In 1994 the death of Ayrton Senna shocked the world. Since his death F1 and the FIA have worked hard at keeping drivers safe. After the unfortunate death of Jules Bianchi after the head injuries he sustained from the Japanese Grand Prix, and the sudden passing of IndyCar driver Justin Wilson from head injuries as well, it became obviously there was more than could be done. A new age of safety technology is being tested by Ferrari F1 driver Kimi Raikkonen. This new “halo” closed cockpit system is designed to protect drivers from head injuries in the event of an accident or on-track debris. Sebastian Vettel was initially chosen to test the system and had one installed on his car in the garages, but Raikkonen was chosen instead with the thought that he would give a more fair judgment on how it will impact future F1 drivers.
Ferrari has been working on their own version of the halo system in an effort to reduce as much weight as possible; the original design weighed close to 20 pounds and is now down to 13. The halo system consists of a frame that starts behind the drivers head and comes up above the helmet, reaching a center point using a radius in front of the steering wheel with a single brace down the center; this has proven to be the favorite system of drivers and engineers alike. Both the FIA and race teams have been working on closed cockpit systems for years and we’ve seen a big push in the last two years due to the tragic deaths of Bianchi and Wilson.
The new regulations regarding head protection take effect for the 2017 season.
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