The aim of the investigation was to examine the stress in the period before and after the action connected to catapulting of the pilot's seat. Stress situation invoked the activation of the autonomous nervous system which was manifested in subjects' pulse rate. The subjects were the candidates for military pilots. The investigation was conducted on Martin-Baker grounds. The results showed that the general tendency is a significant rise of activation up to the moment of catapulting. The successful subjects had, in average, significantly lower level of activation than the subjects who were partly successful or did not succeed at all. Results were interpreted within the theory of stress and activation. The findings showed that overactivation interfered with the given tasks, especially when the tasks were tied to the reaction caused by the environment.
