx.
Appreciate the comment, and that ESCAPAC pronunciation was from the Douglas Long Beach plant where ACES II seats were being built at the time (late 1970s).
Excellent video and great history lessons
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Very nice presentation.
Thanks for sharing!
At a Air Force Museum discussion with people that flew the SR-71 the subject of ejecting from the SR-71 at high Mach speed was brought up. The pilot that had to do that stated it was the most violent experience of his life. He did not recommend it but the alternative would have been worse.
This was a great video.
Many thanks!
Thank you , very well researched and excellent presentation.
This must have take a lot of time to put together and is of documentary quality - subscribed.
Really appreciate the comment, thanks, and great to have you aboard!
Thanks Mike. Very well done. As a kid X-planes were my favorites. The X-1 bail out was pretty easy to understand, though not to sure how it would go. The X-15 ejection sounded good on paper, fortunately it never had to be tested. After your vid it's a 50/50, or so, which is better than nothing! Thanks again!!
Thanks, John!
No one remembers Mike Adams.
@@dahawk8574 Major Adams never ejected from the X-15, so that was not covered here, but he was an outstanding pilot and was well-respected by his Edwards AFB peers. His tragic accident was a good example of how small things can quickly add-up to big problems. Thanks for the comment!
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782: "Thankfully in the 199 X-15 flights, no pilot ever ejected from the aircraft." - 20:13
Your words are like being thankful that no astronauts ever ejected from the Space Shuttle Columbia, while utterly ignoring the 7 who died without having bailed out. I for one am going to guess that the people who cared about Mike Adams were not "thankful" that he didn't eject.
fantastic video....very well done.....cheers from Florida, Paul
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
I’ve been lucky enough to do some work at Martin Baker. It’s very much “men in sheds” but Lord do they make some beautiful ejection seats
Agreed, and thanks for the comment!
Mike, another great watch. "KISS" Hmmmm I think that's why your videos are so good, facts, to the point, spot on narration. Everyday I learn something new and a channel like yours really helps. You mention the F-104 with the red tail and that made me think of the WWll Red Tails, maybe a video for them someday? Thanks again for your time, work and posting........
Appreciate the comment, thanks Mike!
Excellent vid, now I know every thing about ejector pods and twenty minutes ago I knew nothing.
that was fantastic. really interesting
Many thanks!
In the B-70 accident, the plane was flat spinning faster than expected due to loss of one wing.
This applied a higher forward G load to the capsules than they were designed for.
Al White who helped design the system, knew this limitation and waited until a moment when the G load was at a minimum to encapsulate.
Major Cross didn't and when he tried to encapsulate the load was too much for the system, it spent the encapsulation charge without moving the seat back.
For the final test flights North American modified the system to prevent re-occurrence.
Interesting information, thanks.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782
I worked at North American Rockwell with some of the guys who designed the B-70 capsules, and supported the test flights.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782
Check out this video.
czcams.com/video/pbgtVPI-OOM/video.html
Perfect I was looking for some reference material for the SR71 Ejection seat!
Thank you.🦅🙏😊!
The X2 had some really cool graphics!
Thank you.
As a young Army E5/E6 I was a TO on board the Army's OV-1C/D Mohawk. The only Army aircraft ever equipped with Ejection seats. Before I finally went on to Army flight training I ended up with 970 or 1121 hrs depending on which set of records you look at. During Two distinct incidents I FIRMLY had the primary Ejection handle in my hand and was milliseconds away from pulling it...all the while staring at my grinning CW4 Pilot with a "should I?" look on my face. Once after being hit by lightning and losing several Generators, inverters and instruments...the other time after getting WAY to close to a Florida thunderstorm and experiencing wind shear that put us in a 70-90 degree nose up attitude...in which we stalled down to around 1200 feet where we finally powered out of it.... we stayed in FAR past normal Air Force/Navy Ejection criteria for some odd reason. Our Unit was then later marred by two Class A incidents that resulted in ejections...one that was inverted killed a great CWO and Vietnam veteran and allowed a much lesser individual to survive. (A useless oxygen thief of a Lieutenant that I think became a Brigadier General in the Georgia Army National Guard. Cruel irony. Anyway...anytime I see a program on Ejection seats, it takes me back to my Mohawk days and the Ejection seat trainer to get your "E-card"....
Wonderful comment, thanks!
Excellent,as usual.👍👍👍🇨🇦🇺🇸
Many thanks!
Another great video Mike.... the details you know and describe are gems to the technically uninitiated like myself.... and I must apologize for my comment in the preview to this video where I mistakenly said that it was the late and unfortunate Apollo astronaut Gus Grissom in the photo at the 2:17 minute mark.... to me, the likeness to Gus in that photo was remarkable.... my mistake.... I should have known better.... again, I sincerely apologize....
Thanks Jim, and no apology necessary. Enough people have remarked at that photo, I thought it best to clarify. I also try to identify all the folks in my posted photos whenever possible. Really appreciate your watching the channel!
Definitely enjoyed this episode …. Have you covered when Chuck Yeager bailed out of the rocket powered F 104 ..?
Thanks, and the NF-104 bailout would make a good story for a future episode.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 ... don't forget to include Ivan Kinchloe in that discussion
Cool vid, man. Subbed.
Much appreciated, thanks!
The F-111 and B-1A capsules were tested at the Holloman High Speed Test track. I recall reading the test report on the last high speed test for the F-111 at 700 knots calibrated. it worked fine and the manikins recorded survivable forces. If I recall correctly the fastest manned F-111 ejection took place at 900 knots, both crew survived. The B-1A capsule was qualified at the Holloman track but I don't recall the speeds. Later that same sled was modified for qualifying the ACES II seats. One undesirable side effect of launching 4 seats in timed sequence was that the first two seats and hatches kept hitting and fouling the parachutes and on one instance a hatch hit a manikin's foot while under his C9 canopy. Ugh. Looking forward to the sled episode!
Thanks Jim, and yes, solution to the vectors of four ACES II seats ejecting from the B-1B involved angling the trajectories of all four seats away from each other during a simultanious ejection sequence. Saw footage of those sled tests at Holloman, and the rocket exhaust trails formed a 'flower petal' effect as the seats left the sled.
When I started out at GDFW, one of the first things I learned about was the ejection system on the F-111 with it's intricate sequencing of the Guillotine to sever the thousands of wires coming into the pod, then the DTA lines and then the chute. I was hired for F-16 but was fortunate to work both Programs ... ACES II was the standard for decades. FF to just a few years back and my assignment in the UK at Martin-Baker on the F-35 ejection system ... talk about a quantum leap !!! Suffice it to say the days of giving the Pilot a choice to pull the big yellow loli-pop are long gone ... and it doesn't matter what "Frame Size/Weight" the Pilot is ... the Aircraft knows. And actually, it's a good thing all in all ... with a seat capable of a "Zero-Zero" survivable egress. But thanks for your video ... all we now have achieved was built upon previous versions ... and those harmed or passed on. God bless them all for their contributions !!!
Great comment, thanks!
I always heard that the danger of Ejection was the subsequent possibility of being HIT by the tail of the plane. This always made me wonder why nobody produced EXPLODING BOLTS that would cause the Control Surfaces of the TAIL to FALL AWAY, in the event that Ejection was necessary.
Because the loss of the tail would cause a complete loss of control making it harder to get out.
Really interesting
My entire KSP build strategy.
I performed maintenance on that F-111D egress system. Cannon AFB 1994, 27CRS squadron.
The collision between the XB-70 and F-104 was a terrible tragedy.
That should have never happened. Completely preventable.
Real history!
Educative, entertaining, excellent video!
Hope you may do one on Aerial Refueling.
Many thanks, and here's our episode on Aerial Refueling: czcams.com/video/2s_cyw2J_7k/video.html
Thanks! Found it!
Do not know how I missed it!
Ulf Weiß-Vogtmann invented the catapult ejector seat in 1934, from which the pilot ejector seats that are still in use today emerged.
Using compressed air...came as a shock to allied fighter pilots when their adversary suddenly popped up from his damaged aircraft to descend safely
Scary systems to be around after a crash or aircraft departure from a fast landing. I was briefed to always have a vise grip on me to grab the firing rod with to prevent a ground functioning then to go about safing the seat. Martin-Baker ones I believe in a F11 Tiger and a F105B at Indian Head Maryland.
A great video would be the problems that Warbird operators of jets are having these days. In Australia, our version of the F 86 Sabre (CA 27) built here under license, has just been through a complete restoration. My understanding is that the only reason we aren't seeing her fly is the ejection seat requires zero timing - an expensive proposition requiring an explosives tech and hard-to-get parts! I would guess others are in the same boat. There are 60-year-old Migs out there offering rides - Don't get in that seat unless it bangs and you know how to use it. Otherwise you're riding that thing to the fireball.
Interesting information, thanks.
There was an incident last year where a passenger managed to eject himself out of a perfectly serviceable aircraft
reading about Columbia shuttle, one of the report recommendations was the crew area being an ejection pod with an aerodynamically stable shape. Of course that would have meant rebuilding the shuttle from the start and not practical. I know the first shuttle flights had ejection seats for pilot and copilot, but they were removed once they included mission specialists.
Thank you for a very interesting history of ejection systems
Appreciate the great comment, thanks!
Major issue is Always the weight of the system that could be better used by fuel or ammo
Pretty cool rocket and swept wings
The reason the crash happened the crews were informed of a B-58A approaching at higher altitude and all the pilots except Walker reported that they had spotted it. Possibly Walker was looking for it while his F-104N (N813NA) inexplicably moved slightly closer to the Valkyrie and then rose suddenly so that the left tip of its horizontal stabilizer touched the XB-70’s drooped wingtip
That is correct, thanks.
Saw the first B-70 make it's maiden test flight out of Plant 42 in Palmdale. I remember seeing the large black smoke column when the second B-70 crashed several years later. Living in Lancaster in those days, black smoke columns were not that unusual. Lockheed test pilot Bill Park was piloting an A-12 with the D-21 drone, which went wrong, and was ejected at speed. I am not sure if it was the same event you referenced.
Keep up the good work Mike. You have a lot to share.
How very cool that you lived the Antelope Valley experience during the Golden Age of Aerospace! And yes, that A-12/D-21 accident was indeed what I was referring to. I also stand corrected in that Park didn't actually eject from the airplane, but rather both crewmen were thrown free from the disintegrating airframe. Sadly, the RIO did not survive the inflight breakup.
@Robert Barnes One correction. That wasn't an A-12 that launched the D-21 TAGBOARD but a two-seat variant properly called the M-21 ('M' for Mother and 'D' for Daughter)
As always, very nice and informative video. Thanks and greetings from Russia ✌🏼😁
Appreciate the comment, and thanks for watching!
The B1-A tragedy was and still is, horrible. One of the three test pilots or crewman tells the story on Peninsula Seniors @ Western Museum of Flight. Terrible story but it's history that deserves to be remembered! 👋
I can testify on how effective ejections seats are - on 3 Sep 68 I was a backseat pilot in an F-4, 681 and got hit by ground fire - we were dropping Mk-82 high drags on a gun position - yea I know not very smart - at 500 ft and 450 kts the ole Phantom went uncontrollable - thank God the the Martin-Barker H-7 - seat worked as advertised and I am still here - although a little beaten up!
Wonderful comment, thanks, and glad your seat worked !