# Today I learned that F-35 pilots get $400,000 helmets with 'X-ray vision' - but the Pentagon almost ditched them

> Every F-35 pilot in the US Air Force gets their own custom-fitted $400,000 helmet, which lets them peer through the cockpit mid-flight to see what's going on in the surrounding airspace and the ground below.

- **Source:** [TechRadar](https://www.techradar.com/pro/today-i-learned-that-f-35-pilots-get-usd400-000-helmets-that-have-x-ray-vision?utm_source=gearopen.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=feed&utm_content=6a961b0eabec1b1cd43caab4)
- **Published:** 2026-09-01
- **Category:** Science
- **Tags:** #pilots #through #almost #ditched #flight #helmets #learned #pentagon
- **Canonical:** http://localhost:4321/a/6a961b0eabec1b1cd43caab4

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_GearOpen's distilled summary. The full original article is published at TechRadar (source link above); GearOpen does not republish the source's full text._