ATTN: Samnavy
 

I has a new tenant moving in tomorrow. He is a non smoker.


:giggle:

My tenants smoke crack.
Never have any issues with smell

Nah, its when they cook it that you need to worry about the smell.

Febreze works wonders though.

Probably non-smoker of cigarettes... but I bet your application says nothing about smoking pole. He'll probably turn out to be the President of the local NAMBLA crew. You might want to see if Hustler knows the guy. Nice one btw.

Speaking of such things, I thought I'd heard the best name ever the other day. There is a Petty Officer in a local squadron named... McNutt. That was until I met Ensign Poon. The guy is 3rd generation American, but his great-great whatevers came from China. His callsign was assured a long time ago... "Cakes".

I still want to know what you did to earn your callsign.

I though everybody knew... I worked for Club Med for 2 years after college as a flying trapeze artist.

A Seamen named McNutt :giggle:

I kidd. What's your callsign?

"Freakshow"

That one's pretty cool. I guess your pears chose your callsign?

http://images.cheezburger.com/comple...0216488969.jpg

For the most part. There are really 3 ways to earn your callsign:

1: Break a really expensive piece of military hardware. For example: A guy who takes a cat-shot with his parking brake set will be called "skids" or "rimjob".

2: Something about you personally, your name or the way you look, or your personality. For example:
John "Morecow" Bell
Adam "Notso" Swift

3: During a port-call, get really hammered and do something stupid... might involve lady-boys. Example:
Mike "DASH" Jones *Anytime you see a callsign in all caps, it stands for something... in this case "Dumb ass shit himself".

Callsigns aren't what they used to be though. In the last 2 years, Naval Aviation has undergone a massive pussification. There have been callsign "reviews" where skippers are required to change the callsigns of anybody who has one found to be "offensive". And not offensive to him because earning your callsign is part of our warrior culture... but rather offensive to some liberal bitch reporter who is out for her 15 minutes. The powers that be are flushing our pride down the toilet for the most part. You can see it in Ready Rooms and on the Deckplates. The "fun" part of being in the military in general is slowly being bled away. Special forces has still managed to put a big fuck you to the proponents of political correctness, but they're the only ones. The rest of us are very quickly losing our edge.

They're even geting involved with callsigns?!?!?!?

I thank GOD I was in Naval Aviation prior to Tailhook. There were no women on carriers in those days . . . just future Miata drivers.

-Bluto

SAMNAVY, i gots you a new call sign.


Smokey.

That's too bad. I guess that Caption (?) of the USS Enterprise being shitcanned for his "inappropriate" youtube videos is part of the pussification. I am disappointment.


He even warns the viewers "The Captain and Admiral no nothing of the content of this video and therefor should not be helled accountable" and "if your easily offended don't watch".

I know virtually nothing about carrier air-ops, but a stupid question: will a typical carrier-based aircraft even reach V2 with the parking brake set? I realize that the cat is a mighty beast, I'm just trying to picture what that would look like.

I'd imagine it would involve lots of tire smoke, the sound of metal being forced into a shape it shouldn't be in, and somebody's career taking a thrashing.

And, yes, there will be no issue whatsoever with the aircraft reaching flying speed (don't use the term V2 on tactical jets).

Interesting call signs . . .:

"Boom Boom": Was so tensed up on his first trap that he landed with the brakes applied. This was in a TA-4J (no anti-skid system).

"Vapes": Damn near ran out of fuel during exercises at Fallon, NV in an F/A-18A.

"Blazer": Made a wrong turn while taxiing one night and ended up in the grass (F/A-18C).

"Pid": First name Stu.

It goes on and on.

Damn, Joe, you're in NYC now?

Ok, I grant you it'd be meaningless on a cat launch.

What's the official term for minimum takeoff speed in a tactical airplane?

Joe, I sit in the back, so take this with a grain of salt... and I'm going to insult your intelligence here for a minute for the sake of discussion.

Minimum speed to take off should be whatever the stall speed of the plane is plus a few knots for ground effect. Tactical aircraft don't brief that however because everything has a margin of safety. We brief rotate speed in the Hawkeye. We almost always take off at the exact same gross weight of 54k. Aircraft that have stores can have takeoff weights that vary by 30klbs+... for example, a Superhornet has catapult launch settings that go from like 34klbs to 68k... ie, he can take a cat-shot with zero weapons and almost dry tanks all the way up to full tanks and carrying 15k of weapons or a mix.

What is far a far more important number for tactical jets however is refusal speed. There comes a certain speed reached on takeoff that when you hit it, you must continue the takeoff. Prior to, you still have the option to abort. In the Hawkeye, our refusal speed does not take into account our ability to use reverse thrust in case the reason we're aborting is because of an engine issue... it's only using the brakes. Ie... if our refusal speed is 120kts, at 119kts, we still have enough runway left to stop the aircraft on the pavement using the brakes alone. At 120kts, if we attempt to abort and have no reverse thrust, we'll drive off the end of the runway. The term "Critical Field Length" comes into play here. CAVEAT... almost all military airfields have arresting gear that we can use to stop the plane, but you're not allowed to factor that in when calculating numbers.

Tactical jets obviously don't have reverse thrust, but Navy aircraft typically have a very robust braking system due to our typically short runways. Air Force aircraft on the other hand with their huge runways typically have very wimpy brakes.

As for shooting... the shooters prior to walking out on the flight deck to shoot have a rundown of all the planes that are going to fly that event. They know the side numbers of the planes, their loadouts, and weights. That information, along with current atmospheric data allows the shooters to make some basic calculations about what kind of wind they'll need to see over the deck to launch planes.

The thing about carrier flight ops is that all of the procedures are based around shooting planes while simultaneously defending the carrier from attack. Any time the ship is launching/landing, it has to drive in a straight line at a steady speed... that makes it very easy to attack, especially for a submarine. The idea is to land/launch as quick as you can and the turn. A typical land/launch cycle during the day might take 15 minutes... but at night, might last an hour. So, while the carrier is under flight ops, it's course/speed is predictable and it is most vulnerable. The shooters will actually tell the ship drivers how much wind they need over the deck... specifically, a minimum wind.

So if there is 10kts of wind out of the west on a specific day, but the ship only has seaspace to drive eastbound, and the shooters need 20kts of wind over the deck... the ship has to drive the screws to 30kts... which is hauling ass. How much wind the shooter needs depends mostly on the aircraft weights and the air temp/humidity/density.

So here's how it works. A plane rolls up to the cat and there is a guy on the deck who holds up a WEIGHT BOARD with the known weight of the aircraft on it which the pilot rogers and that guy then shows the shooter... that way the shooter knows the exact current weight of the plane.
http://cdn8.wn.com/pd/3f/58/7bea5a41...8fb_grande.jpg
The shooter then takes that weight and the current wind over the deck and references a chart called a "LAUNCH BULLETIN". The aircraft weight plus the wind over the deck tells the shooter how much power to give the catapult. Every plane has different charts, and the power of the cat is set for every plane on every shot real-time.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...8CVN_69%29.jpg
The shooter dials the power setting into the cat and then keeps a very close eye on the wind throughout the shooting process. If halfway through a shot the wind drops enough, the shooter will suspend the shot and "re-wind". In that pic, you can see the shooter, the deck operator with the launch bulletins in his lap, his "talker" who is in comms with the equipment operators belowdecks, and on the inside of the hatch, the boxes that show the shooter the current windspeed and atmospheric data.

The catapult has a power setting of 20-320. This does not equate to any speed, it just means that a setting of "20" is the minimum setting (ie, 1% power of the cat), and "320" (100% of catapult power) is the maximum. The dials adjust in even numbers. The power setting for that particular plane on that particular shot if the weight is perfect and the wind is exact gives the aircraft "SAFE SINGLE ENGINE FLYAWAY SPEED PLUS 15KTS". If you shit a motor on the stroke, you still have enough endspeed to safely fly the plane and execute a safe climbout.

have you ever punted a football with the catapult?

I think I heard it's tradition to launch somebody's shoes off the flight deck, but i cant remember who's.

theoretically, Sam, how much would it hurt to sit with your legs spread and take a catapult shot to the nuts?

Wouldn't hurt a bit. You'd be killed instantly.

Hopefully, Bin Laden's corpse got a cat shot.

Sam, why not launch all planes at max cat speed?

And ever see one spill in the Ocean? What was the outcome? Was every rescued? What happened to a pilot if they fail a plane into the ocean?

Thanks for the explanation though. Was an interesting reading

I have something you can smoke, it's my penis...and I'm not kidding.

We did for the Army/Navy Football game... had a camera crew onboard for a week building footage for commercials and stuff. I took this video. The action is in the last 15 seconds. Bad day to be a football.

The shooters and the airboss will do a "boot shoot" at the end of their tour. Sometimes the Captain will if he's cool. Here are some shots and a video of mine. You prep a pair of boots ahead of time, but tradition requires you run the track barefoot... hence my socks. It's hot as fuck.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...6&d=1319997765
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...7&d=1319997765
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...8&d=1319997765
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...9&d=1319997765
Hmmm... the entire moving assembly of the pistons/connector/shuttle weigh about 12,000lbs. They're made of the most ungodly strong steel you can imagine. On the "no-load" setting where we shoot test shots with no planes attached, the assembly hits the brakes at about 200mph... and all that energy concentrated on an area the size of a fist when it makes contact with your nuts. You can't explain that.

It's all about fatigue. You could put every plane off the end at a 320 setting assuming you could build a nose-gear that wouldn't get ripped off... but then you'd be putting double/triple the stress on the plane that it needs. They need to last 25 years, so giving them just enough speed to safely fly provides maxiumum lifespan of aircraft and catapult parts. Goshawks (training jets) weigh 12k lbs. Tomcats could weigh as much as 72k lbs if I remember right.

A Hawkeye leaves the flight deck at about 140kts. A Hornet anywhere from 150-180kts. Hornets also have afterburners. The power settings for Hornets are different if they're going to be shot in blower. The settings are actually less for a blower shot than a regular shot even though blower shots are typically for heavier aircraft. The afterburner is helping the plane down the track. Remember that all the shots are based on getting enough speed for a SINGLE ENGINE shot. Hornets are "almost" centerline thrust, which means if they lose a motor on the stroke, it's not trying to push the plane sideways down the track. Hawkeyes have extreme assymetric thrust issues because the motors are so far apart, and the launch bulletins are all calculated for a worst case scenarios... ie, a Hornet doing a blower shot who loses a motor completely and loses the blower on the good engine, or a Hawkeye losing it's critical engine.

I've never witnessed a cat failure personally. They are VERY RARE. But... but my best friend died in 2007 off of Truman during carrier qualifications when their Hawkeye crashed immediately off the cat even though they had good speed... crash report had many causal factors, the cat was not one of them. My daughter is named after him.

With an ejection seat aircraft, rule #1 is that if you're going to pull the handle, do so in time to saver your life. I'm pretty sure the emergency procedures for a cold cat-shot for tactical jets or "not enough speed" off the cat are:
1. Select Afterburner.
2. Gear up.
3. Flaps to FULL.
4. Standby to eject.

In the Hawkeye, skip step 1 and insert "Pray" for #4.

This is a very famous video of an Intruder who had a hydraulic flight control failure off the cat. The pilot lived but the Navigator did not... you can see he hits the water without a full chute opening. The pilot manages to get one swing in the chute before impacting the water.


Here's another famous video of an old radial piston S-2 Tracker.

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yo, if you can't explain it, can you just convince someone to do it and see what happens? I'll paypal you $9.

Pusha must still be drunk

yo, I got my girl to watch that porn with me last night. thanks babyboy.

Me shooting from the "BUBBLE". Something cool to watch for is immediately before I say "there's the squat" at :53 seconds. You'll see the nose of the plane dip down about a 6" as the pilot selects afterburner and the thrust fully compresses the nose strut. You'll also hear me use the word "COMBAT" a couple times. That doesn't mean this is a combat mission, but rather "COMBAT RATED THRUST" which is the technical term for afterburner. This plane is a FA18/F Superhornet 2-seater. You can see 3 large fuel tanks which drives the gross weight high enough that an afterburner takeoff is warranted.


This is taken from the PORT catwalk and the shot is from Catapult-4... at that point in the stroke, he's doing about 100kts


I'm filming this one. It's a shot from the bow bubble shooting Cat-2, an FA18/E afterburner (COMBAT) shot.
You just miss the pilot "thumbs up" for the weight board, but the guy brings the board to the Shooter and he uses that number to reference the launch bulletins, and then set the catapult power via the 3 large knobs on the panel. Turn the volume up so you can hear what he's saying as he goes through the sequence.
You'll see at time 1:29, the guy on the flight deck throws his arm in the air... this is one variation on the signal for the pilot to now select afterburner. A deck operators combat signal is a point of pride. That one was pretty lame. Some guys get really wild. My signal was somewhat legendary.


I'm filming this one. This is TOPSIDE shooting, 2 shooters, the big guy is under instruction. They're shooting Cat-3. The guy pushing the buttons is actually in the catwalk directly to my right. You can see the shooters "COMBAT" signal at :27... lame.

so how many of you dudes does it take to get one of those suckers in the air?

this is a cool ass thread.
I actually learned a few things

I could honestly say "the entire ship", but that would be cliche.

Each catapult is manned by 7-8ppl on deck including the Shooter, and 6-7 belowdecks. There are 4 cats.

Each arresting gear engine is manned by 6-7 on deck and 5-6 belowdecks... there are 4 engines.

There are 7-10ppl in the tower including the Airboss.

There are 5-8 LSO's on the LSO Platform for landings.

During FULL flight ops, there are anywhere from 200-300 other people on deck who are driving tow tractors, chocking and chaining aircraft, directing aircraft, arming aircraft, fueling aircraft, providing safety oversight, performing maintenance on aircraft or just watching.

But at it's most basic level, the amount of people it takes to man a cat, hook up the plane, and then push the fire button takes about 40ppl.

I should also mention that there are 2 ways of shooting. The first way is called "TOPSIDE" or "DECKEDGE". In this method, the Shooter is up on the flight deck calling the shots, making the hand-signals, and there is another guy standing in the catwalk actually pushing the buttons on the shooters signals. The shooter still retains full control of the evolution, it's just that the actual mechanical/electrical control of the circuits is being controlled by a guy operating a panel in the catwalk.

In the "BUBBLE" method, the Shooter is inside the... well, bubble. The Shooter pushes all the buttons and there is a guy on the flight-deck who makes all the hand-motions. There is a system of lights on the flight deck that as the shooter pushes buttons, the guy on the flight deck knows what hand-motions to do next.

I've got videos of both methods so you can see the difference.

so hundreds of dudes to get a plane in the air. wow.

That number actually shocked me. 300 seems like a recipe for disaster.

When you were in the bubble shooting the jets, why is everything audible. Why do you call the cross wind, squat etc? Can anyone else here you saying them out loud?

Can anyone override you via a button or switch or are you the point of no return guy? Are you accountable for the people on the deck if you launch and say they made a mistake? Do mistakes even happen with that much redundancy ?

Have you seen combat?

You read a lot of ground soldiers get messed up after blowing shit up like people. Do pilots just high five and walk around saying "i feel the need, the need for speed!" and not giving a crap cause they are so distanced from it all?

Is there such thing as dog fights anymore?

Anyone ever fall overboard by accident, by choice?

Which part of your day do you dislike the most when on a Carrier; favorite part?

Can you have sex with females on a Carrier and not get in crap?

Does the carrier ever rock due to waves? Is there such thing as a big wave to a carrier?

*can you tell im so Canadian and not military.....* Alex will vouch i ask him shitloads of Military questions.

In this one, you can see the deckedge operator standing in the catwalk immediately in front of the nose of the aircraft.
At time :31, you can see him put both hands in the air... this is the indication that the cat is fully armed and the fire button is lit. When the shooter touches the deck and points, you'll see that guy sweep his whole body forward-back as he visually scans for anybody trying to signal him not to fire... then his right hand will drop as he pushes the button. He then puts both hands immediately back up. In the event the cat doesn't fire, his hands are up telling the shooter than he did indeed push the button, and that he's not going to do anything else until the shooter tells him to.

You seriously have a cool job Sam.

http://content9.flixster.com/questio...806783_std.jpg

When my grandpa was in the Navy (WWII) he had to jump off the deck of a carrier during training.

So, wait, are you a back seater on a Hawkeye, and a Shooter? Or you WERE a backseater on a Hawkeye, and NOW you're a Shooter?

It takes a lot of people to make the whole thing happen... 300 on deck is probably the extreme, but 150-200 is more than average.

When I'm in the bubble, there is another guy sitting behind me, facing forward. He's an enlisted guy who has a ton of other controls and instruments for reading the condition of the cat. He also talks to all the below-deck stations and is a second set of eyes/ears in the safety chain. He's also a guy who's spend his entire Navy life on the flight deck and working specifically on the catapults. As a Shooter, I only had a 2 year tour... it was something "career enhancing" that aviators get to do at a specific point in their career... but all the enlisted guys are there forever. The other guy in the bubble keeps me out of trouble. At several points, you can hear him talking to me, repeating things in the launch chain or providing info I need to make a decision.

As the shooter is going through the launch sequence, there are several people who can push a button to override the cat and prevent it from firing. The Airboss in the Tower is one. This initiates a "SUSPEND" where I must disconnect the aircraft from the shuttle so the pilot can bring the throttles back. Then we talk about what happened and usually try again.

The Shooter is ultimately responsible 100% for the safety of the shooting evolution. Mistakes do get made though and people die. In the end, I'm the guy pushing the FIRE button on that big bitch... if it goes wrong, it's my fault.

I flew the opening weeks of OIF off of Lincoln, and my entire cruise on Nimitz was launching planes into Afghanistan. I've seen plenty of jets leave with full wings and come back clean.

I haven't heard of any pilots coming home with PTSD, and I can't speak for a fighter guy, but I am keenly aware of the responsibility I have when directing fire. Giving somebody permission to fire isn't the same as pulling the trigger, but the knowledge that if you fuck it up the wrong people will die is exactly the same. I've given permission many times, but I trust in the chain of checks/balances and in the people providing me with the information I need to make a decision.

I can also tell you that the life of a jet guy isn't very glamorous. It's hours or days of paperwork, preparation, briefing, reviewing, double-checking... endless tedium and bullshit boredom followed by 1hr of actual flying where you may get to drop a bomb or strafe a target, but probably not.

If you're talking about REAL flying... the place to be is arguable attack helos. Apache and Cobra pilots are legit crazy.

The last time the US was in an air-to-air engagement was in the opening days of Desert Storm. It's been 20 years. The chances of it happening again are almost zero. The technology of radar and missile systems makes it almost impossible that an enemy aircraft will ever again get within visual range of a US fighter. We train extensively in dogfighting though, with the Hawkeye being a major player in that arena, but an actual combat dogfight is a virtual impossibility with modern technology.

People fall overboard all the time... usually by accident. Shit just happens... slippery deck, jet-blast, whatever. Jumpers are common... you usually get one or two per 6-8month cruise. It's always some pussy looking for attention.

Least favorite part of the day is when I'm standing somewhere waiting for somebody else. When planes are flying, time is precious. As a shooter, I'm on the flight deck 6-10 hours per day, which means "don't waste my motherfucking time". Best time of the day is bullshitting with the boys around midnight over a poker game eating a bowl of half-melted Rocky Road.

Sex is not allowed... but that stops nobody who wants to. The ship is big... very big. It's easier for Officers because we have staterooms, but lots of guys are married and there isn't a wide selection of partners. Enlisted types find ways however, it's not hard. If you're caught, it goes very bad on you.

Does a carrier every rock due to waves? HAHAHAHAHAHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

No!! Rick is a foreign spy!!

God Bless SAMerica!

I am a Hawkeye NFO. I'm currently in Virginia Beach going through refresher training because I haven't flow in 3 years. I'm going back to a Squadron in about a month.

However, Officers are expected to have a very broad and varied career. At certain points of your career, you're expected to leave the cockpit and go do something else. For one of those tours, I went to USS Nimitz as a Catapult and Arresting Gear Officer (Shooter). It is completely possible for a guy to complete flight school (2 years), go do a single initial 3 year fleet tour, and then never get in the cockpit again, but still finish with 20+ years and retire. The military has TONS of jobs that have nothing to do with what kind of gold device you wear on your chest.

My shooter tour ended a year ago, and between then and now, I spent a year in Pt Mugu as the Safety Officer at a Staff.

Gotcha. My dad was an Army helicopter pilot for ~20 years, and after flight school, he spent the entire time he was in the Army and physically able to fly either flying, training other guys to fly, or ordering large groups of guys to go fly. I guess I never considered that after flight school 'they' would tell you to go do something other than fly, as long as you wanted to, and were able to.

Actually,

1. AB
2. Gear Up
3. Flying Speed Not Attained: Stores -- Jettison (say goodbye to 15,000+ pounds that aren't going to be delivered today)
4. Flying Speed Not Attained: Eject (most NATOPS procedures seemed to end with this simple little word).

I can't even begin to imagine flying around the carrier without an ejection seat. Don't know how you do it.

The S-2 video didn't load. You're talking about the one where the load shifts and it goes straight up, right? That one's nightmarish.

Actually, having typed that, he did command a simulator battalion, and do a Tour With Industry, both when I was little.

I was a pilot in VFA-83 on USS Saratoga during Desert Shield/Desert Storm. Did 25 combat missions during Desert Storm.

It is generally pretty remote. There is also a stark realization that it's either me or you, so I'm going to make it you. Looking back, I can tell you that the Navy kept us pretty pumped up -- maybe even a bit brainwashed -- about how "good" we were. That's needed though. They expect a lot and don't want hesitation.

The one thing that haunts me, even now, are the attack missions on the Basra road. Nobody was shooting back. It was just a turkey shoot. The CNN film footage made me ill. It was already over, and the poor saps just wanted to get home. Hell, you didn't even have to aim. Just drop the ordnance. It was going to hit something.

Sam referred to the last ones from 20 years ago, which would be the ones in Desert Storm. Two guys in my sister squadron (VFA-81) got MIG kills -- Mark Fox (now an Admiral) and Nick Mongillo. Another famous Hornet driver from Saratoga was Scott Speicher -- first KIA of the war. Heck of a nice guy too.

This thread is making me all sentimental and shit.

Hats off to you Sam. Good luck with your tour. This your Department Head tour?

Yup, DH tour... still holding out for O-5, but don't have the record for Command screen. It's ugly in the boards at Millington. We'll see what happens in the budget come February, but we're certainly looking at A LOT of "stuff" going away. "Stuff" as in an entire Airwing or even Battlegroup. The Reserves are going to take a huge hit, and so are all the VR's and minor'ish AUX-type units. They're really trying to cut us down to the bare bones. Competition is going to get really tough. I've already got my application all typed out and ready for Home Depot.

Hey, I fixed the link to the last video in Post #28 for the Tracker flying through the wave... serious OH SHIT moment. I know the other one you're talking about, it was a C-2 back in the way early 70's I think.

Sometimes it is much better to go around. (starts at ~1:00)





And Rick, here is some pitching carrier flight ops for you (ignore the music) off the coast of Australia. I don't now how in the hell you can get a plane onto a deck that is heaving and rolling like that!

What goes around, comes around. Things got REALLY ugly in 1992. Tailhook + "Peace Dividend." It's going to be just like that this time too, with two wars ending and a socialist in the White House.

Ronald Reagan gave me my diploma. Back in those days, it was all about a 600 ship Navy. Ahhhh . . . the good 'ol days.

Sam, that is some very interesting info, and I thank you.

"See ya!" Best departure call ever. :D

I'm kind of an aviation buff, but all of my first-hand experience is civilian, and PPL at that. A 172 is the biggest thing I've ever been in the left seat of. (I have an hour of right-seat time on a G-IV, but that was purely by accident, and I didn't have my logbook with me at the time.) The only carrier I have ever been aboard was the Intrepid, and that doesn't really count.

In that video of the S-2, it looks like the deck was awash when the plane went in. Am I reading that right? Unbelievable.



That's essentially what we'd call V1. It's the decision speed below which you have the option to safely abort the takeoff, and above which, you abort only in the event of a major emergency (eg: fire) or if you deem the aircraft to be unable to achieve flight.

You have enlightened me in one critical regard: stores. With commercial airliners, fuel load is obviously a variable, though of course the FMC generally takes care of that for you, and drop-tanks don't exist. In the world of GA, it's quite simple. The tanks are full, the payload doesn't vary all that much, and if anything is hanging from the wings, you'd have noticed it during the walkaround.

So things make a bit more sense now. I simply hadn't accounted for the fact that weapons have weight.




In the video of the intruder, what is the object which drops from the airframe at 0:18, a few seconds before they punch out?

V1, V2, etc. are FAA regulatory terms. Your interpretation is correct.

The Intruder jettisoned its drop tank in an attempt to stay aloft.

Hey Sam, thanks for taking the time to answer the questions and everyone else chiming in. Guess I have a few more "just curious" questions....

1) sixshooter posted a video where the plane got hung up from going overboard. What happens next? Is there a crane that comes and saves the plane? If say the plane is damaged, is it repaired onboard (does it matter if its landing gear vs say a wing damage)?

2) Is there anything a carrier lacks that you wish it had to help you pass the time?

3) In your spare time can you game? (call of duty, bf 3)?

As for people falling into the Ocean, that seems scary too. Do the guys on the deck all have to check in before and aft a shift and if you fall in the water is there a special magic button you push to make the ship aware?

4) Is there anyone on a Carrier that everyone else really fears, or really respects? Like he walks by and people get hush hush and below their breaths people say "thats so & so...".

5) Whats the best thing they serve you to eat on a carrier?

6) Is there such thing as contraband? ie: Porn, Cigars etc?

7) Does everyone on a carrier have a weapon? Where do you keep it when you are on deck, just in your room / bunk area?

8) Know of any openly gay male or females onboard? Do people treat them different?



I think thats it for this round. Super awesome you are answering though, some good insight into your job and I think it goes without saying, but we all appreciate what you do for us. :)

Ok, that's what I suspected it was. It just seemed that the airplane appeared to be controlled, stable and climbing right up until 0:18, and then it immediately pitched and rolled to the right as soon as the tank dropped.

There is a large crane on the deck called Tilly. There's a LONG version of that C2 almost going over the side where they show them actually picking it up.

There is a huge maintenance factory on board the ship in the Hangar Bay. Short of major structural issues, almost anything can be repaired if it can be unbolted from the plane... even a wing. The problem with a C-2 wing is that you can't get another one out to the ship to repair the plane, so it would have to be craned off at a port-call or ride the ship home down in the Hangar. C-2's are the lifeblood of parts delivery that keep the entire ship running, so having one broke is not an option. The staff I just left had the job of making sure carriers didn't lack for C-2's... it's a huge deal when one is broke.
http://www.oldenburggroup.com/nf/upl...rash_crane.jpg

The only thing anybody wants anymore on Navy ships is faster internet. Social media is so critical to the lifeblood of morale that the younger generations are literally starting to "not be able to live without it".

Gaming is huge on the ship. In Officer Country, just about every stateroom is hooked up to one or more lans with adjoining rooms. We run cat-5 cable all over the place so we can keep it real every night. There are Halo and COD games going on round the clock somewhere on the ship.

All of our float-coats have MOBI's built into them (Man Overboard Indicator)... when you fall over, it sends out a beacon that is picked up on the bridge. A "man-overboard" is called over the 1MC and everybody on the ship musters at designated locations. Usually they know who fell in because the MOBI's are all coded. No checking on/off the flight deck. But when somebody jumps, they usually make sure they're see so they can get rescued... like I said, they're just pussies looking for attentions. It's when somebody really wants to kill themselves and jumps in the middle of the night that we don't find them... and it might take 12hours before someone notices they're gone.

If you've got a good crew, nobody is feared... but there's always somebody who's managed to make it to a high rank is is a complete douche. You don't avoid that guy because you're afraid of him, but just because he's a douche. The Navy does a great job of promoting "managers", but only marginally does a good job of promoting "leaders". There are a lot of people who manage to make it really high in the military who absolutely suck at being a person. They have no social skills, no leadership ability, make life fucking miserable for everybody around them, but have all the "checks in the blocks" for promotion. The Navy knows this is a problem as is looking for ways currently to fix them.

The food is all mostly buffet standard. If something sucks, it doesn't last long. Food that's good gets notices and they have it more often. Some ships are better than others, but on average it's as good as Denny's.

Not too much stuff is contraband. Ships still allow all tobacco products. There are designated smoking areas and guys dip all over the place. Porn is everywhere as you'd expect although with girls around you gotta be careful.

Nobody except ships security forces carry weapons, and then only 9mm's while underway. In-port, there are rovers with shotguns and AR's... plus in-port there are M240's and .50cals manned.

Everybody knows who is and who isn't gay. EVERYBODY KNOWS! And nobody gives a shit. In my experience, about 1/2 of the "working rate" females in the Navy are lesbian... and by "working rate", I mean the grease monkeys, wrench turners, flight deck workers, etc. Yeoman and corpsman and band geeks and other "aux" rates probably are more hetero. On the other hand, about 50% of dudes in "aux" rates are gay. I'd say about 90% of all dudes who work in straight administrative roles are gay. I'm only exaggerating a little here, but the point is that EVERYBODY KNOWS.

The media has made a huge deal of DADT. The average troop could care less. Admirals and senior military officials have to have a "voice" because most of them one day want to run for political office and want good Christian folks to vote for them. The average guy could give a shit. Some of my best dudes were borderline flaming and ALMOST ALL of the best girls that worked on my flight deck were butch like it was their job.