Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

military.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

71–80 of 205 posts

Re: A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

#71

Post by galaxyLogic »

> The estimated damages caused by spatial disorientation cost the U.S. military an estimated $300 million every year, along with the lives of around 30 pilots.

I find it surprising that 30 pilots die every year because of this. I would think every time US loses a military plane there are some news about it on TV. But now 30 pilots dies per year only because of this? What about other causes of death? How many? US is not at war currently.

How many US pilots died during Iraq war? I seem to remember (based on TV news) it was about or close to 0.

Re: A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

#72

Post by omnicognate »

throwawayboise wrote: post #52
dmoy wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So I actually buzz my hair really short for high power rifle season so I can feel the wind better. I'm also balding, so that helps. It mostly boils down to using it as a "don't pull the trigger, the wind just did something funky" sensor. Granted about half the time I end up throwing a baseball cap on it because not getting sunburn/skin cancer is more important to me than a few points at 600 yards, but it does help.

Sunscreen?

Sunscreen above eye level + sweat = stinging eyes.

Re: A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

#73

Post by Stevvo »

galaxyLogic wrote: post #71

> The estimated damages caused by spatial disorientation cost the U.S. military an estimated $300 million every year, along with the lives of around 30 pilots. I find it surprising that 30 pilots die every year because of this. I would think every time US loses a military plane there are some news about it on TV. But now 30 pilots dies per year only because of this? What about other causes of death? How many? US is n…

About 30 US military pilots a year are killed in all accidents.

That propaganda you might have heard on TV nearly 20 years ago is bullshit.

Re: A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

#74

Post by adewinter »

galaxyLogic wrote: post #71

> The estimated damages caused by spatial disorientation cost the U.S. military an estimated $300 million every year, along with the lives of around 30 pilots. I find it surprising that 30 pilots die every year because of this. I would think every time US loses a military plane there are some news about it on TV. But now 30 pilots dies per year only because of this? What about other causes of death? How many? US is n…

"Military aviation accidents have killed 224 pilots or aircrew, destroyed 186 aircraft, and cost more than $11.6 billion since 2013"[1]

"Combined with information from the Federal Aviation Administration, an average of 383 pilots die every year in the US." [2]

[1] https://taskandpurpose.com/news/military-aviation-mishaps-de...

[2] https://www.skytough.com/post/how-many-pilots-die-a-year

Re: A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

#75

Post by colechristensen »

galaxyLogic wrote: post #71

> The estimated damages caused by spatial disorientation cost the U.S. military an estimated $300 million every year, along with the lives of around 30 pilots. I find it surprising that 30 pilots die every year because of this. I would think every time US loses a military plane there are some news about it on TV. But now 30 pilots dies per year only because of this? What about other causes of death? How many? US is n…

Accidents dominate this, you hear about quite a lot of them, not all fatal.

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2018/04/08/...

Re: A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

#77

Post by robocat »

shuntress wrote: post #6
samstave wrote: post #2

Good article. I can't help but wonder why way-finding / path-finding vibrational orienteering vests aren't a thing yet. You could vibratory signal a path in complete darkness, indicate obstacles and threats or directions to supply caches etc.

The market for people who need a non-visual device to help them detect obstacles, threats, or supply caches is too small to justify the expense (both per-unit and of development) of such devices.

One person might be all the market you need, if that one person is wealthy enough. Aside: I think stating opinions as facts is poor form.

Re: A naked skydive inspired a way to keep pilots oriented in flight

#78

Post by dredmorbius »

toss1 wrote: post #17
mprovost wrote: post #3

(Spoiler) Disappointed that they didn't end up with naked pilots. But it reminded me how Polynesian navigators in the Pacific would use their testicles to detect subtle ocean swells. We're used to relying on our eyes but our other senses can be just as useful.

A similar striking phenomena happened when I shaved my head instead of haircuts. I was immediately very aware of every slight motion of air even in what seemed like still rooms, or generated by my motion, not even walking. It was like I had a new sensor upgrade. Almost more interesting is that it did not fade or degrade over the months that I kept that (non-)hairstyle. The tactile sense can be a very high-bandwidth i…

Swimmers and cyclists also shave part or all (public) parts of their body. For swimmers, "shaved and tapered" performances are classed apart from the rest. (Tapering refers to reduced workout intensity, shaving to removal of body hair.)
Post reply on HN