Old equipment hampers pilots

The following is a rough translation from an Afrikaans article that appeared in the Beeld newspaper: 

By Erika Gibson

The Defence Force is not in a position to test its prospective fighter pilots on the effects of g-forces because of obsolete equipment.

"I am concerned because the airforce personnel in the new generation fighters will serve without the necessary testing and training in g-forces. This will lead to the loss of lives and equipment." Dr. Pierre Erasmus, an aviation medicine specialist and head of the Defence Forces' Institute of Aviation Medicine (IAM), expressed his concern this week. The existing centrifuge at the IAM, which dates back to the 1960's, was declared unsafe by airforce engineers last year due to structural problems.

Erasmus said that only one of the two pressure chambers in which pilots are tested for oxygen use at various altitudes is available. Aircrew can only be tested to 24 000 ft, while the Gripen, Hawk and Airbus 400M crew should be tested to a height of 40 000 ft.

G-forces in an aircraft is a measure of acceleration and the resulting force during certain aircraft manoeuvres.

"Pilots are tested to just 5g. The problem, which is recognised worldwide, is that when a person experiences more than 7g (as in the case with the Gripen), there are several dangerous physiological changes taking place which can lead to G-LOC (Loss of consciousness due to g-forces)."

"It is for these reasons that pilot sare tested, selected and thereafter trained in the handling of g-forces. This can only be done on a human centrifuge" Erasmus explained.

Currently, the only available test centre for the new generation fighter aircraft is in Germany and the first group of Gripen pilots will have to undergo their training there, at great cost, in November.

According to Erasmus, the tests must be repeated once a year, or if a pilot was sick or did not fly for a period of three consecutive weeks.

A new centre will cost about R600m, but Erasmus said that this was not excessive if it is taken into account that this was the cost of one Gripen and the training one pilot.

"If a pilot loses consciousness because of g-forces, it will take 30 seconds to one minute to recover.

Then it wil ltake another minute and a half before he can take control of the aircraft again. During this time, he would already have flown into the ground."

He said that the cost of a new centre could be subsidised if it could be hired out to other countries.

"Chile, Brazil, Botswana and Australia have already indicated that they would use the facility. The centre would be an asset to the country and the region.

"By allowing our pilots to be tested overseas, we give away their profile and skills which are a strategic asset for the country."

The Defence Force indicated that they would provide comment later.