Mitsubishi G4M "Betty"

One of the most famous cockpit photos of the Betty, a very rare one taken at a time when the Army and Navy issued strict orders not to take photos of sensitive aircraft areas.

The layout of the instrument panel indicates that this plane had a registration number of less than 222. The guy sitting in the foreground on the right is the plane commander; the one in front of him is the pilot. The one on the left side with the binoculars is the observer, while the one sitting in front of him is the co-pilot. 

This photo reveals several intriguing details. The observer and the co-pilot wear a 1942 life vest, which had a pocket on the right and lower side, including a pencil and a small mirror in case of an emergency landing. Later types of this life vest didn't have that pocket. The vest was filled with cork for flotation. The commander doesn't even wear the life vest but has a set of radio receivers on produced by Toyo Tsushinki. The helmet of the observer is difficult to discern but is probably a winter version of the type produced early in the Pacific War. The lining was usually rabbit fur. His gloves are probably Type 1940. The binoculars were produced by Tokyo Shibaura Denki but were commonly known as "Matsuda".

Notice that none of the crew members wear the well-known pilot uniforms but white summer attire. The cords behind the commander's seat fastened the radio receiver; the box with the piece of paper is on its side. 

Under the reading lamp in front of the observer was the navigator's table. 

Note that none of the crew appears to be wearing a parachute (at least it doesn't seem so to me). In an interview with a veteran "Betty" pilot, he mentioned to us that they rarely wore parachutes because, for starters, there weren't enough for the entire crew, and it would have been improper only for the pilot or commander to wear one while the others did not. Moreover, wearing parachutes inside larger-than-fighter planes such as the "Betty" typically hindered mobility and obstructed movement. Additionally, the majority of missions occurred at relatively low altitudes, leaving insufficient time or altitude to bail out and deploy the parachute. The majority of Japanese pilots, particularly those flying larger aircraft, attempted to ditch their planes in the sea when the aircraft was damaged or sensed no chance of survival, choosing to swim away from the aircraft instead. That's the reason there are images of "Bettys" and "Emilys" flying at a low altitude over the ocean when enemy fighters attacked them. And last but certainly not least, bailing out of an aircraft and deploying the parachute meant that they became a helpless target for trigger-happy enemy pilots.

Finally, notice the absolute lack of any form of armor protection insode the cockpit, giving the impression of a civilian passenger plane. Unless someone considers the shades on the canopy as protection...