Vehicle Armour - Aircraft

Aircraft

Armour plating is not common on aircraft, which generally rely on their speed and manoeuvrability to avoid ground fire, rather than trying to resist impacts. Additionally, any armour capable of stopping large-calibre antiaircraft fire or missile fragments would be simply too heavy and overtax the powerplant. Still, this is one area where titanium is used extensively as armour plating. For example, in the USAF A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack aircraft and the Soviet-built Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot ground attack jet, as well as the Mil Mi-24 Hind ground-attack helicopter, the pilot sits in a titanium enclosure known as the "bathtub" for its shape. In addition, larger aircraft's cockpit glazing is generally made of impact-resistant, laminated materials, even on civilian craft, to prevent damage from striking birds or other debris.