An impact jacket (pictures and stunt test video below) designed to protect motorcycle riders in a crash works in real life as an impact jacket saved the life of Joseph McPhatter in a high-speed freeway crash.

McPhatter attributed his miraculous survival to the motorcycle impact jacket he was wearing when he changed lanes at 65 mph and a car in front of him stopped suddenly, causing him to crash into it’s bumper and fly over the car.

Motorcycle airbag jackets are available in leather and non-leather styles:
Impact Jacket

Mr. McPhatter plowed into the back of the car and travelled more than 100 feet in the air before hitting the ground at an impact rate estimated at 140 mph.

McPhatter suffered only a broken thumb socket and sore ribs, knees, and shoulders. A Maryland State Trooper said to him at the hospital, “…this impact jacket saved your life!”

Here’s how the motorcycle airbag jacket works:
Impact Jacket explained

When the jacket receives an impact force of 25 kilograms (55 pounds), it triggers an internal airbag that instantly inflates to protect the motorcyclist’s spine, neck, and hips. Basically, the jacket is a cross between an airbag and a leather jacket, and protects areas of the body previously without any protection at all.

Impact Jacket Test Video

Stunt test rider crashes not once, but twice to demonstrate the motorcycle impact jacket airbag mechanism and how it protects a rider in both a spill and a head over heels crash.

The motorcycle airbag jackets are already in use by police departments in Brazil, Italy, Japan and Spain and offer significantly greater protection than a normal jacket. The inflatable vests are finding application in many other potentially dangerous activities such as horseback riding and power sports like go cart races, ATV racing, and motorcycle stunt events such as the X Games.

And that’s the latest news on life-saving motorcycle impact jacket.

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