On October 29, 2020 Collins Aerospace Systems, a unit of Raytheon Technologies Corp. announced that the company has been awarded a sole-source US$700 Million firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the delta qualification, production and fielding of a next generation ejection seat for various Air Force aircraft.  Work will be performed in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and is expected to be completed Oct. 22, 2030.  The first delivery order focuses on outfitting the USAF fleet of Boeing F-15s with the ACES 5 ejection seat.

ACES 5 is Collins Aerospace’s next-generation ejection seat and features enhanced head, neck, arm and leg flail prevention, in addition to a load-compensating catapult based on the occupant’s weight. ACES 5 reduces overall ejection-related major injuries to less than 5 percent and ejection-related spinal injuries to less than 1 percent. Collins Aerospace ACES 5 seat provides MIL-HDBK-516C safety while meeting Government requirements to include a qualification schedule planned within Air Force program objectives and equal or lower life cycle costs. Most recently, the seat was selected for the U.S. Air Force’s T-7A Red Hawk trainer.

"Collins Aerospace continues to leverage innovative technologies to keep aircrew safe, reduce maintenance costs, and improve operational performance,” said Heather ROBERTSON, Vice President & General Manager, Collins Aerospace. “Our goal is to provide the best-performing ejection seat exceeding the most stringent safety requirements in the world today.  The ACES 5 is in a class of its own and we couldn’t be more excited to begin fielding it while continuing the proud legacy of the ACES Family of Systems.”