The first technique for pilots to safely exit air craft when they were in danger of crashing involved the use of parachutes. Before that the pilot was just out of luck.

Ejection seats were developed by the Germans when the increased air speed of mordern aircraft made it impractical to use a parachute for escape. Increased air speed made it almost impossible for the pilot to exit the moving plane and there was the danger of being hit by the tail.

Ejection speed had to be experimented with when the seats were first used. The large explosive charge used to expel the pilot also caused spinal cord compression and possibly other injuries. In the end ejection seats used several smaller charges which quickly ejected the pilot but were less traumatic in effects on the body.

Zero zero ejection seats were later developed primarily for the Navy, but they are in use in most fighter planes of today. The zero-zero seat could safely eject a pilot at zero altitude, and zero airspeed. This was especially beneficial to carrier pilots because of the unique way that they have to take off and land.

Our pilots are a very valuable asset to us. It takes a lot of time and dollars to train a pilot so you can see why it is important to keep them alive. The pilot who has escaped from trouble can use a  pilot's ring to tell his story.