Originally Posted by
Adlerdriver
What's the crappy new seat? Did they change the one in the T-38 or are you talking about the T-6? Can't be much worse than sitting on a 40mm shell in the -37 (?could it?).
New seat rumored to cost 1 Million each. No stowage inside nor underneath, so must carry a travel pod for XC.
Advantages:
1. Slightly improved envelope.
2. Don't have to lug 45-lb parachute to the airplane.
Disadvantages:
1. Takes 5 minutes to strap in. You'd think, 50 years down the road, that the same leg-garter idea they used in the Phantom would be improved. Nope...much more difficult to use than the Phantom's.
2. Seat is about 2 inches closer to the instrument panel. It's too upright for my taste; I can't get comfortable in it.
3. Large gap between sides of seat and consoles; easy to drop stuff you can't reach.
4. Emergency egress, with practice, takes 30 seconds. Students usually take a minute (I make mine practice it).
5. Ejection Handle can interfere with full-aft-stick movement. (!!)
6. If the seat doesn't fire, you're boned. No manual back-up.
7. Without going into proprietary or priveleged info, we've had maintenance issues that make you wonder: "Was this thing really installed correctly, and will it work?"
8. Visibility from the rear seat is now EVEN WORSE. We all had to do a two-ride re-qual to learn to fly with the thing.
9. Since you have to take a pod, XC pretty much limited to instrument stuff only. But at least the pod limits your g, range, TOLD, and kills the radar altimeter.
I would gladly have kept lugging the 'chute to the jet.