Flight suit

ECO Racetrack, wearing a flight suit with helmet.

A flight suit is basically a pressure suit garment. Flight suits are worn by both Viper and Raptor crews during missions, and the humanoid Cylons piloting Heavy Raiders.

Colonial Flight Suit

Colonial military flight crews wear flight suits, sometimes referred to as "jock smocks".

The flight suit is an airtight, one-piece jumpsuit with a single front zipper that runs from neck to waist. Pressure gloves are attached by soft pressure seals incorporated in the sleeves. The suit is attached to the flight helmet by a hard metal collar, which receives pressurizing air through a hose. The suit's basic environmental adjustments are managed by a small series of buttons on the left forearm. The flight suit appears suitable as all-weather gear when in rainy or cool conditions, but its lack of armor provides no significant protection in combat.

Close-up of Starbuck's hard-seal collar.

When not in ready status, the suit can be worn unzipped for comfort, with the the top half of the suit rolled down. Standard uniform undershirts are worn underneath the flight suit. Flight suits are worn with utility belts to carry a variety of gear, including sidearms.

The basic flight suit design has remained the same since the First Cylon War without major changes. A green fabric version was observed during the Fall of the Twelve Colonies (Miniseries). A black t-shirt was sometimes worn instead of the standard shirt and tank-top combination (Razor Flashbacks, Episode 1).

A closer look at the upper half of a flight suit.

The left leg of the flight suit features a windowed pocket containing a checklist card, oriented to be readable by the wearer when in the seated position. The card for the viper pilots read as follows:

Viper Pre Flight Checklist

1. Pre Flight

External Inspection.....................................Okay
Flight Controls............................................Okay
Tanks filled ................................................Okay
Canopy Locks and explosive bolts to safe.....Okay
Seat Motors ...............................................Okay
Weapons to safe ........................................Okay

2. Start Check

Viper Pre Flight Checklist

Area..........................................................Clear
Comms......................................................Up
Tacom/Satnav.............................................Up
Canopy Bolts..............................................Armed
Escape Seat...............................................Armed
Engine Systems in the Green.......................Green
Weapons in the Green..........Weapons set to Armed

3. Launch Tube Check

Area............................................................Clear
Blast Doors..................................................Open
Heads Up Display.........................................On
Tac/Nav........................................................To Active
Flaps...........................................................15 degrees down angle
Engines........................................................85%
Assume Launch Position................................Okay
LSO Launch Signal........................................Okay
Master Caution Cold Shot Warning..................Set

Cylon Flight Suit

Eights and Sixes in flight suits.

Humanoid Cylons piloting Heavy Raiders wear all-black flight suits made of a sleek material (The Hub). It is unknown whether or not these flight suits have hard seals or helmets.

Related Imagery

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Notes

• In the episodes "You Can't Go Home Again" and "Act of Contrition", Kara Thrace uses her flight suit to its fullest, from her ejection from her wayward Viper to her parachute landing, and monitoring of life support mechanisms using the gauges built into the suit.
• The suits are designed to keep a pilot who has ejected from his Viper alive in a vacuum for a limited amount of time, such as when Lee Adama has to eject from the Blackbird in "Resurrection Ship, Part II".
• It appears that Galactica rarely has opportunity for SAR operations to retrieve pilots after combat with Cylon forces. Often the battlestar must retreat with the Fleet, leaving any surviving Viper pilots to either be captured by the Cylons or die once their oxygen runs out.
• The flight suits were designed by Deborah Everton, and were constructed from materials produced by Sommers Plastic Products.