As a pilot in training I want to be prepared for those little emergencies such as forced landings etc. Here in South Africa, there is not much wilderness and pretty much all over cellphone coverage. BUT, in the event of a forced/crash landing, which are the most common injuires we need to plan for, and have equipment in the FAK of the plane? Fractures?, facial injuries? Please share your experiences.

Whatever you decide on...... be sure to include a couple of SAM splints.

They can be used to splint anything short of a femur fracture and you can improvise a c-collar with one.

And they are very lightweight as well.

Baie drankies Nighthiker - Thanks for the input all

So I reckon on at least the following:
* 2 SAM splints
* 4 Large Bomb bandages
* 2 Gel burnshields

Then the usual FAK items. Must not be too big otherwise it will get left behind, better to a little of the good things than bugger all of everything.

Jeremy

Just a question from a non-pilot here, but isn't fire an ever present threat during a hard landing/crash? First aid items for burns might be particularly useful for this kit, too.

Once an aircraft touches down on an unprepared surface all bets are off. Fire can happen easily. The plane may stay upright with no injuries, or the aircraft might flip and kill everyone. One person can walk away unscathed while the guy sitting next to him might be dead -- it's a crap shoot.

Get a good FAK to handle immediate emergencies like profuse bleeding. Do what you can to get rescue there quickly and let the EMT's do the heavy lifting. $.02

The type of burns during a real crash.....a FAK aint gonna help.

A tube of silvadene perhaps......

I have been involved in the attempted rescue in several aircraft "mishaps." Sadly, all but one were fatal to all involved. In that one case, a single engine high wing stalled at low speed, low altitude, while in a pretty tight right turn. Fell from the sky like a rock, coming down mainly on the right wingtip, which crumpled, absorbing a lot of the damage. The pilot, sole occupant, had broken everything, from skull fracture to all four limbs (ankles severly), and multi internal injuries. He barely made it, required numerous surgeries, was in quad casts for several months. Oh, I almost forgot, he was also soaked in fuel, but luckily nothing ignited. In cases like that, basic life support is about all you can hope to do...