Airbags aren’t just for autos anymore. Hawker Beechcraft is making seatbelt airbags for the pilot and co-pilot seats on its Baron and Bonanza aircraft available. The company also introduced with enhanced vision systems for the two models this week.
The airbags are integrated into the lap belt portion of the seatbelt. They inflate in less than 90 milliseconds, the company says. And unlike automotive airbags, they safely deploy up and away from the occupant, “making it a safe restraint for passengers of all ages,” the company says. Hawker Beechcraft’s parts and distribution organization has begun taking orders for the bags.
The enhanced vision systems, the EVS-100 and EVS-600, commonly known as infrared or thermal imaging cameras, help penetrate haze, fog, smoke and precipitation. . They help pilots see unlit obstacles during taxi and takeoff and help them avoid clouds, fly between layers and note detailed ground features out of the night landscape in flight.
