Dave Prossor writes an excellent aviation column in the magazine Australian Aviation, under the title Right Hand Seat. He has given me permission to reproduce part of his article from the June 2019 issue. Quote:
Cessna and Piper aircraft have been the norm for typical flying school and for-hire aircraft in the past. Now we are seeing more Diamond, Cirrus, Sting, Bristell, RV and other aircraft that have a bubble or sliding canopy. That can create a problem. The recent accident to a Cirrus SR20 at Tooradin was a wake-up call. The aircraft went off the runway and ended up on its left side, minus both wings and the tailplane, over a water filled canal. It was fortunate that the right door could be opened to allow the occupants to exit. Had the aircraft inverted it could have been that the two doors could not be opened and the cockpit sink into the water filled canal.
To the credit of the Cirrus makers there is an emergency egress hammer located in the console between the front seats. In the case of a roll-over the hammer can be used to break the windows to exit the machine. Now the Kiwis also had an egress axe or hammer located behind the seat back on the bubble canopy Airtourer line of aircraft that they produced. Smart people. In America there was the airshow Stearman that had a flip up cockpit cover. The machine ended up upside down on the ground during a low level pass. The pilot could not exit the aircraft due to the design of the cockpit cover. The aircraft burnt and the pilot died.
In the UK there have been several cases of the single seat Tipsy Nipper that have overturned and the pilot could not exit the cockpit due to the bubble canopy. He had to wait for first responders to assist him to exit. Here in Australia there have been several RV aircraft that have had the nose wheel collapse and the aircraft turn over. One was at Atherton Airport in January 2018. Another was at Starke Field, Qld. in January 2017. Both these required first responders to help get the occupants out. One can only guess the outcome if the aircraft had burnt.
.Another RV, near Albany, WA, in September 2016 had an engine failure and ended up upside down. Fortunately the windscreen broke and enabled the occupants to exit via the break. All these and others give serious consideration to the occupants of bubble canopy type aircraft to carry an emergency egress hammer or break out tool of the cold chisel variety to enable an exit by smashing the canopy to allow an exit in the case of an overturn.
It is said that in an aviation landing emergency only those who plan ahead have a fighting chance of survival. The above are a few reminders of considerations to allow that survival..