They were zero-zero seats (capable of ejecting at zero airspeed/altitude, aka on the ground), so they conceivably would have been useful during some of the retu

They were zero-zero seats (capable of ejecting at zero airspeed/altitude, aka on the ground), so they conceivably would have been useful during some of the return trip, including sitting on the runway after landing. Understandably that was probably not the part of the flight the astronauts were most worried about though.