Airbags for Aircraft

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It's my understanding that one of the most dangerous things about crash landing a helicopter (other than the damage to your back) is that, on impact in the auto-rotation, your extremities will flail about the cockpit, breaking/crushing bones on instrument panels, seats, etc...

A modified airbag could possibly constrict this flailing.
 
If I do come across a Popular Science etc I kinda look at it like the 50's futurist of today. Look kids the flying car! Hey wait it is a blender that also does a perfect shiatsu massage. The airbags could create 'airbagging' in flight.(technique that criminals use in a car chase to deploy officer's airbags to obstruct their vision)
 
I'm sure if it was up to some people airplanes would have people sitting in bomb proof, crash proof, water proof pods with full entertainment systems and a 40" pitch for every seat. The bottom line that drives safety in the airline industry is weight and systems like that are WAY too much weight. Obviously the airlines can't fly a 747 with 4 people onboard and make money, and typically no one could survive some of the high velocity/high G impacts that occur anyway, so the FAA has adopted the more realistic views of light weight Oxygen generators and seat belts I could find in a 1950s car. So I guess even an airbag would weigh a bit much, and I'm sure you'd be bothered if a flight attendant told you that you'd just gotten bumped from a 3/4 full flight because they were over weight. Then you'd think airbags were lame.
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Judging by the link I'd say that article is about 7 yrs old.

Guess the idea didn't catch on.
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Well what new safety features does the A380 and the 7E7. The airlines should be looking at safety features as well as economy and range/speed.
 
To be really honest, any airbag-type safety feature is only going to do a little bit of good in a situation that the pilots can retain control of the aircraft.

But in a situation such as Sioux City, or the American Airbus crash, airbags are going to simply be more fod floating around the field.
 
AMD got approval to install the Amsafe Aviation lap belt mounted airbag in the Alarus and they have been installing them in the airplanes that are currently in production at the factory here at KEZM as an option. The system is quite a bit different than the automotive type airbags.

There's a video on the company web site at: http://www.amsafe.com/media.htm that shows how it works.
 
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