Fighter jet canopy ejection system

Laser-welded aluminum tube filled with explosive; provides non-electrical percussive ejection of canopy when pilot loses electrical power. Made at a California factory; shown as physical sample.

[Tom passes a laser-welded aluminum part around.] This is a laser weld. These are little prototype welds. This one came from a factory in California where they would fill this with explosive — for the canopy of a fighter jet. If you lost electrical power and needed to eject, you don't want to try to eject right through the polycarbonate canopy, because you'll just kill yourself — you won't break the polycarbonate. You also can't rely on having electricity to operate things. So they have a percussive explosive: instead of transferring energy to bolts that hold the canopy on, they have a little aluminum tube filled with explosive, and you can hit the end of it and eject the canopy, then eject yourself. Laser-welded aluminum.