A Look At How Fighter Jet Cockpits Have Changed Over 65 Years (Photo-Gallery)

NAVAL STATION ROTA, Spain (June 26, 2019) Edward “Shooter” Cunningham, a cockpit demonstrator instructor working for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, references data on the cockpit display of an F-35 Lightning II cockpit demonstrator aboard Naval Station (NAVSTA) Rota, Spain. A team from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, based out of Fort Worth, Texas, came to the installation to demonstrate aviation capabilities that will soon be integrated into the Fleet. NAVSTA Rota sustains the fleet, enables the fighter and supports the family by conducting air operations, port operations, ensuring security and safety, assuring quality of life and providing the core services of power, water, fuel and information technology. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eduardo Otero) 

Hushkit: In the cockpit with real Topgun instructor: Dave ‘Bio’ Baranek takes us for a brief history of fighter cockpits, F-106 to F-35 

Flying twice as fast as an AR15 round and capable of pulling G forces that leave pilots with the same painful lack of mobility as if they weighed an actual ton, a fighter aircraft asks a lot of its pilot. Fighting and surviving in such a hostile environment requires lightning-fast assimilation and response to a mass of information. Not only this, but today most fighters are multi-role and are tasked with destroying both air and surface targets. This is possible thanks to the wonder of the modern cockpit. We asked former Topgun instructor and F-14 Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) Dave ‘Bio’ Baranek to give us the lowdown. Let’s slam the canopy shut and take a flight through 65 years of cockpit design. 

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Update: See How Fighter Jet Cockpits Have Evolved Over 65 Years (Popular Mechanics) 

WNU Editor: WOW! The difference is night and day.