Seat Belts and
Shoulder Harnesses
Smart Protection in
Small Airplanes
e all enjoy the convenience, fun and
safety of flying. We also understand
that there may be times when our
best efforts for a safe flight will be inadequate,
and an accident could happen.
While most accidents are minor and pose
no significant risk to the airplane or its occu-
pants, some can result in major injuries or fatali-
ties. However, studies of serious accidents have
shown that the proper use of shoulder harnesses,
in addition to the safety belt, would reduce major
injuries by 88 percent and reduce fatalities by 20
percent.
INSTALL SHOULDER HARNESSES IN
YOUR AIRPLANE
Shoulder harnesses have been required for all
seats in small airplanes manufactured since De-
cember 12, 1986. If your airplane is not equipped
with them, you should obtain kits for installing
shoulder harnesses from the manufacturer or the
manufacturer’s local sales representative.
USE THE RESTRAINT SYSTEM...
PROPERLY
Federal regulations1 require that safety belts
and shoulder harnesses (when installed) be prop-
erly worn during landings and takeoffs. If the
restraint is not worn properly, it cannot provide
full benefits and can even cause injury in a seri-
ous impact.
Tests have shown
that slack in the restraint
system should be mini-
mal. In an impact, your
body keeps moving until
the slack is taken out of
the restraint, but then
must be abruptly stopped
to “catch up” with the
airplane. The restraint
should be adjusted as
tightly as your comfort
will permit to minimize
potential injuries.
The safety belt should
be placed low on your
hipbones so that the
belt loads will be taken
by the strong skeleton
of your body. If the
safety belt is improp-
erly positioned on your
abdomen, it can cause
internal injuries. If the
safety belt is positioned
on your thighs, rather
than the hipbones, it cannot effectively limit
your body’s forward motion.
Shoulder harness
systems can use dual
shoulder belts or a single
diagonal belt similar to
those used in automo-
biles. The belts should
not rub against your head
or neck. This is uncom-
fortable, will discourage
use of the shoulder har-
ness, and can also cause
neck injuries during an
impact.
Single diagonal shoul-
der belts should be posi-
tioned so that the torso’s
center of gravity falls
within the angle formed by
the shoulder belt and the
safety belt. Otherwise your
torso may roll right out of
the shoulder belt during an
impact and compromise
your protection.
Because the lower end
of the shoulder belt is usu-
ally fastened to the safety
belt buckle or the buckle
insert, the safety belt buck-
le should be positioned on
the side of your hip. This
differs from the central
location of the buckle that
is common when only the
safety belt is used.
Be sure that the safety belt is installed so that
when the buckle is unlatched, both the safety belt
and the shoulder belt are released. Also, be sure
that the buckle can be unlatched without interfer-
ence from the seat armrest, aircraft controls, or the
interior wall of the airplane.
If the shoulder harness uses dual belts fastened
to the safety belt near the center of your body, the
shoulder belts will tend to pull the safety belt up
off your hip bones. This could cause internal inju-
ries in an impact.
When it is
tightened about
your hips, the
safety belt should
be positioned so
that it makes an
angle of about 55
degrees with the
centerline of the
airplane.
This allows it
to resist the up-
ward pull of the
shoulder belts,
reducing the risk
of internal injury.
Ot
herwise, a tie-
down strap from the
buckle to the center-
forward edge of the
seat may be neces-
sary to resist the
upward pull of the
shoulder belts.
If your restraint
system uses a tie-down strap, adjust it to remove
all the slack when the restraint system is used. A
properly installed and adjusted tie-down strap is
completely safe.
DON’T FORGET THE CHILDREN...
For maximum protection and safety, small chil-
dren should be placed and secured in approved
“child safety seat” devices during aircraft opera-
tion. Child safety seats must meet current manu-
facturing and identification requirements of the
Federal government and be installed and secured
in accordance with these regulations. Install the
safety seat in a rear airplane seat, but not near an
entry door or emergency exit. If you must use a
front airplane seat, make sure that the child seat
cannot interfere with the airplane controls or limit
pilot access to the radios and flight instruments.
Install the child safety seat according to the
instructions on the seat, using the airplane safety
belt to secure it. Most safety seats for small infants
are intended to place the infant in a rear-facing
position and should be installed that way in the
airplane.
Remember to consider the weight of the child
and child safety seat when calculating weight and
balance!
When children outgrow the safety seat, they
can safely get by using only the airplane seat belt.
Their small size limits the chance that they might
make contact with the airplane interior during an
impact. Larger children can use the shoulder har-
ness if it doesn’t rub on their face or neck when
they are seated.
SUMMARY
u Seat belts alone will protect you only in
minor impacts.
u Using shoulder belts in small aircraft would
reduce major injuries by 88% and fatalities
by 20%.
u Shoulder belt kits are now available for most
airplanes.
u Proper use and installation of child safety
seats, meeting Federal requirements 1, provide
good protection for small children in aircraft.
u If improperly installed and used, restraints
could cause injury.
u Restraint systems in small aircraft: a smart
idea!
MEDICAL FACTS FOR PILOTS
Publication AM-400-90/2
(Revised May 2004)
Prepared by
Federal Aviation Administration
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
Aerospace Medical Education Division
To order copies of this brochure and
others listed below, contact
FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
Shipping Clerk, AAM-400
P .O. Box 25082
Oklahoma City, OK 73125
(405) 954-4831
OTHER SAFETY BROCHURES AvAILABLE
Number Title
AM-400-94/2 Alcohol and Flying: A Deadly Combination
AM-400-95/2 Altitude Decompression Sickness
AM-400-98/3 Hearing and Noise in Aviation
AM-400-97/1 Introduction to Human Factors in Aviation
AM-400-92/1 Over the Counter Medications and Flying
AM-400-98/2 Pilot Vision
AM-400-00/1 Spatial Disorientation: Visual Illusions
AM-400-01/1 Physiological Training Courses for Civil Aviation
Pilots
AM-400-03/1 Spatial Disorientation: Why You Shouldn’t Fly By
the Seat of Your Pants
AM-400-03/2 Deep Vein Thrombosis and Travel
To view these pilot and passenger safety brochures, visit the
Federal Aviation Administration’s Web Site
www.faa.gov/pilots/safety