Ejection Seat Question

[Braeden108]

I was watching a documentary about the F-105, an F-105 pilot said you could hear the other pilots coming because they'd make a clinking noise. This clinking noise was the sound of their "heel spurs" and they liked it because it made them sound like a John Wayne style cowboy. These "spurs" obviously weren't for kicking horses, they were hooks that attached to the leg restraint system on the ejection seat. When the pilot ejected it would pull their legs into the seat so you didn't have to be called stumpy. The issue with system became apparent when a foreign pilot had a radio miscommunication. I don't know what the original message was but the message the pilot misheard was that he was on fire. So he did the natural thing and bailed out of his aircraft. However he forgot to unhook his legs from the seat as he jumped out the side of the jet. And his F-105 then had a "foreign flag" on the side.

 

Long explanation aside, are any of you embued with the obscure knowledge of how a modern pilots legs are held down to the ejection seat as he or she makes a rapid exit?

[mvsgas]

It depends on the seat (and its versions)

AFAIK, one of the latest ACES II (F-16 versions)

[ATTACH]149005[/ATTACH]

F/A-18 (MB Mk14?), Mirage 2000 (?) seats appear to still use leg restrains.

 

You will find more info here

http://www.ejectorseats.co.uk/

 

LEG RESTRAINT SNUBBERS.- Two leg restraint line snubbers (fig. 5-24), each with a leg restraint line, are attached to the front face of the seat bucket. Release of the leg restraint line snubbers to adjust the leg lines is effected by pulling inboard on the fabric loops attached to the release plungers on the inboard side of each snubber. The leg restraint lines taper plugs are secured in locks positioned on the seat bucket side plates.

Edited September 28, 2016 by mvsgas

[Braeden108]

So F/A-18 pilots still have to hook and unhook their leg harnesses?

 

Also damn good job with this info

[Retu81]

Hawk's seat (MB Mk.10) also uses leg restraints. They are those blue straps in the image:

 

 

The pilot would pass them through the D-rings on his flight suit and attach the other end to the seat during strap-in. After post-flight inspection we tied them on the flight stick to keep them out of the way and have them easily accessible for the pilot.

[Pocket Sized]

Here's the video:

 

 

He also talks about the planes general design, making instructors shit their pants, and getting the thing 0.2 Mach above Vne to do a zoom climb to over 100,000 feet.