AFRL vice commander kicks off Air Force aircrew anthropometry study

  • Published
  • By John Schutte
  • Human Effectiveness Directorate
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  The last time the Air Force conducted a large-scale anthropometric (human body measurements) survey of its pilots, Super Bowl I featured Green Bay defeating Kansas City 35-10 and popular music included "Ruby Tuesday" by The Rolling Stones and "Penny Lane" by The Beatles. 

The year was 1967 and a lot has changed since then, including the average human body size and shape. That's why the Air Force Research Laboratory's Human Effectiveness Directorate (AFRL/RH) wants to update its anthropometric data by measuring 3,000 of today's Air Force aircrew. 

In 1967, researchers used traditional measurement tools such as tape measures and calipers to take body measurements. Today, those same tools are used along with a 3-dimensional whole-body surface scanner--the same technology used for creating human-like animation in movies such as Polar Express-- that allows researchers to extract an infinite number of measurements in just a few seconds. 

To emphasize the importance of the project, AFRL Vice Commander Col. David B. Glade II--who in 1967 was in elementary school but now is a command pilot and experimental test pilot with 2,700 hours in more than 60 different types of aircraft--volunteered as one of the first test subjects for this historic research. 

"It's great that AFRL has the capability to do this study, because it's very important that warfighters, whether it be aircrew in a cockpit or soldiers and airmen on the battlefield, have equipment and clothing that fits and protects them properly," said Colonel Glade, following about an hour of manual measurements and scanning in AFRL's state-of-the-art 3-D body scanner. 

Colonel Glade encouraged fellow Air Force aircrew to participate as test subjects, noting that "if you have a helmet or mask that's giving you a hotspot or doesn't seal properly because it wasn't designed for current populations of people, this is your chance to make sure the next one is designed from a current database." 

Results of the study will feed into a new Integrated Aircrew Ensemble program underway at Brooks City-Base, Texas, which is scheduled to produce the next-generation head-to-toe life support system for Air Force aircrew in about five years, according to Scott Fleming, project manager and anthropologist with the AFRL/RH Biosciences and Protection Division, Biomechanics Branch.
 
The information generated will help engineers improve the sizing and design of Air Force clothing, aircrew workstations, clothing and personal protective equipment such as body armor that needs to properly fit the human body. Better designs will improve aircrew protection and save costs associated with improperly fitting equipment, Fleming said.
 
"This data can help fix fit problems with current personal protective equipment and minimize fit problems with future designs," Fleming explained. "Also, by using this data early in the design process, manufacturers can save time and money because they have an accurate database up front for their product designs." 

Existing flight gear was designed based on a 1988 U. S. Army survey and the last extensive Air Force aircrew data was gathered in 1967--before women and many minorities became part of the fulltime Air Force pilot population. 

More than 1,000 females flew as pilots in the Women's Air Force Service Pilots, or WASPs, during World War II, but that unit disbanded following the war. According to the Air Force Personnel Center (AFPC) website, women began entering pilot training again in 1976 and began fighter pilot training in 1993. 

Forty years ago, military pilots were mostly young, Caucasian males who were relatively physically fit. Today, AFPC statistics show the Air Force with 13,065 active-duty pilots including 559 females flying fighters, transports and helicopters and contributing to a vastly different demographic makeup for Air Force pilots, which now include not only women but diverse ethnic groups, an expanded age range, and a variety of body types, shapes and sizes. 

"Air Force equipment wasn't necessarily designed to fit women," said Colonel Glade, whose military flying hours are limited now by his ground-based AFRL position. "In addition, our population in general has changed over time. We're taller and heavier than people were a generation ago." 

A 2004 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that adult men and women are roughly an inch taller and almost 25 pounds heavier than they were in 1960. In addition, average adult body mass index (BMI, a weight-to-height ratio for determining obesity) has increased from about 25 in 1960 to 28 in 2002.
 
The report, Mean Body Weight, Height, and Body Mass Index (BMI) 1960-2002: United States, prepared by CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, also says the average height of a man aged 20-74 years increased from just over 5'8" in 1960 to 5'9½ '' in 2002, while the average height of a woman the same age increased from about 5'3" to 5'4". 

During the same period, the average weight for men aged 20-74 years rose from 166.3 pounds to 191 pounds and the average weight for women the same age increased from 140.2 pounds to 164.3 pounds. 

"The bottom line is, body shapes and sizes for the Air Force of 2007 are vastly different than they were in 1967," said Fleming. "This data will help the Air Force better outfit and protect its men and women." 

When they finish at Wright-Patterson, a five-person measuring team will transport the scanner and other measuring equipment to Randolph AFB, Texas, to measure aircrew there from January through March 2008.
 
Active and inactive aircrew who want more information or wish to volunteer as a test subject may call 255-0860 or 255-3684.