In article , Nolaminar
writes
What is a British Sutton Harness?
Thanks
Bob Gaines
USA

Hi Bob,

It was a cockpit seat harness developed pre-war by a man called Sutton.
It consists of two lap straps and two shoulder straps that are made of
very robust canvas with strong brass eyelets every few inches. Fixing
it is done by passing a steel peg up through the eyelets of the straps,
once it has been placed in position over the wearer, and then trapping
the peg in position with a sprung steel pin after it has emerged from
the top hole.

It was in universal service during the war and for some years
afterwards, and is still to be found in old RAF aircraft such as the
Tiger Moth.

Plus points - very strong, gives excellent support for plus and minus G.
Some aircraft, such as the Spitfire, had a Sutton harness release lever
that payed out the shoulder straps on a wire and allowed the pilot to
lean forwards if need be, and which re-tightened when he leaned back
again.

Minus points - not easy to fit for all sizes of wearer - modern pull
tightening is superior. Very slim people will find it hard to get both
lap strap and shoulder straps to a satisfactory tightness - being a bit
pear-shaped is ideal...

But it did the job for decades, and still does.

Cheers,

Dave

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Dave Eadsforth