Air Force Fighter Pilot Attempts F-18 Aircraft Carrier Landings | DCS

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Hey thanks for checking out the video! Become a channel member for exclusive content.

[@alanvn1549]

When’s there gonna be Growling Sidewinder vs Max AB

[@SJkopa]

why dont play quest3?

[@camrsr5463]

cool stuff. Quick question... are you primarily a pilot or do you share time in the back seat messing with all the fun electronics?

[@driftspecs13]

Growler Jams is side eyeing you reaaaaal hard right now. I can hear him yelling "meatball, line up, angle of attack..." In my head.

[@auptyk]

The problem is he keeps forgetting the signature move.

[@80aj]

Always FULL AFTERBURN when you hit the deck. In the Navy we always used to laugh at a bolt without AF

[@T_Rannikill]

Wait I thought it was mil power or am I wrong

[@80aj]

@@T_Rannikill Should be, or used to be I should say land with full power and burner until arrest cable stops full. Reason is in case hook breaks, or cable breaks, or you just bolt "miss" the cable you can get back up.

[@T_Rannikill]

@@80aj yeah fs

[@bryanp2780]

@@T_Rannikill Mil power in the F14B, full AB in the F14A and F18

[@dsegal1401]

As a below avg flight sim fanatic... I just learned something. Never knew that.

[@Diesel-the-Rottweiler]

Really enjoy your videos 👍 USMC ground vet. Appreciate you fly boys

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Awesome! Thanks for being here

[@ballomni]

My son LTCMDR test pilot 17.5 years, says toughest is pitching deck at night after a 10 hour day of CAP. Said it would scare the poop out of you, your tired but have to bring your game up too max. He says after 700 traps you still are learning! Now they use Magic carpet.. my son was active from 2006-2023. Now reserves is a test Pilot for the FAA. Thank you for your service. During Covid you guys and the blues did a joint show over NYC where I am. Bravo Zulu!

[@brothermanv]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing. I salute your son for his service The joint flyover was great! We had it here in DC too

[@orionmec]

On some of the missed landings your nose is dropping. This raises the hook above the cables. And decent should be around -750 ish. I love landing on the carriers! Too fun!!!

[@takeoffwithjakesoft]

If you're used to the Viper, the landing mode in the F-18 is a little weird until you get used to it. You're supposed to trim to the correct AOA and then only use throttle to go up and down by adding power and not try to control pitch with the stick. But still, these were pretty good landings for going in cold. Congrats on never smashing into the back of the boat!

[@maverickdogfight4320]

Sooo true! I was looking for this specific comment. Once you get used to it, it's pretty 'simple' to aim your touch down towards the 3rd cable. That correction would have given him a proper hook height to avoid those bolters. Anyway, great work, hands down.

[@glennwatson]

If you get the super carrier plugin you can get LSO scores. Plus you can use the radio menu to do basic comms.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

That’s awesome!

[@jaydawg7]

​@@MaxAfterburnerusanew video! 😂

[@Jasonmoofang]

I'm aware of the hubris of correcting a pilot of your calibre - but fwiw, a tip or two from a couch horneteer :) You actually do want to come in somewhat steep, about 3-4 degrees glideslope, but think of the glideslope as ending in the middle of the wires, quite a ways in - and not at the start of the "runway". Rather than touching down on the ramp and then taxiing into the wires, you want to slam down on top of the wires - similar to what you did in the first two traps. That second trap was actually looking pretty good imo but I think you pulled a bit too much power at the end so you dropped off and snagged the two-wire instead. Love seeing real pilots in the sim!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Nice! Thanks!

[@chrismaverick9828]

Visual cues are important. Weight/speed/AOA is critical. Dump down to 6K on the fuel before entering the pattern, as being heavy can make you shallow and fast. Remember to come in from the starboard side at an angle, not directly from behind. On a long approach you keep the flight path marker on the front of the island until about two miles out. Then you move it to the "crotch" of the ship where the edge near the bow cats meets the angle of the end of the landing area. under a mile and in-close you move it to the end of the landing area. If you're on-speed and proper descent this should plant you down right on the three-wire. Remember that the three-wire is halfway down the landing zone so it'll feel real long before touchdown. Also remember that once established with proper AOA and dirtied up, all the vertical adjustment should be done with the throttle. A momentary adjustment with the stick when in-close will often result in either floating over the wires or diving for the deck.

[@ToddSauve]

Since they hid the cables on you Ryan, you should have gone down and strafed the flight deck! They wouldn't mess with you after that, would they? 🤣😆

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Haha that’s diabolical

So funny landing on carrier. We must push full throttle the moment we touch the deck. In case we miss the cables. You dont. I saw that with Ate Chuet french pilote on Rafale marine. I love your video.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Thanks for watching!

[@jojosantovenia]

Your narration is top notch, it literally makes these videos interesting.

[@elfhighmage8240]

I don't give a damn. I'll take whatever arrestor cable I can get! Provided I don't crash into the deck...😝

[@DCSHacks]

Lot of fun to watch! Made life super hard for yourself Bruh! Look forward to the next round!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Ha thanks!!

[@frankbizzoco1954]

If you get the Supercarrier module, you can be graded on your landings. You can even chill in the tower and actually steer the ship after the latest update. Eventually, there will be a ready room too. I will not comment on your trap landings since i am but an armchair pilot, and you're a real pilot lol. I will say check out Mooch's videos on the Case 1 in the Tomcat.

[@IndyNavy_]

Sir, the airboss would like a word...

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Time to stand at attention in front of the boss (again) 😆

[@Cpl-ABE3-11B]

Don’t walk past the arresting gear shop they are pissed they missed chow because of you….

[@BuchTacGaming]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa😂

[@rudefasagaming]

Awesome to watch your videos. My dad (who recently passed) spent 18 years on several Navy Carriers. Use to tell me all kinds of stories of the landings. He was overseas & active for Desert Storm

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Great stuff man, thanks for sharing about your old man!

[@Jesse6463-h2n]

Man fighter pilots are just the coolest pilots! Cool calm and collected!

[@Spitts44]

Pitch is not controlled by the stick on final. Trim into that e-bracket and use the throttle to control your velocity vector and rate of descent. Stick for adjustment in the horizontal plane only on final.

[@SpidaMez]

what about vertically then?

[@WihGlah]

@@SpidaMez Throttle.

[@gameboy228]

As a Docent on board the Midway it's the #2 wire for an OK. Yes the Midway is a 4 cable system but the fourth is for the barrier. Interesting right? I can't tell if your getting the Meatball in sim??? The Fresnel lens would be set for 3.5 degrees normally depending on the aircraft. I'd say the LSO and the Air Boss is a bit upset about now. Oh - That's CVN - 74 - John C. Stennis.

[@gamingwithneil2850]

i have played enough DCS carrier ops in the hornet to know that beeping sound when u landed is your landing gear broken, you need to move the camera to look at ur gear in F2 so you can see they will be bent

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Gotcha!

[@mrdujko8657]

Thats for maintenance anyway. ;)

[@gamingwithneil2850]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa NO WAY YOU REPLIED HELL YEAH BRO LOVE YOUR CONTENT

[@WinchesterDelta1]

That was funny. Maybe next time get the carrier module so you have all the fun guys walking on the deck for extra anxiety. And try a Case 1. Would be fun to see how precise you can land it following all the procedures. And do it in the F-14.

[@shearfury147]

Awesome! Are you doing the maverick river runs on DCS or MSFS? MSFS has the free Maverick DLC and the world ranked maverick low level challenges. They are awesome!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

That’s awesome I’ll try MSFS! The one releasing next week is DCS!

[@CptAvenger]

Cool video and nice set up you have there! 👍👍

[@fastr144]

one thing most people wont realize is that on deck, there is a very particular spot where the nonskid is really worn down from the aircraft tailhooks hitting that spot over and over and over again. Its not a big spot when you consider all of the variables in play. Its pretty damn impressive.

[@Nightmarehc130]

view from the ship would be fun to watch

[@ShreddingFinn]

I had only the 18 for a while I never got good at this I could land but not legit. I'm working on the 14 now. This is still one of my favorite things to try in dcs. I wish we had access to some official education on the subject but who knows its probably classified

[@MT-406]

What about checking the meatball and angle of attack? I always hear navy pilots talk about landing on a carrier to constantly check the meatball, lineup, and angle of attack.

[@andreproductions1]

Hey Max, how did you set up the joysticks on the side of your chair? Is it an extension from your table or do you have something else to hold them?

[@joeydebra763]

Well in most of your attempts you broke the landing gear ;p You have to smack down the plane at around 700 ft/minute. I saw the attempts coming in at 1200 usually followed by the alert that your landing wheel is crooked ;p

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Ah gotcha. Just trying to be a good Navy pilot 😂

[@aml1234561]

Wtf is 700 its/minute???? Go to school

[@joeydebra763]

@@aml1234561 thx for the point. I meant feet.

[@aml1234561]

@@joeydebra763 I must have been having a bad day. Very rude of me, my apologies for my childish wording.

[@joeydebra763]

@@aml1234561 Np. I'm a European, so having to deal with feet, inches, pounds is quite hard. The chances of typing the wrong one is quite high. Thanks for the apology and I wish you better days ahead!

[@carymcrawford]

I'm envious of how much better you were on your first try landing after all the times I crashed.

[@taproom113]

Converting "Lead" wings to Gold is a tough go. Keep at it Air Farce ... ;-) ^v^

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

That's the plan!

[@fernandobarrera6440]

More like an almost supersonic flyinto the drink😂

[@neil7813]

Good stuff. Thanks for your service.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Thanks for watching!

[@vidar7106]

Do not fly speed, fly AOA. It ensures your jet is at the optimum angle to engage the wire. Your scan is: AOA, BALL, Line-up… constantly repeating.

[@juanmendoza9124]

Enjoy your stuff!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Hey Thanks!

[@rowenarrow]

Lol you called Bagram a good time. Respect to anyone who knows what life on BAF was like.

[@tomseifarth6548]

I liked Bagram way more than Kandahar...

[@Weeney1620]

@@tomseifarth6548 Poo Pond 2012 never forget

[@functional18490]

I mean, it had a BK. Was Disneyland compared to where I spent my 2 deployments.

[@rowenarrow]

@@functional18490 BAF, KAF, and NKC here

[@rowenarrow]

@@functional18490 BAF, KAF, and NKC here

[@ST-101]

I learn a lot from your videos, Thank you so much.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

You are welcome!

[@Dstew57A]

This is gonna be interesting ✈️ Hope your doing well Neo😊

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Thanks! Hope you are as well!

[@mitch511]

Fake pilot stolen valor. Reporting your videos you were never a pilot​@@MaxAfterburnerusa

[@johnnywells5341]

@@mitch511and how would you know that? Are you a pilot? In fact do you do anything worth a shit?

[@AlphaGatorDCS]

@@mitch511 wtf are you talking about? www.thisdayinaviation.com/tag/ryan-bodenheimer/

[@glennwatson]

@@mitch511 lol, He's all over the press from his time in the thunderbirds if you google his name :) He's ex thunderbirds pilot so he's everywhere with the jets

[@BillGernert]

Pretty damn good for a first attempt!!

[@pollylewis9611]

"Wonder if we can take off from here" funny, but you nailed it on the traps awesome job!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Hey thanks!

[@bkpickell]

Well a futon in the US is a bed that looks like a couch. And yes I use skosh quite a bit, but I've always pronounced it skoshe, with a long O sound like boat.

[@tillrisen]

7:43 lol gotta do that fly by

[@corrupted_sniper8020]

Hey neo, you should watch Growler Jams video on aircraft carrier landings, he has a few videos on how it’s done in a real F18

[@pahasapaman]

I would line up on the ships direction of velocity and slip from there, but that is just me. You could correct for wind and ship movement at that yaw, plus adjust for roll and pitch to catch the varying altitude. That's a fun trig problem on the fly. Do you suppose that if you could come in to a Wyoming non controlled airport with a tail hook, you could catch a pronghorn antelope or a jackrabbit? Hit the latter one day coming in with a 172rg.

[@kayakutah]

7:00 "I'm not going to flare much". Don't flare at all! The FPV is great (I guess. I flew the F-8 and F-14, but knew A-7 HUD cripples. For a while I was one in the 737NG so I feel your pain.) but at least at first, just fly the ball! In actuality, they may be targeting the 2 wire, so using the FPV for touching down to catch the three wire is just wrong. And if it's MOVLAS - well....stand by for a swim. Meatball, line up angle of attack! Just as an aside, the 'lens" is adjusted in roll to compensate for hook to eye value. If you are left of center with a centered ball, you're low. If you are angling in from the right with a center ball, you're high. If you land more than about 10 feet off center, they'll have to pull the wire. Too much and you hit parked aircraft on either side. Look at the drop lights/markings for line up.

[@Mekerakesh]

I love watching non hornet pilots break the gear every landing!

[@crazybabytvworld]

You definately were not trapping aboard the Midway CV-41. But you did well for an airforce guy LOL

[@Kakkoii_otoko]

Every time that I see them fly over the carrier, they show their tailhook, then make a wide turn left and then come around to land. They always hit the afterburner when they land, so if you try it like that, I think you'll be successful. That's my observation from vultures row. lol

[@apersonontheinternet8006]

Matt Wagner, one of the developers at Eagle Dynamics, has a very good tutorial titled "How to Land on an Aircraft Carrier".

[@AkiL-414]

Runway axes Bro "glide path 3.5°" like on runway .. Follow the ball : ) ( for better view with Track ir, unbox "Z, and Y axes..")

[@stephenschaapveld1870]

Nice work 👍💪. How are you liking the Hornet?

[@BillyBlaze7]

cool, enjoy these

[@towdjumper5]

Great stuff.

[@sarttee]

last landing made my head go " huh " previous 2 landings were bad, but that one was good?

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Haha right!? I need to do more trick shots!

[@r4dio4ctiv3man9]

Iirc, glide path for the Hornet is -3°, with a AOA of 8.1° ;)

[@elboyi1986]

Hey Max you should do F14 vs F15 flying the TOMCAT! When are you doing a collab with Mover and Gonky???

[@WihGlah]

AOA needs to be trimmed in, glidepath should be a 3-4degree down angle. Control descent angle with the throttle, Stick is only used for steering. Put the velocity vector on the ball. Landing on the carrier is a controlled crash. Fly the jet into the deck.

[@jaycee330]

Gotta hit full power when you land, in case you miss the cable or it breaks you can take off again and not land in the drink.

[@franciscgedeon9237]

gear, flaps, hook. trim FPI into the E-bracket. pitch no longer controlled by stick, use stick only for roll. FPI on 1-wire. Rate of descent controlled by power only, green AoA. Fly Navy.

[@brandonedwards1181]

Nice vid bro

[@vic7181vic]

If possible, please also do carrier landings on this old (1999) but really realistic sim called "Digital Integration's F/A-18 Super Hornet". Some of its details are better than 2024 DCS. Besides, after each landing, it rates your landing. If its rating is accurate, most of your carrier landings here might not get a score above 70 mostly due to excessive angles of landing. 😅😅

[@Behnouddm]

For a better landing try over head break at 800 ft and speed of 350 knots after the turn drop the gear and flaps at 250knots (hook included :) ) you should have 1.25-1.5nm distance from the carrier and around 450-600 ft. when you arrived at final and lined up then just focus on the meatball (the light guides) and try to keep it in the middle (Sorry sir for talking like this with a real pilot 🫡)

[@A_Lazy_Bori]

it feels/looks like your slaming the F out of the plane onto the boat lol

[@voodoo22]

you smashed the landing gear

[@michaelmappin4425]

USS Midway. An aircraft carrier built during WWII and commissioned right after the end of the war. It is now a museum in San Diego. You're working on the Nimitz class carrier John C. Stennis, CVN74. Freakin' zoomies and ships😢

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

They’re called Yachts not ships…I wasn’t born yesterday 🙄

[@michaelmappin4425]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa I'm just giving you a hard time. 😃

[@joewalker2491]

what diff does it make in what cable you get? just wondering "Cables are numbered one through four from back to front. Although there are four cables, the visual approach aids are calibrated so the aircraft will catch the three wire on a well-executed approach. Landing short at the one wire risks a ramp strike at the end of the ship. Landing long at the four wire risks missing the cables altogether, known as a ‘bolter’."

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Precision matters. Like hitting the sweet spot. The others are just there for second place

[@joewalker2491]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa yes, but is it just a matter of "let's go for the 3rd line" or something to do with landing correctly? Thank you for the reply

[@lawrenceschuman5354]

Call the ball.

[@SeanGelarden]

Worked for the Air Boss spent time on the LSO Platform, that decks not moving up and down much

[@PVPVR]

do you have a head tracker

[@M1A1cavalryman]

CAG wants a word with you about those bolters at idle power.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Valid! But it sure made the pull out sporty!

[@erivera9313]

As a former T-bird pilot, all you needed was a few drink at the 25 Club across the street from the main gate, and you would have nailed the third wire on your first attempt. 😂

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

I thought your were about to say something about the generals daughter 😳😇

[@erivera9313]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa my GF is actually the daughter of an Air Force retired Major General ⭐️ ⭐️ who has two MiG kills over Nam! 😂😂😂

[@efrenreyes-c3y]

HI, before the first landing, you refer to David Burke- who is that? Thanks!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

He’s a real Top Gun instructor. Check him out on socials @davidrberke and Echelon Front is the Leadership company he’s a part of. GREAT dude.

[@BadJuice]

I looked through your channel but couldnt find any Eurotyphoon fighter jet videos, would love to hear your thoughts on some of our planes over in the EU. Much love from Austria, keep up the great work. Fly safe o7

[@butchshadwell3613]

Try it when the deck has pitch and yaw. ;-)

[@grahamcb23]

nice hog bro, congrats!

[@GG-yr5ix]

Stick with the 7,000ft runways. Your AOT is too low, your hook is hitting after the nose wheel and jumping the wires. 5 Degree AOL, fly the throttle not stick. F18 lets you get away with stuff. Pull that with F14 and you're naval aviation log book will end suddenly and violently (Ramp Strike at best).

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

But at least I sounded cool on the radio 😎

[@HectorRoldan]

Screaming Eagles and the Beeping Canopies

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Great band name!

[@HectorRoldan]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa Thanks!! Though I am a 40 sumfun y/o Army Vet, grew up in Indianapolis watching the Thunderbirds and Blue Angels and this made my moments!!

[@HectorRoldan]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa You gonna Kereoki something someday while Team Streaming?

[@scottcooper4391]

IF you can see it - use the fresnel lens - used correctly, it will bring you in on glidepath.

[@jamesgaudio466]

BTW, CVN 74 was a Nimitz class carrier USS John C. Stennis.

[@Brom8Ganrok5]

Why is the first cable not the best? Then you have the most space for slowing down, and if you miss it, more cabels to hit. Same if it snaps, you have other cabels oyu hook into after.. Can someone explain this to me?

[@73split]

That’s not the Midway, and you’re damn lucky it isn’t. She was the most unstable carrier in the fleet with a nasty tendency to snap roll.

[@raymondlantz9278]

John C. Stennis?

[@mr.t0xic100]

I’m a little confused as a civilian why the 1 and 2 wires exist if they are considered as fouls. Of course, my immediate thought is due to redundancy, but the other thought that comes to my mind is that if you are already in line to catch a 1 or 2, I would think that the hook should be able to snag a 3 or 4 as well. My only thought here is that if your aircraft bounces a bit on landing that might prevent the catching of the wire. Can someone shed some light on this? I’m just a bit confused as it seems obvious to me that its for redundancy, but at the same time, the redundancy offered seems to have a severe diminished return.

[@TheRealCFF]

Why aren’t you flying a standard Case 1 break and landing pattern?

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Because my GF yelled at me last time I did 🙄

[@shenmisheshou7002]

Carrier qualified Naval and Marine pilots don't flare. They hold a pretty high decent rate of about *250 feet per minute* , right on to the deck. The air speed is stabilized pretty far out on the glide path, and pitch trims are very minor. The landing gear on carrier qualified jets is capable of handling much high sink rates than Air Force aircraft. Even when landing at fixed bases, the Naval and Marine carrier qualified pilots will still use the same 250 ft sink rate. To these pilots, every landing is a carrier landing.

[@s.daniel9224]

F15E crew chief here. SJAFB 90-94. 336tfs

[@QuentinMoss]

Nice rod bro

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Wait what? 😳😳

[@Rubberweasel]

Is the ball not accurate in DCS?

[@ericwelsh4853]

You can't really see the wires until it's too late. I think you need to use other visual cues.

[@teytreet7358]

That's like a 10G landing lol

[@hansangb]

Hmmmm, did I spy a little forward dip of the stick? 😁 Too bad Lex Talionis (YT name=Lex) stopped posting. He's a naval aviator and had one of the best explanation of how to land on a carrier. Most of it on napkin, no less!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Ha! That’s usually how the greats do it! The Napkin not the forward dip. 😆

[@mannyrivera6990]

Do you need a mustache like this one to fly a fighter jet ? Asking for a friend !!!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Not required BUT It adds 1,000MPH to your face!

[@mannyrivera6990]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa 🤣🤣

[@Masteroftee]

Why u dont use pattern, and ils and tacan and what ever u should be using as a pilot :)

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Because I’m dangerous 🚨

[@mystic0maggot401]

Is that the Hog replica throttle I see?

[@jthunderstriker]

Isn’t max afterburner an oxymoron? Isn’t afterburner maximum power? Are there levels of afterburner? Can you have just a little bit of afterburn. Weee afterburner?

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Yes! That was my name before my 🏀 🏀 dropped

[@jeromeridge5566]

No, any cable is a good cable! Esp. in darkness, or inclement conditions. #3 is the desired but....I'm sure you know what I mean!

[@garyjohnson1970]

Snagged the one wire....

[@vonsauerkraut]

Nobody can tell me with all our technology today that such an airplane could not land itself today

[@garyjohnson1970]

He flies by the seat of his pants....this chair don't move!!!

[@TheFutureMike]

If you think thats hard, try putting an f14 down on a nimitz class in the NES Top Gun game