science · 12 December 1912 · 112 years ago
In 1912, the earliest known experiment to produce an airplane ejection seat was conducted by Odolek, an Austrian inventor. The trial took place in Issy-les-Moulineaux. It was not until 1941 that the first successful design was produced by Heinlel, a German company. Made for the He-280, it was powered by compressed air, and accelerated the pilot upwards at between seven-g and nine-g. The He-280 was the first twin-jet engined aircraft and the first jet aircraft to go beyond prototype stage. A test pilot made the first emergency use of the ejection seat on 13 Jan 1943.
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