Formula One cars will have the Halo cockpit safety device installed in the 2018 world championship, the sport’s strategy group said Wednesday, despite reservations over its effectiveness.
The sport has searched for extra head protection for drivers in the last two years following the deaths of F1 driver Jules Bianchi and IndyCar racer Justin Wilson. “Following the unanimous agreement of the Strategy Group, in July 2016, to introduce additional frontal protection for Formula One and the repeated support from the drivers, the FIA confirms the introduction of the Halo for 2018,” the group said in a statement.
“With the support of the teams, certain features of its design will be further enhanced. Having developed and evaluated a large number of devices over the past five years, it had become clear that the Halo presents the best overall safety performance.”
However, the influential Autosport magazine claimed that the majority of the 10 teams present at Wednesday’s meeting voted against the Halo, with the FIA pushing it through on safety grounds.
The Halo was first tested by Ferrari in 2016 with Red Bull boss Christian Horner describing it as “an ugly solution”. All teams have since trialled it. Three-time world champion Lewis Hamilton originally gave the Halo, which is wishbone-shaped and gathers to a point at the front of the cockpit, a cautious welcome when he saw it last year.
“It doesn’t look like it belongs on a Formula One car...but I paid close attention. I take safety very, very seriously,” said the Mercedes star. “It can still be improved. I don’t think we can ignore it and if there is any way to make it look a little better [that would be good] but it’s a safety thing that we all have to accept.”
An alternative system, the Shield, was tested for the first time in practice for the British Grand Prix last week. However, former world champion Sebastian Vettel said it made him feel dizzy and he cut short his test after just one lap at Silverstone.
“I tried it this morning, I got a bit dizzy... The forward vision is not very good,” said the four-time world champion. “I think it’s because of the curvature, you get quite a bit of distortion, plus you get quite a bit of downwash down the straight pushing the helmet forward. We had another run planned with it, but I didn’t like it, so we took it off.”
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