Technique: Cold Comfort

1. Head: The old outdoors truism, “If your feet are cold, put a hat on,” applies to flying, too. Your head accounts for about 7 percent of your body’s surface area but requires about 10 percent of its heating energy. (There’s less fat there, and the body’s internal regulator puts a premium on keeping the brain warm.) So if your head gets cold, the body redirects heat there from your extremities. Wear an insulated hat, scarf, or balaclava. Tape over cabin air intakes to reduce drafts before cold-weather flights.

2. Torso: A n electrically heated vest is the gold standard. Ben Redman of Rare Aircraft in Minnesota flies open-cockpit biplanes all year, and a heated vest that plugs into the aircraft electrical system is his main protection from cold. He wears it under a leather flying jacket, and that allows him to fly throughout the winter.

3. Arms and legs: Avoid cotton because when it gets wet, it stays wet. Synthetic, moisture-wicking materials keep the skin dry. But beware of nylon and other highly flammable materials, which would stick to your skin in case of fire. Firefighters and the military have developed specialized lines of fire-resistant undergarments.

4. Hands and feet: Motorcyclists and hunters have an array of electrically heated socks and gloves, but they tend to be too bulky for pilots. Chemically activated hand and foot warmers won’t fail in flight, and they last for hours. Carry a few in your flight bag and use them whenever the need arises. Use wool (or synthetic hybrid “smart wool”) socks and avoid cotton. Also, pilots who use touch-screen avionics or tablet computers should be aware that capacitive touch screens don’t work with most gloves.

5. Face: When flying open-cockpit aircraft, goggles that cover much of the face protect the eyes from wind and cold. A simple neck gaiter can be pulled up over your mouth and nose and, unlike a scarf, it can’t get blown away in flight.

6. Other winter gear tips: Tablet batteries drain quickly in cold weather, and sometimes the screens won’t activate at all. Self-fueling can be tricky on an icy, windy ramp. Don’t exert yourself so much on the ground that you break a sweat, because that moisture will haunt you in the air. Pack a sleeping bag and other cold-weather gear in the airplane to survive outdoors in case of a forced landing in a remote area. And finally, when you’re wearing multiple layers of clothing and plan to fly long distances, stay away from the coffee pot.