U.S. Air Force prioritizes heated flight suits for Aircrews

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U.S. Air Force
Image courtesy: U.S. Air Force/Military.com

Earlier this month, the U.S. Air Force has released a list of its priorities for better gear for pilots, aircrew, and defenders, of which the heated flight suits are on the top of the list.

The service has posted two solicitation notice this year, in which, it has mentioned the requirement for heated flight suits and upgraded eye protection to protect the aircrews from lasers, while also scouring for a standard-issue ammo pouches and a backpack hydration system for the Security Forces Personnel.

The Air Force Materiel Command spokesman Brian Brackens said, that the service is looking to reduce the bulky clothing layers of the flight crew for warmth. So, they are looking for an electrically or electrical heating under or outer layer that would cover the airmen’s feet, hands, torso, and legs.

The suits will be powered by the helicopter, or by a battery “for flexibility purposes,” he said in an email Friday.

“This active heating approach can result in a significant human performance improvement over traditional material insulations as well as providing protection for the men and women out there protecting us,” he said. Their use could also apply to those who are deployed in the mountains of Afghanistan, the Korean Peninsula and Alaska, among other locations.

As mentioned above, apart from the heated flight suits, the Air Force has also requested for the latest eye protection glasses that repel lasers, body armor, isolated personnel survival aircrew flight and signal equipment; new helmets; ejection parachutes; bladder relief systems; and wearable technologies to measure and alert pilots of changes to their health, such as heart rate and breathing, while in flight.

“The items in the RFI (Request for Information) are already standard-issue items used by Security Forces members,” Malcolm McClendon, spokesman for the Security Forces Center at the Air Force Installations and Mission Support Center said in an email Feb. 25.

For more information on this, check military.com