‘Curious, I grabbed his G-suit off the rack. Sure enough, there was a Sony Walkman (tape; this is 1983) in one of the pockets…,’ Pat Markwell, former A-10 Warthog Life Support Technician in the US Air Force
Electronic devices are not allowed to be carried by fighter pilots, including music players. It is unlikely that a device will interfere with the onboard avionics, although it is possible.
But there was an A-10 Warthog pilot during the Cold War who loved breaking that rule.
Pat Markwell, former Life Support Technician in the US Air Force, recalls on Quora;
‘As a novice Life Support tech, I was doing a post-flight inspection of one of our more Sierra Hotel A-10 pilots helmet. This usually involved swabbing spit out of the oxygen mask, cleaning the visor, and a quick once-over.
‘Then I noticed a very non-Milspec cord taped to the comm line that ran from the helmet, along the hose, and dangling next to the CRU-60 quick disconnects. Curious, I grabbed his G-suit off the rack. Sure enough, there was a Sony Walkman (tape; this is 1983) in one of the pockets.
‘A few minutes later, 1st Lieutenant B strolls through the LS section. Now, this is one of the coolest individuals I have ever met. So, showtime:
‘Me, holding his helmet “Uh, Lt. B? What’s with the walkman? I’m not sure that I can allow this to be considered suitable for flight (comm loss, post-ejection flailing, etc.).”
‘Lt. B “It will be fine. I just like to listen to The Doors when I strafe“.
‘Me “Let me get this straight, Sir. They pay you big bucks, let you strap on a multi-million-dollar aircraft, and you get to listen to The Doors as you blow s**t up?”
‘Lt B, now sporting the biggest shit-eating grin I’ve ever seen “That’s right, Airman. It’s kinda like getting paid to f**k”’
Markwell concludes;
‘And that is when I realized that fighter pilots are different than you and I…’
Photo by U.S. Air Force