George T. Zimmer Ejection Seat Testing Photographs Collection

The George T. Zimmer Ejection Seat Testing Photographs Collection consists of 112 photographs from the 1960s or 1970s related to aircraft ejection seat tests.

The first folder of photographs includes 30 prints, one 4x5" and the rest 8x10". Twenty-eight are black-and-white prints and two are in color. These photographs depict United States Air Force ejection seat testing experiments, some labeled as taking place at the U.S. Naval Aerospace Recovery Facility in El Centro, California. Images show a Northrop YF-17 test cockpit; test dummies being ejected from Grumman F9F-8T (TF-9J) Cougar aircraft during testing of T-33A ejection seat; AERCAB (Aerial Escape and Rescue Capability) ejection seats; men examining drogue parachutes after F-104 ejection seat tests; C-2 ejection seats; and test dummies in the air during ejection seat tests.

In Folder Two there are 57 black-and-white and one color 4x5" and 8x10" photographs depicting various pieces of equipment related to ejection seat testing. Many of the objects are unidentified. Others show Northrop's hot gas system for canopy jettison; Northrop's laser designator mockup; a center of gravity (CG) and moments of inertia rig used to test the T-33A ejection seat; ejection seats and ejection seat systems in Northrop YF-17 aircraft; and T-33A ejection seat parachutes.

The third folder includes a series of 23 black-and-white copy negatives, all approximately 4x5", showing ejection seat tests from Douglas B-66 Destroyer aircraft.

An oversize color photograph depicts a Northrop YF-17 aircraft on the tarmac.

Digitized Materials: This collection has been digitized in its entirety.

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