The Lockheed U-2A Ejection Seat

Developed by Lockheed, this early ejection seat had the roll bar at the top for breaking through the canopy. Even in testing, it had a limited number of failures when it did not crack the canopy open. Some of this was attributed to the extreme cold at high altitudes that hardened the plexiglass. The seat was relatively small, and with the pilot wearing the bulky pressure suit, it was almost too small to seat the pilot. On some of the very early missions flown in the U-2A by CIA pilots, the aircraft was not equipped with the ejection seats. The early SR-1 seats were soon replaced by much more advanced ones.