Brain buckets for GA flying

nddons

nddons

Touchdown! Greaser!
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Stan
May 2011 Sport Aviation had an article about the CHP's use of GA aircraft.

In that article, it showed CHP officers flying a Cessna 206 and wearing flight helmets. This made me wonder why the need for helmets on the officers, and why not for the rest of us.

I assume the CHP does a lot of low altitude flying. But if massive head trauma is a common cause of death in GA accidents (just guessing here) why don't we ever even talk about helmets in GA flying.

What say you?
 
I knew a guy who would wear motorcycle helmets on T-O/Ldg, then store them on the back seats. Not a terrible idea. Probably need to review the cost/benefit of it.
 
After having spent a while in law enforcement aviation, I will say that we spent a LOT of time at low levels, vulnerable to forced landings in very bad locations, and with lots and lots of birds.
In rotors, I wore a helmet for protection from the dynamic disassembly that often occurs after forced landings.
in fixed wing, I wore a helmet largely for the eye and head protection from birds unexpectedly coming through the windscreen (especially since the JAFO is usually heads-out the side window and not likely to even have a chance of seeing a bird before it blows through the windscreen).



Plus they have a high CDI factor. :D
 
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I wear a real helmet (not just a bucket) riding my motorcycle. Why don't we wear them in the aircraft or even why not in the car?
 
Most cropdusters wear helmets for a couple of reasons: They are in hot turbulent air in a relatively small cockpit - the helmet prevents knots on the 'noggin from bouncing around; and if/when they go down, it prevents head trauma.

I worked with one pilot that refused to wear a helmet. He said he had a good friend that belly-flopped a spray plane once. When they got to the scene, the pilot was still sitting in his seat slumped over. They thought he had been knocked out but it turned out that the weight of the helmet had caused his neck to snap when he hit the ground. The pilot I worked with said that if he was in an accident hard enough that he needed a helmet, there would probably be bigger problems to deal with and would rather not be around to feel it. To him, it was a risk/benefit decision.
 
CJones said:
... They thought he had been knocked out but it turned out that the weight of the helmet had caused his neck to snap when he hit the ground...
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And how did they determine his neck wouldn't have snapped without the weight of the helmet?
 
Random helmet thoughts.

Last time I checked deaths from auto accidents head injuries were high.

In the right circumstance a good helmet may save your life in any type vehicle accident.

Downsides; Comfort-hot/heavy/... Restricted vision.

I grew up riding bicycles and horses without a helmet, the thought never even crossed our minds back then.

Now bicyclist (including me) wear helmets and some horse riders do as well.

Probably a good idea in some, flying situations, but flying here in LasVegas NV without AC a good motorcycle type helmet might be too hot and uncomfortable

My $.02
Mike

P.S. Don't mention this to a politician, we have enough Laws already.
 
the weight of the helmet had caused his neck to snap when he hit the ground.
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hmm, that argument sounds a lot like the 'I'd rather be thrown clear' argument put forward by the anti-seat belt folks; which I recall hearing during the 70s.
 
I carry a bicycle helmet under the back seat within easy reach. I wore it a few times, but found it to be cumbersome, required cabin speaker and hand mike, etc. OTOH, having seen the life-saving impact absorb capabilities (twice) with SIL road racer, I won't hesitate to wear it. I always wear the dual-strap harness snugged up tight, so maybe I'll get lucky if I prang it when not wearing the helmet.

FWIW, when we toured AK a few years back, I noticed a lot of supercubs, huskies and other bush birds with helmets hanging on the sticks.

Mike_Flys said:
Random helmet thoughts.

Last time I checked deaths from auto accidents head injuries were high.

In the right circumstance a good helmet may save your life in any type vehicle accident.

Downsides; Comfort-hot/heavy/... Restricted vision.

I grew up riding bicycles and horses without a helmet, the thought never even crossed our minds back then.

Now bicyclist (including me) wear helmets and some horse riders do as well.

Probably a good idea in some, flying situations, but flying here in LasVegas NV without AC a good motorcycle type helmet might be too hot and uncomfortable

My $.02
Mike

P.S. Don't mention this to a politician, we have enough Laws already.
Click to expand...
 
A lot of acro pilots wear helmets but a lot of us don't. They're hot; they're not that heavy but certainly weigh more than nothing; and it's hard to get them as quiet, even with ANR as a headset unless you get it really fitted well to your noggin; and they can restrict your peripheral vision enough to be a problem with picking up ground references when flying in the box. My main concern is getting whacked in the head by a departing canopy. There's some indication that this was the way Marta Meyer died - the canopy departed her Giles 300 on an up line and witnesses say it looked like there was no further control of the aircraft.

I don't wear one but as I've moved up to Intermediate and now thinking about Advanced I've been considering it. For normal spam can GA flying, it's probably too little reward/risk reduction for the cost/inconvenience but then, it's hard to argue that you can be too safe...
 
PittsDriver said:
and it's hard to get them as quiet, even with ANR as a headset unless you get it really fitted well to your noggin
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I'm surprised at this, because I know that a racing helmet is carefuly selected to fit. A simple test that Bell Motorsport used to suggest is this:

RETENTION CHECK:
WARNING: This test may be a little uncomfortable, but it is very important!
Now, fasten the chin strap, so you can check it. After the strap has been tightly fastened, while holding your head steady, reach over the top of the helmet grabbing the bottom edge with your fingers. Then, try to roll the helmet off your head. If it comes off, it is undoubtedly too large. NOTE: Never buy a helmet that can be rolled off the head with the strap fastened.
Click to expand...
 
^^^^ That test is very important. Lost a friend on a motorcycle ride a couple years ago when his full face helmet rolled off his head during a relatively low speed crash, then had a secondary impact to the rear of his skull.

Helmets save lives, never thought of wearing one in GA though.
 
wabower said:
I carry a bicycle helmet under the back seat within easy reach. I wore it a few times, but found it to be cumbersome, required cabin speaker and hand mike, etc. .
.
.
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FWIW, when we toured AK a few years back, I noticed a lot of supercubs, huskies and other bush birds with helmets hanging on the sticks.
Click to expand...

Had an episode of 'Alaska State Troopers' running in the background the other day. They showed a DNR cop in a Supercup patrolling the bear hunting beat. He was wearing a helmet with cutouts for the headset over the ears, looked quite goofy but functional.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
hmm, that argument sounds a lot like the 'I'd rather be thrown clear' argument put forward by the anti-seat belt folks; which I recall hearing during the 70s.
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Yes. I survived a triple digit motorcyle ejection, landing on pavement and bouncing several times. If I had been wearing anything less than a full face helmet, I would be dead. I took impacts to both the front of the helmet, sides and back that ground deep gashes in the helmet and nearly penetrated the visor. The helmet kept me alive, and the rest of the gear prevented very serious injury.
 
I wear one exclusively when flying my acro plane, and it reflects heat pretty well and feels cooler than just a headset. You can have ANR built into the headsets that works well, but perhaps not as good as high end Lightspeeds or Bose. The kevlar ones can be custom molded to your head, and the fit is great, with no hot spots.

Hopefully it'll protect from a major head injury in a crash (in addition to a five point harness), but as well as an impact when bailing out. Even with all of the ANR, custom molding, custom paint, etc, it still cost less than a new Bose A20.
 
I hadn't really considered a helmet (I'm likely to kill myself via blunt force trauma to the torso :() but it is worth looking into. So I did a Google search using the keywords "ANR" and "helmet" and got what appears to be a number of companies that sell ANR kits for existing helmets, as well as helmets with ANR built in, such as these:

http://www.anr-headsets.com/Html_folder/HelmetKitOrder.shtml

http://store.tigerperformance.com/aviation-helmets.aspx

http://flighthelmet.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=FHL&Category_Code=ANR

That's from the first 4 hits; I haven't looked past them!
 
I think helmet are an option that each pilot should consider for themselves. Myself, I can not see sitting on a hot, southwest tarmac, wearing a helmet in my Warrior.

I do not believe the decision that I wear a helmet should be made by others, no matter how good their intentions. We have enough laws and regulations as it is.

John
 
If you are going to wear a helmet in a GA plane I would have a linebackers football helmet with it's face guard. The instrument panel is what will hurt you, and that face guard us what will prevent that injury.
 
Doggtyred said:
If you are going to wear a helmet in a GA plane I would have a linebackers football helmet with it's face guard. The instrument panel is what will hurt you, and that face guard us what will prevent that injury.
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A five point harness is much more comfortable and useful for keeping your face out of the panel. I've never checked for my traveling birds but I bet it's pretty easy to get a 337 for a Hooker harness for just about anything. I'm totally sold on the harness after putting a Pitts into the Chesapeake Bay and coming out without a bruise or scratch.

I would think that the airbag seatbelts would do a pretty good job of this as well.
 
I've been working on the ultimate protection for GA pilots out in my garage. I am still having weight vs strength problems, but I am slowly getting there.

It consists of a reinforced rubber suit, reinforced rubber gives great protection from being pierced by sharp pieces of metal and plastic. The next problem I am having is the triggering mechanism, but I'm getting close on that as well. There is also the weight of the air tanks. I might try some sort of ultra fast pump, I don't know.

Anyway, the way it works is you wear this reinforced rubber suit that actually has much of itself concealed in the seams. If you come to a sudden halt, one that produces two or more Gs, or if you press the manual trigger, the suit will instantly blow up like a huge balloon, protecting your entire body, including your hands and feet.

I've been trying to talk my neighbors teenage son into jumping off the roof with the suit on to see how it works. At first he mumbled something about crazy old men, but I think he is starting to warm up to the idea lately. He has a real loud garage band.

I call it the balloon suit, or BS for short.

I'll keep you informed of my progress. I just know each and every one of you will want one of these.

John
 
Brain buckets are a great idea. But I'm probably not gonna wear one unless it is on a test flight.
 
When I was a kid ( 1970s) I rode a bike and skied without a helmet. My beloved Philadephia Flyers as did the rest of the NHL played without helmets.
We always wore helmets when batting in little league.

Now they wear helmets in the NHL, I wear them skiing and biking so I suspect that GA could have them one day but its going to have to involve a major revision in headset technology and will make obsolete about 95% of the head sets on the market now.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
hmm, that argument sounds a lot like the 'I'd rather be thrown clear' argument put forward by the anti-seat belt folks; which I recall hearing during the 70s.
Click to expand...

I know someone who was thrown from the car and survived with no ill effects. Had she been buckled in, based on the damage, and how crushed the car was, she would have been dead.
 
EdFred said:
I know someone who was thrown from the car and survived with no ill effects. Had she been buckled in, based on the damage, and how crushed the car was, she would have been dead.
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And this by far is the exception rather than the norm.
 
No matter what way you decide you should protect yourself, or not, or how your government decides for you, there are no guarantees. People in their 90s smoke cigarettes, people in their fifties die from lung cancer. People wearing seat belts walk away unhurt from a wreck, others are cut in half by the seat belt.

You should be the one making the decision on how you are going to protect yourself, not your government.

Then we say look how helmets have saved motorcycle riders from needing government paid medical services in California. Then others will comment on how organ donors have declined after helmets became the law of the land, causing even more deaths from lack of organs.

It is much like flying, whatever energy you take, it must be paid for somehow.

John
 
I can tell you that it is NOT too hot or uncomfortable to wear as in instructor in South Texas if you have your mind made up. It's very doable.

I agree that it is a personal choice, and that you should be allowed to go without one.

Personally, I've decided that it's worth the minor inconvenience. It is NOT that hot. It is also can be a LOT more comfortable. I've worn this helmet on a 9 hour aerial photography flight that would have had my head splitting with previous headsets, but felt just fine with no head clamp sensations when we were through. The way my helmet's webbing fits leaves me with a better state of mind when I get through flying because of that. Also, the peripheral vision is not substantially reduced, at least with this David Clark helmet.

IMG_1881.JPG


The biggest thing to overcome is other people's opinions. I get called "Helmet boy" and a couple of other things at the airport where I teach. That's fine and I don't care anymore. I'm still gonna wear it. And yes, I do wear it in Cessna 172s.

Ryan
 
Hmmm...

Interesting question.

I don't wear a helmet when running, and often leave the helmet behind when just cruising around the neighborhood on a bicycle (under 15 MPH).

On roads, downtown Philly, or riding faster I don bicycle helmet. I never ride a motorcycle without a helmet (dirt or road).

I suppose the helmet could be as comfortable as a headset.

Maybe a business concept worth pursuing? :dunno:
 
dmccormack said:
Maybe a business concept worth pursuing? :dunno:
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If you could find enough accident reports that showed head trauma as a leading cause of injury or death, you could probably make a go of it. I don't think you'll find too many that if the head trauma were removed, the rest of the body is intact.

Most head trauma in aircraft accidents seems to me from my reading are to the face and forehead as they go into the panel.

The DC headset photo above would do little to nothing for that type of trauma.

Having put a Jeep on it's side once many moons ago, I can tell ya that once the belt did its job keeping me in the seat and my face out of the steering wheel (no airbags back then unless you count passengers), the two most dangerous things were releasing the seat belt while hanging from it and trying not to crash into the passenger side door too hard by hanging on to the open driver's side window frame, and then after climbing out the driver's side door holding it open above your head, having to jump down off the vehicle.

I came a lot closer to hurting myself doing those two egress moves than during the relatively slow roll-over accident (about 25 MPH, dirt road, high-sided over a crowned corner into a ditch about two miles south of KEIK when that used to be dirt roads up there).

Just don't really know if there's a business model really there, but maybe.
 
I believe helmets, although might be useful, will never be practical for GA.

Shoulder belts or 4 point harnesses OTOH, its what i got in my skyhawk, and they will keep you with the airplane seat and away from the instrument panel ( provided the instrument panel does'nt get moved up 3 feet, in which case you would be dead anyway). I think its the best compromise, easy as a seat belt, 90% of the protection, minimal cost. JMHO
 
NotSure said:
I believe helmets, although might be useful, will never be practical for GA.

Shoulder belts or 4 point harnesses OTOH, its what i got in my skyhawk, and they will keep you with the airplane seat and away from the instrument panel ( provided the instrument panel does'nt get moved up 3 feet, in which case you would be dead anyway). I think its the best compromise, easy as a seat belt, 90% of the protection, minimal cost. JMHO
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Agreed.

I'll let someone else have the joy of pushing a product nobody wants.

:wink2:
 
Sparky might have disagreed with your conclusion after crashing the Husky.

View attachment sparky's scratched head.bmp


denverpilot said:
If you could find enough accident reports that showed head trauma as a leading cause of injury or death, you could probably make a go of it. I don't think you'll find too many that if the head trauma were removed, the rest of the body is intact.

Most head trauma in aircraft accidents seems to me from my reading are to the face and forehead as they go into the panel.

The DC headset photo above would do little to nothing for that type of trauma.

Having put a Jeep on it's side once many moons ago, I can tell ya that once the belt did its job keeping me in the seat and my face out of the steering wheel (no airbags back then unless you count passengers), the two most dangerous things were releasing the seat belt while hanging from it and trying not to crash into the passenger side door too hard by hanging on to the open driver's side window frame, and then after climbing out the driver's side door holding it open above your head, having to jump down off the vehicle.

I came a lot closer to hurting myself doing those two egress moves than during the relatively slow roll-over accident (about 25 MPH, dirt road, high-sided over a crowned corner into a ditch about two miles south of KEIK when that used to be dirt roads up there).

Just don't really know if there's a business model really there, but maybe.
Click to expand...
 
Yeah, helmet not happening here. Maybe you midgets can get one on your head and still fit in the cabin, but not this guy. As it is now, the headsets are pretty close to the headliner. No way is a helmet gonna work.
 
I bet the CHPS wear flight suits as well. Steingar isn't wearing either helmet or a flight suit. The Free Bird isn't a POS, so I don't feel particularly threatened.
 
Yeah, well, I've got the scars from 200 stitches in my face and head from biting the instrument panel.
If I'm doing low and slow, or over a place without good landing spots, I'll wear a helmet with a face shield, thanks. Call me what you want, I don't want to get mattress stitches in my forehead again.
 
Alan,

did the plane you were flying have shoulder harnesses?
 
I usually wear a flight suit when flying the Chief for several reasons:

  • LOTS of easily-accessible pockets (not many storage options in the Chief)
  • Easy ventilation (one long zipper)
  • Nothing to snag on while hand propping or climbing in/out (VERY important!)
  • It fits
  • I had one hanging in the closet
I have a full-face motorcycle helmet but even if I cared to wear it, I wouldn't fit. I agree that an over-the-shoulder harness is a better, cheaper, more convenient option.
 
Article in yesterday's paper about a motorcycle group riding in protest of a helmet law. Back east somewhere, I think. A 55-year-old guy went over the bars and was killed in what was described as a normally-survivable accident if he had been wearing a hat.
 
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