Since 2009 there have now been 3 very serious head injuries suffered by F1 drivers. 2009 Massa came very close to loosing his life when a loose spring hit him at the Hungarain GP. In 2012 Maria de Villota Crashed into the rear of a truck during testing, loosing an eye and 15 months later her life in medical complications linked to the crash.
Now in 2014 Jules Bianchi is fighting for his life after what is the worst F1 crash I think I have ever seen.
In every one of these crashes the additional protection of a Jet fighter grade cockpit canopy would almost certainly of drastically improved their chances of avoiding major injury by deflecting the impacting object over the driver.
In this modern day we have a terrific safety record in F1 with the crash survival cell surrounding the driver, yet in a perverse way the most vulnerable area, the head, is left unprotected by anything more than a helmet and a roll hoop.
It is hard to see how a closed canopy would affect the racing. Rob Smedley has come out and said it would be easy to implement.
These cars are 200mph super machines. Things have moved on from the 60's in all aspects of F1, apart from head protection. Is it time to change all that? Does open wheel racing really need to be open cockpit?
Some images of f1 cars with canopies.
3kg bird strike test on a aircraft canopy.
Now in 2014 Jules Bianchi is fighting for his life after what is the worst F1 crash I think I have ever seen.
In every one of these crashes the additional protection of a Jet fighter grade cockpit canopy would almost certainly of drastically improved their chances of avoiding major injury by deflecting the impacting object over the driver.
In this modern day we have a terrific safety record in F1 with the crash survival cell surrounding the driver, yet in a perverse way the most vulnerable area, the head, is left unprotected by anything more than a helmet and a roll hoop.
It is hard to see how a closed canopy would affect the racing. Rob Smedley has come out and said it would be easy to implement.
These cars are 200mph super machines. Things have moved on from the 60's in all aspects of F1, apart from head protection. Is it time to change all that? Does open wheel racing really need to be open cockpit?
Some images of f1 cars with canopies.
3kg bird strike test on a aircraft canopy.
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