Very interesting thread... missed it first time around.
Chimbu chuckles:
They finally discovered that chaps over a certain height had a hip to knee measurement that precluded the knees passing behind the canopy bow.
They measured everyone and those to tall were posted to Vampires where, due to a lack of said expulsive device, no similar problem existed.
Now maybe my memory is failing me, perhaps someone can confirm or deny, but I thought it was precisely the reverse; long-legged chaps were unable to bang out of the Vampire safely, and were sent to the roomier Meteor?
R1