Warbird Information Exchange

How come pilots and other people i see in photos VERY rarely wear correct era flightgear from WW2 to late 70s for flying in warbirds..

If you are going to do a warbird why only go the half way - eg restore to correct colourschemes etc and not wear correct clothing and headgear?

???

Fire protection and skull protection.

Doug Jeanes should post some photos of his helmet and flight suit from his fire...it will make a true believer out of anyone.

Flight helmets from 1950s and 60s are fine .. they were fine back then to use so whats wrong in using restored helmets?

Regarding flight suits maybe ill agree but i still see people wearing jeans and shirts and cotton materials.. same was worn in flying 1940-60s..

Nomex is sure a safety item now days but ruins the look of a real pilot?

I agree with Tim.
That's it, safety, plain and simple.

Nomex is way better than cotton or those early nylon (cheezzz) flightsuits.

You might see someone occasionally put a WWII outfit on for some photo shoots, but overall that safety of the crew is what's most important.

If I had a warbird I'd be wearing a helmet and nomex because I like myself way too much to not attempt stack everything I can into my corner.
Jerry

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"Always remember that, when you enter the ocean or the forest, you are no longer at the top of the food chain."

If the technology is there to make it safer, I'll side with the newer and safer materials. That also holds true with updating some of the systems in these warbirds. As much as I'd like to see 100% original Warbirds, I think incorporating modern technology in regards to safety will keep many more around for us to enjoy in the air where I prefer to see them.
David

Original and repro flight gear is pretty expensive, and easily damaged when working with the old birds. I've worn original gear with the L-2 at airshows, but like the others have said it isn't always practical once you're actually operating the aircraft. I'm a lot more comfortable risking my repro gear, but it's sometimes more expensive than the originals. It sure is fun, though.

Ryan

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Aerial Photographer with Red Wing Aerial Photography currently based at KRBD and tailwheel CFI.
Websites: Texas Tailwheel Flight Training, DoolittleRaid.com and Lbirds.com.

The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD. - Prov. 21:31 - Train, Practice, Trust.

I don't think the old stuff was very good with regards to hearing protection. Also, I'm not sure modern radios would work well with the old headsets.

Now if someone would just make accurate repro WWII flightsuits in NOMEX!!!!
Jerry

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"Always remember that, when you enter the ocean or the forest, you are no longer at the top of the food chain."

In the absence of photos, can you describe it?

The USAF safety guys have tons of gruesome photos of guys who either didn't wear their equipment correctly (e.g. sleeves rolled up or helmet chin strap not on) or didn't wear it at all (e.g. no gloves). It's not pretty.

What's interesting to me is that the military spends millions of bucks researching, designing, and buying protective flight gear, and yet a lot of guys don't wear it properly, EVEN when they see photos of a guy who survived a crash perfectly sound, except he now has no hands thanks to the 3rd degree burns he got from the post-crash fire and not wearing gloves. Most guys think that it can't/won't happen to them.

It also surprises me that more warbird guys don't go all out with the protective gear. I guess they think it won't happen to them, either.

I am with that.
It also would solve the small size problem when looking for original WW.2 clothes.

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www.cia-391squadron.nl

I have destroyed one leather helmet due to sweat/heat/dry rot.
No new ones are being made to replace it.
Very same concern to cotton flight suits. I would destroy these collector clothing items at a very rapid clip in the course of normal wear and tear.
Plus, none of these old clothing items would protect me during a fire/crash/etc.
Finally, the old USAAF sizes are very rare in a size that fits my physique (carcass).
VL

Well I'll speak up against the trend here. I only fly rag and tube WWI airplanes and Harvard, but I almost always fly in repro period dress.





I think it’s the only way to go frankly. As someone else commented, if you want the authentic experience why take half measures. I'm also not opposed to some inconveniences in the cockpit that others have spoken up against in the historical authenticity thread.

I'm in the AF up here so I've seen the Flight Safety articles about burns and I wear the modern gear with modern aircraft. However, I think a number of people get into the mindset of "I'm wearing a nomex flight suit so I'm good to go". In reality, for most of the modern protective gear to be effective it needs to be worn layered correctly with long underwear and liners in the gloves. How many of you wear long underwear in the peak of summer under your nomex gear? If you were serious about fire protection that’s probably what you should be doing.

Just a thought anyways. Wearing big brain buckets in something like a Harvard has always seemed a little silly to me frankly. To each his own at the end of the day, but I'm quite satisfied going without.

Cheers

Edward

I agree with the safety issues for airshow or "normal" flying, but if you are going up for a calander shot or such wouldn't it be worth the risk for one really good shot with the proper clothing?

Hi Edward-

I have one friend and one acquaintance who have dents in their foreheads from flying T-6s/Harvards without wearing a helmet and then had engine failures resulting in off field landings. Both were never the same mentally again. As Randy will probably chime and also say, the modern helmets are not the panacea for all head injuries either, as they aren't to absorb a lot of impact, based on my understanding previous discussions with him. But, I will take what little protection I can get.

You are correct about Nomex..it is really only flash fire protection in any case, but once again, I would rather have that little protection than nothing at all.

Actually, for at least what we shoot for the magazine, I would rather have the pilots wearing all the proper safety gear...as I think it is important to get the message out that we need to operate these airplanes with care for both the machine and ourselves. But that is just my personal opinion.

I personally like the Campbell Aero Classic hemlet because it provides modern protection with that vintage look. I don't have one yet...but plan to get one before this flying season.