Terrible tragedy and condolences to the family.
I offer this for discussion, I was talking to someone who flies a former East European training jet recently about the ejection seats and he said that the CAA was very much against them being inert. His was live. There was a near accident some years ago when an inert seat in a JP was not secured and while inverted the seat and passenger rolled through the canopy. The pax had the presence of mind to release the seat and survived.