In an emergency situation during the pilot escape initiation, the seat moves up the rails leaving the aircraft. Pitots on the top of the seat near the parachute container are exposed to the airstream. Pitot and Static pressure inputs to the environ-mental sensing unit act on the speed and altitude transducers to establish the safest mode for the pilot involved, based on the speed and altitude environment. The recovery sequencer monitors the condition in 1 /300 sec.