F1 safety has come a long way since the 1950s.
On the back of Formula One's Mark Webber's big crash at the European Grand Prix on the streets of Valencia and Mike Conway's monster wreck during the Indianapolis 500, Superwheels is taking a look at racecar safety.
In this article Superwheels is having a peek at the history of F1 safety and how far it has come since the 1950s.
In the beginning it's not drawing too long a bow to say there were no safety features, either with the cars or the tracks. It was all about flat-out speed and a little bit about trying to slow down.
By the mid-1950s engines had moved to the rear of the car and disc brakes had been fitted. Not a lot else happened until 1960 when there was a concerted effort to introduce safety measures into F1 - one of the first being the fitting of roll-bars.
By 1963 things were moving along more quickly when flag signals were unified, fuel tanks were built with fire prevention in mind, double brake systems were made compulsory and the FIA took over racetrack safety.
By now it was also compulsory for drivers to wear fireproof race suits and full-visor helmets, and cockpits had to be redesigned making it easier for drivers to get out quickly.
There were a few more tweaks over the next couple of years, including the fitting of a double fire extinguishing system. During the 1970s the FIA introduced track inspections before racing started, the installation of decent safety barriers and a wall between pit lane and the track. Drivers had to be able to be pulled out of the car within five seconds and a code of conduct was introduced for them as well.
Head rests and rear lights were made a permanent fixture and the six-point harness became mandatory along with marshals, a medical service with a centre for resuscitation and compulsory rescue training.
The FIA became more involved with track specifications and run-off areas and by the late 70s issued a standard for all race helmets. In 1978 it was announced that only drivers with a super licence could enter a Formula One race.
When the 1980s rolled around the FIA had assumed almost total control of racecar and racetrack safety and began to introduce a raft of technical and safety improvements. Circuits had to have a permanent medical centre, a helicopter had to be on stand-by on race weekend, the FIA took over safety regulations on non-permanent circuits and safety walls had to be at least 1m high, and the pit wall 1.35 metres. By the end of the decade anti-doping tests were introduced.
As for driver safety in the car, the safety cell had to be extended to include the driver's legs and feet and the fuel tank had to be between the driver and the engine. Crash testing was introduced to ascertain the effect of a head-on crash and impacts on fuel tanks and safety cell. In 1988 a permanent FIA race director is announced.
Safety improvements didn't slow in the 1990s, either. Drivers had to undergo compulsory driver training and larger rear-view mirrors and detachable steering wheels became mandatory. Tests for roll-over bars, seatbelts and survival cells are introduced as well as the official Formula One safety car and stricter crash tests.
The amount of protection around the driver's head is increased 500 per cent to 400mm2. By now the law-makers had turned their attention to the pit crew who now all had to wear fireproof clothing. Helmets came later.
In 1994 the FIA assigns a team of experts to check how Formula One racing can be made safer by means of new technologies but driver aids such as traction control, ABS, power-assisted brakes and automatic gearboxes are banned. The speed limit in the pit lane is chopped to 120km/h during a race and 80km/h in practice.
Towards the late 90s accident data recorders had to be fitted to the cars and a rear impact test as well as new rear crash structures are made compulsory. Car width was reduced and the driver had to be able to remove the steering wheel, get out of the cockpit and replace the steering wheel within 10 seconds. By the turn of the century wheels had to be tethered to the car to stop them flying off, the seat and driver had be taken out of the car together and four medically equipped rescue vehicles and a car for the FIA-doctor are made compulsory.
Early in the 2000s tweaks were made to the crash impact test speeds, the amount of carbon fibre in the car, roll-bar height and impact strength.
As the new decade continued from season to season, most of the changes in F1 were to do with driver penalties and new lateral crash-test speeds and impact forces.
Circuits were more heavily scrutinised with safety in mind. Many circuits were told to increase the run-off area. The big one in the 2000s was the mandatory introduction of the Head and Neck Safety (HANS) device for all drivers in 2003. Helmet construction standards were further increased to improve safety.
Heading towards where we are now, more rules are introduced around safety car deployment, wing and aerodynamic body part construction and cockpit protective padding.
Pit lane speed is reduced to 80km/h on race day.
- Additional information: Formula One
