The Effect of Accelerations on Human Beings

Extract

The amount of information on the effect of accelerations on human beings is scanty and somewhat rudimentary with the single exception of observations made on aeroplanes. Aircraft in general have to be built to certain factors of safety so as to keep the total flying weight as small as possible, and for this reason accelerometers have been carried to measure the resultant forces experienced in flight. In this way a measure has been obtained of the forces likewise impressed on the human pilot directing the craft. The practice of flying has gradually developed by the careful training of the pilots so that undue stress is not placed on the aircraft structure and as a corollary this has been made possible by the pilot using his physical sensations to limit the violence of any aerobatic manœuvre. But the practice in this respect differs in various countries and so an attempt is here made to collate what information exists on the effect of accelerations on the human body and to consider whether the stresses experienced in flight can be increased with safety. It is, however, realised that the subject is a very open one and that the experimental data are very scanty.