Naval Aircraft Crash Environment: Aircrew Survivability and Aircraft Structural Response

摘要

A study was conducted of U.S. Navy and Marine Corps flight mishaps occurring during the 10-year period of January 1972 to December 1981. One hundred eighty-four helicopter mishaps and 71 maritime aircraft (fixed-wing aircraft without ejection seats) mishaps were examined. Each flight mishap was reconstructed to determine orientation and velocity of the aircraft during the principal impact. Statistical distributions of impact parameters were tabulated for mishaps determined to be survivable. In addition, occupant injuries in each mishap were examined and a hazard which contributed to the injury was assigned. The cost of injuries associated with each hazard were identified and used as criteria for ranking the severity of the hazards. It was found that a significant number of major and fatal injuries occur in helicopter flight mishaps classified as survivable. The hazards which contribute to many of these injuries could be reduced in future helicopter designs through the incorporation of current crashworthiness design criteria (which was not imposed on the fleet examined in this study). A similar analysis of injuries and hazards in maritime aircraft flight mishaps indicates that selective use of crashworthy components would be beneficial; however, adoption of a crashworthiness specification to govern an entire aircraft design does not appear to be justifiable by the injury and cost statistics. Keywords: Accident investigations, Scenarios. (AW)