Ejection Seats and Airbags

My youngest daughter was in her little blue Saturn and on her way home last night when she was hit in an intersection by a driver in a Dodge Caravan who apparently ran a red light at a pretty high speed. The damage to both vehicles was pretty extensive, but my daughter managed to walk away from it despite being hit on the driver side. The Dodge hit her on the front of her car rather than a "T-Bone" (in the middle,) and this and the Airbag are largely to credit for her safety.

Our visit with the paramedics and subsequent visit to the Emergency Room taught us something new. Airbags deploy and cause some damage of their own, but the damage caused by an Airbag is manageable and a good trade-off. I was strangely reminded of Jet Fighter Ejection Seats.

When I was a crew chief in the Air Force many, many years ago (when I still had black hair!) I met several men who had "punched out" of their fighter jets over the years. I never met one who wasn't in some way injured. Now that does not mean that uninjured ejection seat users don't exist. It just means that in my less than scientific sample (those I met or knew) they were all injured to some degree or another. These pilots and former pilots are alive and have a good quality of life. They just live with some kind of pain.

And so, my youngest daughter was friction burned and her nose was bloodied, and she has some real stiffness today because of the speed and impact of an Airbag. And we hope there will be no lingering pain to manage over a lifetime. But we are so grateful she is alive.