Orville Wright wore a suit and tie and a white shirt with starched collar when he made man's first powered flight in 1903. Capt. Frank Luke, famed World War I ace of the 27th Aero Squadron, wore a leather coat and helmet over his service dress uniform when he went hunting German observation balloons. The dashing white silk scarf completed the uniform, but it wasn't just for show — it was for wiping oil spatter off his goggles.
During World War II, as aircraft were able to reach much higher altitudes, B-24 waist gunners wore leather coats, pants, and boots that were heated electrically and lined with sheepskin to withstand the intense cold while shooting .50-caliber machine guns at incoming Me-109s, FW-190s, and Zeros.
As jet fighters became more sophisticated through the 1950s and 1960s, pilots added "speed jeans," chaps filled with rubber bladders that inflated to force oxygenated blood from the legs to the heart, brain, and eyes to keep from blacking out during high-g maneuvering. The L-1 Straining Maneuver, also known as grunting, provided pilots with additional seconds before the onset of g-induced loss of consciousness, or G-LOC.
Unfortunately, human physiology has not progressed markedly in 100 years. Even though the F/A-22 is designed to withstand nine times the force of gravity during maneuvering, Raptor pilots are still the same basic Mk. 1 human, able to withstand only about seven g's before the onset of G-LOC. Consequently, Raptor pilots have their own ensemble, which is both practical and comfortable and ensures they can stay in the fight.
Col. Tim Merrell, operations group commander at the F/A-22 training unit, the 325th Fighter Wing at Tyndall AFB, Florida, models what the well-dressed Raptor pilot is wearing these days.
Combat Edge
Arriving at the jet — in this case, Raptor 26, a brand-new aircraft Merrell ferried from Lockheed Martin in Marietta, Georgia, to Tyndall in early October — the pilot is wearing the standard CWU-27/P flight suit, or what pilots refer to as the "green bag" and FWU-8/P flyer boots. His GS/FRP-2 gloves are in his pocket. The suit, gloves, and optional CWU-36/P flight jacket are made of a flame-resistant fabric that dissipates static and repels chemicals.
Over his standard flight suit, Merrell first dons the CSU-17/P Combined Advanced Technology Enhanced Design G-Ensemble, or Combat Edge, a vest developed by the Air Force Human Systems Program Office at Brooks AFB, Texas, in the late 1980s to counter the effects of high-g maneuvering on pilots and crew. An air hose on the right breast of the vest connects to the aircraft on the left side of the cockpit.
The components of Combat Edge — oxygen mask, mask tensioning bladder in the helmet, counter-pressure vest, oxygen regulator, g-valve, integrated terminal block, and pressure sensor line — act in unison to sense and respond to high-g conditions. To pilots, that means Combat Edge keeps pressure in the chest cavity to help the heart pump blood to the eyes and brain while inhibiting the downward flow of blood inherent to these maneuvers. While Combat Edge doesn't replace the straining maneuver of tensing the upper body muscles and abdomen, it significantly reduces the effort required to execute it. At the same time, it increases g-endurance and reduces fatigue.
ATAGS
Next Merrell dons the CSU-23/P Advanced Technology Anti-G Suit, or ATAGS. Like the Combat Edge vest, ATAGS (currently only worn by F/A-22 pilots) provides increased protection from the effects of prolonged high-g environments. As a stand-alone garment, ATAGS provides a sixty percent increase in aircrew endurance. Combined with Combat Edge, it increases aircrew endurance by 350 percent over the current g-suit.
"ATAGS completely envelopes the legs and rear end, which is different from other g-suits," notes Merrell. "It takes a little getting used to when we first put it on. It rides lower on the torso so that, when we're pulling g's, it doesn't push against the chest. It is very effective."
The ATAGS air hose connection to the aircraft is on the right side of the cockpit, while the g-suit connection is on the left side of the cockpit in other fighter aircraft. Three small clamps bring the front and rear halves of the suit together around the legs; the two halves are then zipped together. A snap at the bottom of each leg further secures the two halves. Zippers on the torso section allow the suit to expand for a more comfortable fit. ATAGS also features external pockets because pilots are not able to reach the pockets on the flight suit after they don this new g-suit.
Harness And Helmet
In future combat situations, pilots from the 27th Fighter Squadron, the first squadron to fly the F/A-22 operationally, will then don the SRU-21/P survival vest. What goes in the multitude of pockets and pouches on this vest depends on the unit's preferences and conditions, but generally includes a weapon, such as a Baretta M9 9mm pistol; survival radio; and flares. An attached survival pack includes a first aid kit, fish hooks and line, mirror, and a myriad of other gear.
Next comes the PCU-15/P parachute harness with the detachable LPU-9/P life preserver. "This harness and life preserver combination is designed for higher ejection speeds than those used in other aircraft," Merrill notes. "It fits a little tighter around the neck, but it uses the same connections as those on an F-16."
To top off the ensemble, pilots will pull on the HGU-55/P helmet. This helmet is not the "brain bucket" of twenty years ago. The HGU-55/P, as an integral part of Combat Edge, includes a bladder in the helmet that inflates and pushes the pilot's face against the oxygen mask to get a good seal and prevent leaks.
The helmet is lightweight and has a larger cutout area for better peripheral vision. It also has several visors — tinted, gradient, and amber for various situations. "Some helmets also have night vision goggle mounts," notes Merrell. "Since we are the training unit, we don't wear NVGs with the F/A-22."
The MBU-20/P breathing mask and regulator on the aircraft operate in normal mode, providing air when the pilot inhales. Together with the regulator on the aircraft, the mask also has a positive pressure breathing mode in which oxygen is continuously forced into the pilot's lungs. In this mode, exhaling is actually harder than inhaling — additional protection against G-LOC.
The pilot is now ready to fly. A final piece of equipment taken to the jet is the small black bag seen in the photo at the pilot's feet. The bag carries the data transfer cartridge, which contains the mission information and landing approach plates. If the pilot prefers, the bag also makes a convenient place for a water bottle.
Jeff Rhodes is the associate editor of Code One.
