Passenger accidentally activates ejector seat

The Telegraph report a story on a tricky and not uncommon design problem - that of a safety-critical control that needs to be very quick and easy to access, without it ever being activated acidentally. A novice aviator took off for a joyride with an experienced pilot from South Africa's Silver Falcons air display team, and got a free parachute ride. During an aerobatic manoeuvre, the flier accidentally pulled on the black and yellow emergency handle between his legs, activating two rockets attached to the back of the seat. The seat and occupant were sent through the jet's perspex canopy and 100 metres into the sky. The lever is fitted as standard in the Pilatus PC-7 Mk II jets. The man floated back down to Earth on a parachute as the South African Airforce bosses scrambled a helicopter to pick up the passenger near Langebaanweg airfield, 80 miles north of Cape Town. Source: Telegraph, 1 November 2009. tinyurl.com/yk76k95