F-15 Eagle drivers will get upgraded ejection seats under a new $700 million contract to Collins Aerospace, a Raytheon Technologies subsidiary, awarded on Oct. 29.
The new ACES 5 ejection seat will replace the F-15’s older ACES II ejection seat, found in most of the Air Force’s fighter and bomber fleet. Collins, in a release, said its new seat includes improved head, neck, arm, and leg “flail prevention,” along with a catapult that can adjust based on the occupant’s weight.
The company claims the new seat reduces ejection-related injuries to less than 5 percent, and spinal injuries to less than 1 percent.
Work will be conducted in Colorado Springs, Colo., and is expected to be complete by Oct. 22, 2030. ACES 5 has already been selected for the T-7A Red Hawk, and will also be installed on the F-16, F-22, B-1, and A-10 fleets. Under a justification and approval notice posted in October 2019, the service plans to buy 3,018 of the seats, according to FlightGlobal.