Нашел исследование "британских ученых": http://www.ntsb.gov/doclib/reports/2011/SS1101.pdf
Под ссылкой - довольно увесистый файл с иллюстрациями. Как и говорил, это исследование NTSB.
И выводы исследования несколько другие. До этого читал о нем в небольшой заметке в авиажурнале, и вывод там был сделан, что "подушки" не сильно полезны (так запомнилось).
Вот какие сделаны выводы на самом деле:
Findings
1. Based upon investigations of 10 accidents, there were no cases in which the airbags were
expected to deploy but did not.
2. There were no cases that involved airbags deploying under unexpected circumstances.
Based upon investigations of 10 accidents, there was no evidence of airbags hindering
egress, fueling postcrash fires, or interfering with rescue attempts.
3. Aviation airbags can mitigate occupant injuries in severe but survivable crashes in which
the principal direction of force is longitudinal.
4. Based upon investigations of 10 accidents, the airbag systems did not cause any negative
outcomes when occupants adjusted the restraint systems correctly, and in some cases
with airbag deployment, they were associated with reductions in the severity of occupant
injuries.
5. Some general aviation occupants have misused or incorrectly adjusted their restraints in
ways that could reduce the protection conveyed by the restraints or lead to injuries.
6. The 3-point restraint systems in certain Cessna Aircraft Company airplanes can be
reversed by occupants in such a way that the airbag and restraint systems are not used as
designed and certified.
7. Certain aviation airbag restraint configurations do not provide optimal protection for
occupants whose anthropomorphic characteristics are substantially dissimilar to those of
the anthropomorphic test dummy required for restraint testing.
8. Lap belt/shoulder harness combinations provide significant protection beyond a lap belt
alone, and fatalities and injuries would be reduced if lap belt/shoulder harness
combinations were used in all general aviation airplanes.
9. The understanding of aircraft crash dynamics and occupant safety would be improved if
airbag-equipped aircraft recorded, at a minimum, data concerning crash dynamics and
airbag deployment criteria.
10. Future evaluations of the effectiveness of occupant protection features, such as restraint
systems, airbags, and parachutes, would benefit from the establishment of a system to
provide information about what aircraft safety equipment is installed on individual
aircraft.
Все переводить не буду, коротко так: подушки полезны, когда направление удара идет вдоль фюзеляжа.
Однозначно полезны наплечные ремни. Подушки надо правильно проектировать и устанавливать. Полезность этих устройств надо изучать, что будет значительно легче, если информация об условиях срабатывания будет сохраняться на каком-нибудь носителе (и если будет система, в которой будут храниться данные об установленных на ЛА средствах спасения - подушках, парашютах, ремнях и т.д.).
Решайте сами, в пользу "подушек" выступает исследование, или наоборот.