Safety Topics at Farnaborough

THE new McDonnell Douglas MINI‐PAC II lightweight ejection seat was featured, having just completed a zero speed/zero altitude test in the USA. During the test the seat was fired from a stationary sled and propelled to a height of 160 feet, with the main parachute opening at the top of the trajectory. The seat is designed for use in turboprop powered trainers, helicopters and other low to medium speed aircraft and uses technology developed for the ACES II Advanced Concept Ejection Seat used in the F‐15, F‐16, A‐10 and B‐1. Although the MINIPAC II seat is fully automatic, it retains an ‘over the side’ bail out option in which the pilot leaves the aircraft with his parachute while not using the ejection seat. Two more tests are to be conducted prior to the qualification of the seat, one at 150 knots and the other at 350 knots.