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I read that WWI pilots did not have parachutes with them in their airplanes in case of emergency. So when did parachutes become standard for military pilots to have in case of emergency?
German WW1 fighter pilots routinely wore parachutes by the end of the war. Other countries started in the 1920s after some more experimentation.
By WW2 the Japanese were the exception as their pilots refused to wear them because they interpreted the Bushido warrior's code to mean doing so would be an admission that you were willing to be allowed to be captured by the enemy. The Imperial authorities started ordering pilots to wear parachutes because they needed live pilots and many would be alive to fly again if they bailed out over friendly territory.
All other combatants had parachutes standard for crew members during WW2 and of course afterwards.
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