F-35 fighter helmet costs $ 600,000

F-35 fighter - the most expensive project in the history of the Pentagon. The development of a new generation of aircraft spent $ 300 billion It's time to return the investment.



For example, the Australian government recently signed a contract for the purchase of 72 F-35 fighter jets with a total value of 12.4 billion Australian dollars. According to the Australian media, the pilots' helmets alone cost more than 55 million, that is, up to $ 600 thousand apiece, translated into US dollars (if it was exactly 72 helmets purchased).



It is said that these helmets, as if taken from Tony Stark 's arsenal, are the most technically advanced head-mounted display that engineers have ever created.

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Stuffed with electronics and sensors, with a carbon fiber body and a night vision device, a helmet weighing 2.25 kg broadcasts real-time contextual information about the surrounding terrain. Turning the head, the pilot can even look “through” the aircraft trim. The helmet receives information from six Distributed Aperture System (DAS) electro-optical sensors mounted on the fighter skin.



Fitting a helmet for an individual user takes four hours (a two-day procedure, broken for two hours). It is necessary that the display of augmented reality (visor) is located exactly 2 millimeters from the center of the pupil. The fighter will not function if the helmet is defective, all systems are tightly integrated and do not work in isolation. No parts. Each pilot is given exactly one copy.



















The developers promise, however, that after the start of mass production of the helmet and components, the cost of the gadget should decrease.