This helmet is unbelievable!

These pilots, flying at Mach-1 at 50,000 feet, will have the ability to essentially look through the floor of the plane and see the ground, The Washington Post reported in its series on military advancements called The Arsenal.

 

There are six cameras in the fighter's 'skin' and, when working correctly, can pick up sensors for when the pilot moves his head.

 

"You can look through the jet's eyeballs to see the world as the jet sees the world," a test pilot told the paper.

 

The situational awareness, developers say, will give these pilots an unsurpassed advantage.

http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2015/04/02/f-35-pilots-to-wear-400000-helmets-that-can-see-through-plane/?cmpid=cmty_twitter_fn

This helmet could buy my house, the neighbors house and still have money to spare!

I just wonder if the helmet will create a sense of SA 'overload'? That's lots of 411 coming into your field of vision @ Mach 1 and Angels 50, especially if you're engaged in 3 v 1 ACM!

:pilot:

I can't speak to SA overload, or even Info Overload. Possible, even probable, to my thinking. However, and this is important in my mind at least, I understand this is the third iteration of this tech, and I haven't heard of a lot of pilots complaining too awful loudly about the other two previous versions. Be that as it may, I don't think this will be a problem, at least not in this this plane/helmet system. Why, you ask? Read between the lines!

The helmet is similar to the jet in production because they are almost as famous for their production issues as their capabilities.

This the new, improved, modern Lockheed! Buy a few Generals, get awarded a contract, jack the price up through the roof....cost overruns sound familiar? Then "fail to produce" the promised product. Ever. Welcome to the Lockheed of the new millenium. They're making oil company-sized profits, and giving nothing in return. At least the oil companies provide a product. How many active duty F-35 squadrons are there? How many of the new super helmets in active service?

The F-35 is the Pentagon's most expensive weapons program, with an estimated cost of nearly $400 billion and has been widely criticized for its price tag.

And here I thought the military had gotten away from Sole-Source contracts.

Yet here we hear:

"Simply put, there is no alternative to the F-35 program. It must succeed," Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley said in September.

Lockheed has forced the others out of the military, and now aren't making a 5th gen fighter, just money for the company's coffers hand-over-fist. Too bad there's quote "no alternative". Sure sounds like a monopoly to me. They'er trying will all they have to replace all other aircraft with the f-35. So far, they haven't replaced any. Will they ever? I don't know, all I can do is see what they're current track record is. And it aint great.

Just my two cents. Oh, yes, I have worked for Lockheed, and have seen how they do business, and how much they care about their employees, all their words to the contrary notwithstanding. I'm not bitter or anything. Much.