A flight of two Spanish EF-18M fighters and a change of habits with Scorpion helmets

@DefAviation ES 8·11·2024 · 23:17 0

We've all seen movies about fighter planes where the pilots walk around the tarmac of an air base with their helmets on.

The characteristics of the helmets and flight equipment of the Spanish EF-18 fighter pilots
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It seems that this habit is destined to disappear, and we can see why in another interesting video published today by the Youtube channel Fly By Wire Aviation (to which I recommend you subscribe if you are an airplane fan). In this excellent video we see the moments before and after the flight of two Spanish EF-18M Hornet fighters from Wing 12 (the C.15-13 / 12-01 and the C.15-60 / 12-18), from the Torrejón de Ardoz Air Base, in Madrid. Stay tuned for the details:

There are two details that caught my attention in this video. The first is the AN/AAQ-28(V) LITENING target designator carried by the C.15-60 on its ventral mount. This system is used to track air and surface targets, both day and night, in clear weather or in adverse weather conditions. In Spain it is used by the EF-18 and Eurofighters of the Air Force and by the Harrier II Plus of the Navy. In this case, the aircraft was armed with two AIM-2000 IRIS-T air missiles on the marginal mounts of its wings, so the designator in this case would be used to track air targets.

On the other hand, we see that the pilot of the C.15-60 boards the plane without his helmet on and with a large black bag. From the shape, it can be deduced that the bag contains the flight helmet.

On his return from the flight, the C.15-60 pilot hands his helmet over to a member of the ground crew, who puts it away in a black bag. The reason for this procedure is clearly seen in the video: this pilot was wearing one of the new Scorpion helmets, a high-tech piece of equipment that provides the pilot with flight and combat information no matter where he is looking. This type of helmet has a full-colour HMD (Helmet-Mounted Display, it is the white piece in the image), which provides the pilot with information from the traditional HUD (Head-Up Display, the glass screen on the plane's instrument panel) through a glass panel in front of the right eye. This is a considerably expensive helmet, which is why it is treated with such care.

Once the Scorpion helmet has been delivered, the C.15-60 pilot leaves with his head uncovered and the C.15-13 pilot leaves with his HGU-55/P helmet on. This last model of helmet, much cheaper than the Scorpion, was first used in the US Air Force in 1983 and arrived in Spain with the EF-18 in 1986, replacing the famous HGU-33 (which we have seen, among others, in films such as the first installment of "Top Gun"). Anyway, I had never seen images of this change of custom with the new Scorpion helmets. It is clear that with the Fly By Wire Aviation videos you always learn new things.