Flight helmet

NASAhelmet for theNorthrop T-38 Talonaircraft

German leather flight helmet of World War I

Aflight helmet,sometimes referred to as a "skull dome", "bone dome" or "foam dome", is a special type ofhelmetprimarily worn by militaryaircrew.

A flight helmet can provide:

• Impact protection to reduce the risk ofhead injury(e.g. in the event of a parachute landing) and protection from wind blast (e.g. in the event ofejection).
• Avisorto shield the eyes from sunlight, flash, supersonic wind blasts and laser beams.
• Noise attenuation,headphonesand amicrophone(except when included in a mask).
• Ahelmet mounted display,mounting fornight vision gogglesand/or a helmet tracking system (so the aircraft knows where the pilot is looking).

The design of a flight helmet may also consider:

• Comfort – including the weight, centre of gravity and provision for cooling and ventilation.
• Compatibility with anoxygen mask(for high-altitude flight andNBC protection).

History of flight helmets

In the first days of aviation, the leather helmets used in motor-racing were adopted by pilots as head protection.During World War I, British Engineers led by Charles Edmon Prince addedearphones(now calledheadphones) and athroat microphoneto make a "hands-free" communications systems for Flight Helmets – then called "aircraft telephones".The Group's first product was a hand held "aircraft telephone" and, over a 3 year-process of experimenting with various voice microphones, found the hands-free throat microphone built inside a flight helmet much more user-friendly in open-cockpitairplanes due to excessive wind noise and vibrations.

The initial design of earlyleather flying helmetswas adapted during the 1930s to become the iconic type B helmet which enabled the external attachment of radio earphones, oxygen masks, and removable goggles to protect pilot's eyes from the elements.A detailed description of a typical Type B helmet can be found on the website of theImperial War Museum(London, England).It is made from six vertical panels which meet at a central ridge panel running from front to back. There is a rectangular horizontal panel which goes across the forehead and it includes padded leather oval housings at the ears. The chinstrap, also made of leather, is stitched to the right side and buckled to a small strap on the left. The brown leather of the helmet is lined with buff-colored chamois and has a rectangular length of brown-colored material sewn to the inside of the forehead.

By World War II, improved oxygen masks became common as planes flew higher where thinner air required a breathable air supply to the pilots and crew.After World War II until the Korean War, the leather headpiece was gradually replaced with a hard helmet to provide head protection during bailing out (and later with high velocity ejection).Also, goggles were replaced by a built-in visor which was tinted to protect against sun. Current headgear (appearing after the Vietnam War) usually includes communications equipment (headsetandmicrophones) to let pilots communicate with ground operations and their crew.

• 
  Demonstration of the Warren Safety Helmet, 1912
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  British leather flying helmet from 1918
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  Type B-6 winter flying helmet with A-9 oxygen mask, WW2 vintage
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  Helmet with anti-flash goggles
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  SovietMiG-25pilot helmet of the 1980s
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  Modern US ArmyApachehelmet
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  GentexSPH-5 helicopter helmet
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  Eurofighter Typhoonhelmet showing theHelmet Mounted Symbology System
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  Gentex helmet used by Iran

See also

• Index of aviation articles

External links

• Images
• US Military flight helmets collection
• Aeromiltec jet helmets
• HelmetFX