MovieChat Forums > The Day After (1983) Discussion > How do the Looking Glass pilots keep fro...

How do the Looking Glass pilots keep from getting flash blinded

posted 8 years ago by bradhig
6 replies | jump to latest

How do the pilots of the Looking Glass and the other doomsday planes keep from getting flash blinded?

[–] CGSailor 8 years ago

Military aircraft that were expected to be aloft during a nuclear event or were nuclear weapons delivery aircraft were equipped with a variety of devices, generally called "flash hoods" or "thermal curtains" that protected them from being blinded by the nuclear flash. In general, a dark curtained hood was put in place that blocked out the canopy and the pilot was flying on instruments only.

I joined the Navy to see the world, only to discover the world is 2/3 water!

[–] novastar_6 8 years ago

In general, a dark curtained hood was put in place that blocked out the canopy and the pilot was flying on instruments only.

They did this in By Dawn's Early Light, the woman pilot didn't pull hers down in time and was blinded in one eye.

[–] bradhig 8 years ago

Also in that movie they used radar to see where bombs went off to avoid flying into musshroom clouds.

[–] Leto II 8 years ago

That scene has special resonance for me, because the B-52 is flying over Spokane, Washington when the detonation occurs, which is the city where my brother lives in real life.

[–] txchuckwagon 8 years ago

In the book "Arc Light", there is a paragraph describing how the pilot was wearing a patch over one eye, so he has a backup in the event that the other eye is blinded. They also talked about having the screens over the windows and flying on instruments.

[–] millsey72 (9604) 2 years ago

They wear polarized sun glasses