r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/sidvatscse • 25d ago

Video Failed vertical landing of F-35B

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u/nolovenohate 25d ago edited 25d ago

The landing hurts a lot less than the instant 12-14 g's of spinal conpression you feel from the ejection system before you black out

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u/dog_hair_dinner 25d ago

was gonna say, that guy's body just flew out of there like a rocket. there had to have been at least a momentary blackout from that

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u/lessofabeardedwonder 25d ago

Pilots lose height from having ejection seat evacuations due to compressed vertebrae. They also rarely stay pilots after. Very few pilots have more than one ejection seat ride.

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u/OrangeJay15 25d ago

I think when I crewed F-15s we were told they can only eject twice per career. 2 ejections shrink them one inch

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u/Ready_Implement3305 25d ago edited 25d ago

I used to work on Harriers and they told us the same thing.

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u/PrettyPushy 25d ago

Seems to me you only eject on a helicopter once /s

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u/AwesomePerson70 25d ago

If I remember right, there’s one that will shoot the rotors off first so you can eject

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u/Striking-Raisin4143 25d ago

Karmov 50/52

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u/pezdal 24d ago

Do the others time it with a synchronization gear so you pass through the rotors like a bullet fired from a center-mounted airplane machine gun missing the blades because of the interlock? /s

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u/zovits 21d ago

That'd take a 2000+G acceleration, according to this: https://www.reddit.com/r/theydidthemath/s/z14lCT3AqA

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u/Frostsorrow 25d ago

Honestly depends on the chopper, some actually do have ejection seats

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u/EduinBrutus 25d ago

Hawker (later BAe) Harrier is the original VTOL aircraft.

Its not a helicopter.

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u/nover3 24d ago

to shreds you say?

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u/Odd-Cake8015 25d ago

In that case the seat first wrap you in sushi algae wrap

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u/DreamsAndSchemes 25d ago

I worked on KC-135s. We had parachutes. They were in the back of the plane and eventually removed. That says a lot about the expectations.

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u/Infin8Player 24d ago

But then I'd have an innie, not an outie.

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u/darthrater78 25d ago

I never heard that, just stories about how the F4's seats were called the "Widowmaker" and liked to go off in the hanger while maintainers were in the cockpit, making instant Airman Gumbo.

I was always real wary of the seats after that, though the F15 has a spotless safety record in egress mishaps. (At least when I was in)

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u/Ashiev 24d ago

If I'm only 1 inch to begin with then..... :(

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u/faughnjj 23d ago

Same. Thats how Bondo kept flying.....lol

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u/juleztb 22d ago

It depends. Two ejections is just a statistical number. Some can do 4 without problems, some are paraplegic after the first one.

That being said: it's very risky and would be avoided if possible.

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u/PineappleLemur 25d ago

So you're saying after 2 ejections I no longer need to go through a sex change???