Years of fighter jet flying may be causing brain injuries in Navy pilots

By Ella Webster. This article was initially published in the 1/9/25 edition of our Concussion Update newsletter; please consider subscribing.

In a New York Times article, journalist Dave Phillips highlights a confidential Navy project––code-named Project Odin’s Eye. Project Odin’s Eye, launched last year to study brain injuries in Navy SEALs exposed to repetitive blasts, aims to determine whether flying fighter jets poses significant risks to brain health.This project will collect detailed data on brain function from F/A-18 Super Hornet TOPGUN pilots to assess the cumulative effects of extreme flying under intense G forces. The military reportedly expedited the project to address the growing concerns about the long-term well-being of the pilots. In the past 18 months, three experienced Super Hornet pilots died by suicide after battling severe mental health challenges. 

Former pilots feel this study is long overdue, as many are experiencing symptoms that neurologists suspect are linked to brain injuries. Pilots endure intense G forces during flights, which compress their brains against their skulls. While the brain can recover from occasional impacts, repeated exposure over a career can lead to progressive, irreversible damage as torn neuron connections accumulate beyond the brain's capacity to reroute signals.

The three recent fighter pilot suicides have raised alarms about possible brain injuries, but no post-mortem testing for such damage was conducted. Current technology cannot definitively assess the microscopic damage of sub-concussive injuries in living brains, though it can detect changes in structural and functional connectivity, diffuse axonal injury, increases in inflammation, and other potentially relevant indicators. The article did not discuss what type of scans or studies the project would make use of, although this study potentially marks a step toward addressing the long-term effects of this thrilling profession.