"Eject! Eject!l"; F/A-18C Night Barricade on USS Constellation

Presenting the first in a new series of PLAT videos.
This video's filename contains nearly all of the information available to me about it: "FA-18C CV-64 Night Barricade Oyster Fodded Flamed out 1999.06.23."
Which I interpret to mean "On June 23, 1999 a pilot whose callsign was "Oyster" experienced a flameout while piloting an F/A-18C Hornet strike fighter during operations on the USS Constellation. Foreign object debris is alleged to have been the cause."
Yes, the video quality is terrible. Welcome to the Navy.

[@WhatYouHaventSeen]

KZbin has decided to demonetize videos of accidents that show "a strong moment of impact," regardless of context. I produce this channel because I believe that transportation safety is enhanced through transparent and accessible disclosures of the facts. If you find value in this channel's content, please consider supporting my work by clicking "Join" and becoming a channel member today. There is no difference in perks between membership levels; join at a level that is comfortable for you. Rather than overcommitting, my promise to members is that I will continue to produce this channel's unparalleled content, just as I have for the better part of a decade. You don't have to do anything, and this channel is not going anywhere. I appreciate you all. You make this channel possible.

[@stijnvandamme76]

To be fair , the footage is paid for by US Tax Dollars.... I don't see why any of it should be monitized

[@caseyj8210]

KZbin is ass hoe!

[@TheDamnSpot]

@@stijnvandamme76 The work he puts in isn't. You're welcome to go file Freedom of Information Act requests and get these yourself. I'm sure you've got plenty of time to do that while you work your job, pay your bills and handle your family. Christ.

[@GeneralPadron]

You would think the Department of the Navy would keep their records in better shape.

[@gunther_hermann]

*Not my story*, but a retired LPO on USS Constellation provides this explanation: The reason that the engine blew that night was because the Flight Deck Officer did not remove the cat track seal after the last day recovery. Falcon 407 was the first jet off the deck (cat 1on ) Case 3 launch (Night). When the shuttle retracted it peeled the seal out of the cat track and laid it on the deck right next to the track and NO ONE SAW IT. When Oyster took his cat shot the left engine sucked the seal off the deck and fodded the engine. The left engine was useless and the right took a partial chunk. I was on the deck and helped rig the barricade. On his first pass when he waved off the lights on the ship caught the seal flapping down the starboard side of the jet. His next pass was flawless, thank god because he would have had to eject as he onely had about 400 pounds of useable fuel left, not enough to meet up with the S-3, he would have flamed out. Epilog: about an hour after the recovery you saw all of V-1 division carrying around urinalysis bottles because this was totally their fault. Notable to relay is that Oyster and the LSO got air medals for their cool and calm handling of the incident. The Falcon Maintenance team had the jet flying in 42 days, just in time to put some warheads on foreheads in operation Southern Watch. - Credit Dennis Holzinger

[@Cyph3rX]

AWESOME 1st hand info thx

[@snapjamwoodworks710]

V-1 responsible for the slot seal? Huh??

[@onemoremisfit]

Thanks for this.

[@RoadWarrior-lo9vt]

Thank you for this follow up info. And a huge thank you Sir for your service. Thank you for guarding our walls. People like yourself allow us civilians to sleep at night. Not all of us take what you fine folks do for granted.

[@12yearssober]

Gunther Hermann Did anyone test positive in the urine tests?

[@333chrisew]

I was there that night! I cant believe it's on KZbin. I was on the smoking sponson when he launched. I remember thinking it was weird to see the burner reflection on the water. The the splash of the buddy store tanks dropping. Then came the bells. All hands below deck, all non essential personnel to your duty stations. They shut of the site TV s in the shops, so we couldn't watch it live. He landed it safely and I walked by it every day in the hanger bay. He flew it off with the rest of the birds at the end of deployment. We all did alright that night. Petty Officer 2nd Class Chris Wright. Ships company, radar shop 65A.

[@puterbac]

Ahh I wondered what the splash was on takeoff.

[@jackelin1981]

ATAN James AIMD IM3 I was there too lmao

[@irishred9752]

@@puterbac Drop tanks that is. Had to lighten up the plane.

[@codym7299]

I admire you guys I really do amazing story brother

[@dekonfrost7]

Good work

[@mattstacey7532]

Props to the LSO, he earned his paycheck today. Nothing like a calm voice to help talk you down...almost sounded bored.

[@mikepeterson9733]

I think I fell in love with that LSO. Max had the pilot sounding so calm when he was coming in.

[@RoadWarrior-lo9vt]

Everyone of these people involved, including Oyster, would/will be excellent in commercial aviation.

[@MrLordwrecker]

Good thing the LSO is a pilot.

[@wbnethery3]

Road Warrior 2020 Given that this happened 20 years ago, it would be interesting to know whether that was true...

[@cramthelan]

Pilot is calling clara almost at the ramp, probably because of the barricade, LSO is a champion

[@jamesbutke1438]

From a USAF vet... these Navy guys are nuts in the daytime, let alone inclement weather, night, rough seas, damaged aircraft...you name it these guys are real pros. Well done

[@themrazan6490]

lol yes everything about US military is hardcore..what happened in Afghanistan? how come these nut guys left at 2am shutting down all electricity at one of their bases....shouldve left in day time?

[@randallk2556]

I’m a member of the Tamil airforce in sri lanka. We do much more dangerous things than that. As a pilot of fighter jet and also captain of C17, it must be said that all the respect goes to American airforce, navy, and marines. Much love sir

[@kungfucommando1642]

Of course you know Naval fighter planes have much more rugged landing gear than land based fighters. The misconception is it has to do with the rigors of carrier landings. This is a myth. They build em that way because they have to support the weight of a naval aviators balls.

[@buddacafe]

Your comment doesn't come across to me as a USAF vet

[@465marko]

@John This remound of the start of Top Gun when whatisface loses his nerve a bit trying to land at night and tom cruise guides him in. It must be really lonely when youre runni9ng out of fuel and trying to land and you miss and your fuel gets lower and lower... and its nighttime. It'd be scary I think.

[@donaldreach760]

A mud Marine, I rode a crippled CH-46 Seaknight aboard LPH 10 Tripoli off the coast of DaNang. We made it on deck with every warning lamp lit and the torque gauges pegged. I had my squad off that bird in under fifty seconds. Deck crew in foil fire fighting suits were hosing down the engines. The starboard nacelle, magnesium alloy, had melted off seventy percent. The engine plainly visible. Turned out to be my last incoming trip. The next OP I was medavaced to 1st Med at DaNang AFB, where Navy surgeons saved both my legs. Spent six months in hospital, easiest duty I ever had. God bless those first responders.

[@JL-uv1ms]

Thank you for your service and sacrifice serving our country,honor and respect to you! My older brother served i n Viet Nam two tours...

[@billykersh7061]

Thank you for your service and thank God for your recovery.

[@repairdroid77]

This will show my age.. That was an E-ticket ride. Glad you made it back to the world.

[@TheEDFLegacy]

Thank you for your service! And you definitely owe your surgeons a beer. ;) Just wondering, did that Seaknight ever fly again? The heck happen to it during the flight?

[@Mistwolf1]

Thank you for your service and welcome home brother. My step father was an AF orthopedic surgeon stationed at Cam Rahn Bay 63-64.

[@Mako2-1]

Whoever that calm voice on the ground was, is the guy you want in emergency situations. Back when i was getting my private pilot’s license on my second solo, my garmin unit was warning me of a ghost collision and i was un aware that the unit was faulty that coupled with a shift in the wind gave me a panic attack mid flight in the pattern. I thank god to this day that tower kept a calm and reassuring voice to give me special attention when I mentioned my situation to him. He calmly shut down the airspace and instructed a small commercial flight to watch me and coach me onto the runway. Getting emotional just typing this and I wish I could thank both the tower and pilot for their care and help that day. Nothing like calm reassuring voices in emergency situations

[@realburglazofficial2613]

I remember doing nighttime helicopter insertions in Afghanistan 2008. The aircrews are so well trained that they can handle emergency situations with such calmness that quite often we find out that the helicopter had not ‘landed’ us at our target location, but _crashed_ at our target location. We barely noticed because not one of them panicked and their voices were always calm. Once, ground fire knocked out the hydraulics in one of the engines and our ‘bumpy’ landing was the helicopter hitting the ground with such force it crumpled the landing gears, us infantry in the back had no idea this had happened! Quite often when boarding a helicopter the aircrew will ask “hands up who’s been in a helicopter crash” _everyone_ raises their hand!

[@TemenosL]

Yeah. Not on the ground though, he's on an aircraft carrier. :P

[@RedTail1-1]

@@TemenosL Same thing... The Carrier is the ground in the sea.

[@jonmarlar4346]

I was a nugget pilot with VRC-30 on this deployment, watched this happen live...then went to a man overboard as folks thought he pinched. I was a paddles too but not my night for waving. The pilot, Oyester, was awarded an air medal. CAG paddles, Max, was an outstanding LSO who did a great job that night.

[@jkaposi]

Jon...Did you keep any good films from your LSO days. ?

[@jonmarlar4346]

@@jkaposi none

[@dmutant2635]

Are all you LSO's that smooth? Or was Max exceptional that night?

[@freepilot7732]

Good ol VRC30. I was an AK3S6 div both on the ship and beach det during the deployment. We all hung out.

[@rElliot09]

@@dmutant2635 Max was an excellent CAG LSO and yes, he was that smooth. Flats, not so much but still a good CAG Paddles.

[@AdrenalineJunky17]

God I love how calm Paddles is through the whole thing all the way up to "cut cut cut!" Not much better of a confidence builder under stress than hearing someone else calmly walk you through the shit.

[@addvali]

It was like hearing Bob Ross as the LSO.

[@the_listamin]

That was the most important part imo. He gave clear and short instructions, repeated himself and used the "baby talk" intonation, from high to low. I've heard many adults instinctively use that kind of melody when trying to sound motivational.

[@AdrenalineJunky17]

@@the_listamin absolutely agree!

[@spikekavalench]

They don’t get any cooler than these guys under pressure. Salute!

[@RoadWarrior-lo9vt]

They told him to ditch early on. He saved a multi million dollar piece of equipment. Nice Work!

[@blackhawks81H]

@Wroger Wroger And go swimming, in a flight suit, in the ocean, at night? Fuuuck that. Lol

[@jjohnston94]

Plus, don't they have a lifetime limit on the number of ejections they can have? Cumulative chronic spine injuries and all that? He might have just extended his own career.

[@FlightX101]

jjohnston94 depends. Just one can end your career if it badly injures you

[@RoadWarrior-lo9vt]

@Wroger Wroger we "ALL" have to foot that bill. By him saving that bird, he just saved millions in taxpayer dollars.

[@thesuperbsuperb]

@Wroger Wroger several hundred million? How?

[@RJStockton]

At 4:00 Bob Ross comes on the line and starts calming everybody down. "Juuuuusssst a little high. No mistakes, only happy accidents."

[@RickHollmer]

LOL - was thinking exactly the same thing!

[@OmgReaverDrop]

Bob Ross was Air Force. But maybe this was his Navy equivalent here.

[@easfgman4687]

Thats a good one! LMAO

[@christiantroy3034]

to Graduate LSO School you must fool Bob Ross’s Children telling bedtime stories

[@jameshisself9324]

Senior LSOs directing a barricade trap are the coolest MFers on the planet on that radio. They taught Bob Ross everything he knew.

[@ChodaBoyUSA]

Wow, the training and professionalism of all involved is truly impressive. Not only did they save a multi-million dollar aircraft, they saved a person's life which is infinitely more important. I have no doubt the calm voice of the main controller kept the pilot calm and focused. I wish he could be the voice in my head motivating me towards success in life! I hope commendations were given to all.

[@bartoszbaranowski604]

" calm breeds calm, panic breeds panic"

[@surfside75]

👍✔️😁🍻💙✝️🇺🇸

[@HellcatMad]

definitely

[@johnmagill7714]

The controller went by the call sign bama. I was there watching it with so many other's in Combat.

[@mystyleone1]

yea i would not be fit for these jobs, I would scream on the mic

[@rtrThanos]

It boggles my mind to think that such a destructive and effective weapons platform can also be so fragile. Reminds me of my ex-girlfriend.

[@chrisbishop1571]

we must have dated the same girl...

[@45CaliberCure]

@@chrisbishop1571 Hell, I married her... I got better! (Monty Python explanation).

[@guysmalley]

rtrThanos Ezekyle Abaddon she had no flame out with me?

[@scottbutler2343]

What doesn't kill us, might take the next guy out. Brilliant!!!

[@Haepax]

Your ex is a destructive and effective weapons platform?? :O

[@helbent4]

For those like me having trouble following along, at 0:34 the plane launches and the left engine eats a catapult sea liner(?) that had not been properly removed/stored and was left lying on the deck (see comment below about full cause). Left engine is out, right engine damaged and can only work on afterburner. Parts that are shed hit the water, at 0:59 I assume the pilot drops external tanks and they splash as they hit the water. At 1:20 pilot is advised to eject but he declines. 1:37 barricade is rigged. 6:25 "Cut cut cut!" (Cut power?) and landing. 2nd camera angle after that point.

[@lucasaccount573]

Cut power would be correct. Don’t want engines producing any thrust when he hits the barricade.

[@Justin.501]

Thank you for this

[@datdudecollins]

Thank you. I literally had ZERO clue.

[@Kurio71]

What did he hit?

[@lordec911]

@@Kurio71 Supposedly (cause I have no idea), there is a seal that inlays/ontop of the cat launch and it became loose/free on the flight deck(?). It sorta sounds like, fyi- I have no intimate knowledge of this stuff, that it was essentially a shift change screw up. That somehow between dayshift and nighshift, this seal was overlooked at some point and became an issue. Edit- If you mean at the end to capture the aircraft, it is high-tensile strength straps. Stuff that you might see in heavy weight towing/pulling.

[@matthewriggins9533]

I remember that night, we were on deployment, when he had only one engine online, and it only worked in After Burner. Visiting the AIMD the right engine was devastated with holes through the compression section and combustion can. The left engine should have never worked either as it had more blades missing than intact. The Barricade rig was picture perfect by the books, He was the FCF pilot when the repairs were completed. That deployment was called the Endless Summer because we hit so many ports to include Australia on the way back. Connie had real magic, great crew, and great leadership!

[@laurakhamcummings1774]

He must have had some really good friends praying for him.

[@TheTruthKiwi]

@@laurakhamcummings1774 Most likely just skill, experience and good training. :)

[@johnmagill7714]

I was on connie then to. Didn't we have another one similar to this leaving the gulf, but during the day time the second time?

[@cocodojo]

@@johnmagill7714 I think that time the bird missed the 3 wire, but caught the 2nd and left part of the refueling basket stuck under either the 3 or 4 wire, the other metal bits actually hit the windscreen on the platform and made another dent on the poor thing. I can't remember the exact problem, but we didn't have to do a barricade, although everyone was ready on the sides if he didn't catch. Never a boring moment during flight ops day or night.

[@johnmagill7714]

@@cocodojo Its been so long It's hard to remember all the details..lol I saw it on the Cameras in Combat. I couldn't see it that well. But we could defiantly hear it. Combat was one deck below the forward cats.

[@sb859]

Man, 160 feet off the water, no visible horizon, focused on the instruments, darker than a witch's ass...reflection of the afterburner the only light, and it plays tricks off the water. And ejecting in front of the ship is not a good way to live...Well done Oyster and Paddles.

[@Treyorrrr]

What do you mean by "ejecting in front of the ship is not a good way to live"?

[@ksarnelli]

@@Treyorrrr going for a swim in front of an aircraft carrier is not recommended

[@sb859]

@@Treyorrrr The ship can run you over. Carriers neither stop quickly nor turn sharply.

[@SSaugaCriss]

wonder what the official briefing is for punch out off a bow cat? glad of course was not necessary here!

[@rafterrafter1227]

You're right;I once screw a witch in the ass; my instrument came out pretty dark..

[@drbobopt]

continuation: I get headed downwind . . go full burner on my remaining motor . . and eventually make it to 2000 feet before leveling out below a scattered layer of puffy clouds. And the ' puffies ' are silhouetted against a half a moon which was really, really cool. I start a turn back toward the ship . . and when I get pointed in the right direction . . I throw the gear down and pull the throttle out of after-burner. Remember that flash/boom . . that started this little tale ? [ Repeat it here ] . . Boom ! I jam it back into afterburner, and after three or four huge compressor stalls [and accompanying deceleration] the right motor ' comes back'. I'm thinking my blood pressure was probably ' up there' about now . . and for the first time, I notice that my mouth has dried up. This next part is great. You know those stories about guys who deadstick crippled airplanes away from the orphanages and puppy stores and stuff and get all this great media attention? Well, at this point I'm looking at the picket ship in front of me, at about two miles, and I transmit to no one in particular, "You need to have the picket ship hang a left right now. I think I'm gonna be outta here in a second." I said it very calmly but with meaning. The picket immediately pitched out of the fight. Ha! I scored major points with the heavies afterwards for this. Anyway, it's funny how your mind works in these situations. OK, so I'm dirty and I get it back level and pass a couple miles up the starboard side of the ship. I'm still in minimum blower and my fuel state is now about 2500 pounds. Hmmm. I hadn't really thought about running out of gas. I muster up the gonads to pull it out of blower again and sure enough...flash, BOOM! I'm thinking that I'm gonna end up punching out and tell Fuzz at this point " Dude, I really don't want to try that again." Don't think everyone else got it . . but he chuckled. Eventually I discover that even the tiniest throttle movements cause the ' flash/boom thing ' to happen so I'm trying to be as smooth as I can. I'm downwind a couple miles when CAG comes up and says, " Oyster, we're going to rig the barricade." Remember, CAG's up on the bridge watching me fly around doing blower donuts in the sky and he's also thinking I'm gonna run outta JP-5 fuel. By now I've told everyone who's listening that there a better than average chance that I'm going to be ejecting. The helicopter bubbas - God bless 'em - have been following me around this entire time.) I continue downwind and again, sounding more calm than I probably was, call the LSO. " Paddles, you up [listening] ?" "Go ahead" replies " Max" Stout, one of our LSO's. "Max, I probably know most of it ,but do you want to shoot me the barricade briefing ?" So, in about a minute . . he went from expecting me to ' punch out ' . . to have me asking for the barricade brief [so he was hyperventilating.] But he was awesome to hear on the radio though . . just the kind of voice you'd want to hear in this situation. He gives me the barricade brief. And at nine miles I say, "If I turn now will ' it ' be up when I get there? Because I don't want to have to go around again." "It's going up right now, Oyster. Go ahead and turn." "Turning in, say the final bearing." "Zero six three," replies the voice in CATCC. " OK, I'm on a four degree glide slope and I'm at 800 feet. I will intercept glide slope at about a mile and three quarters then reduce power. " When I reduced power : Flash/boom ! [ Add power out of fear.] Going high ! Pull power. Flash/boom ! [ Add power out of fear.] Going higher ! [ Flashback to LSO school...." All right class, today's lecture will be on the single engine barricade approach. Remember, the one place you really, really don't want to be is high. O.K.? You can go play golf now."] I start to set up a higher than desired sink rate the LSO hits the " Eat At Joe's" wave-off night lights." Very timely too. I stroke the AB and cross the flight deck with my right hand on the stick and my left thinking about the little yellow and black ejection handle between my legs. No worries. I cleared that sucker by at least ten feet. By the way my fuel state at the ball call was [now low] at 1.1. As I slowly climb out I punched the radio button saying . . again to no one in particular : " I can do this." I'm in blower still and CAG says, "Turn downwind." After I get turned around he says, " Oyster, this is gonna be your last look [at the boat in the dark below] so you can turn in again as soon as you're comfortable." I flew the DAY pattern and I lost about 200 feet in the turn and like a total dumbs___ I look out of the cockpit as I get on centerline and " that ' NIGHT THING ' about feeling that I'm too high " GRABBED ME . . and [ in error ] I pushed down further to 400 feet [ above the dark water ]. I got kinda irked at myself then as I realized I would now be intercepting the four degree glide slope in the middle .. with a flash/boom every several seconds all the way down. Last look at my gas was 600-and-some pounds [100 gallons] at a mile and a half. " Where am I on the glide slope, Max ?" I ask. And I and hear a calm "Roger Ball." I know I'm low because the ILS [needle] is waaay up there. I can't remember what the response was but by now the ball's shooting up from the depths. I start flying it but before I get a chance to spot the deck I hear : " Cut, cut, CUT !" I'm really glad I was a ' Paddles' for so long because my mind said to me " Do what he says Oyster ! " and I pulled it back to idle. My hook hit 11 paces from the ramp. The rest is pretty tame. I hit the deck . . skipped the one, the two and snagged the three wire and rolled into the barricade about a foot right of centerline. Once stopped, my vocal cords involuntarily shouted, " VICTORY ! " The deck lights came on bright . . and off to my right there must have been a . . ga-zillion cranials and eyes watching. You could hear a huge cheer across the flight deck. After I open the canopy and the first guy I see is our huge Flight Deck Chief named Richards. And he gives me the coolest personal look . . and then two thumbs up. I will remember all of that forever. P.S. You're probably wondering what gave motors problems. When they taxied that last Hornet over the catapult .. they forgot to remove a section or two of the rubber cat seal. When the catapult shuttle came back [ to hook me up ], it removed the cat rubber seal which was then inhaled by both motors during my catapult stroke. Left engine basically quit even though the motor is in pretty good shape. But it was producing no thrust and during the wave-off one of the LSO's saw "about thirty feet" of black rubber hanging off the left side of the airplane. The right motor .. the one that kept running .. had 340 major hits to all engine stages. The compressor section is trashed . . and best of all . . it had two pieces of the cat seal [ one 2 feet and the other about 4 feet long ] sticking out of the first stage and into the air intake. God Bless General Electric ! By the way, maintenance data showed that I was fat on fuel -- I had 380 pounds ( 61 gallons) of gas when I shut down. Again, remember this particular number as in ten years [ of story telling] when it will surely be . . " FUMES MAN . . FUMES . . I TELL YOU !

[@mwhitelaw8569]

Mr You hands down did some awesome work that night for sure. And hearing " Max " on comms Probably helped that heart rate some Solid work man

[@zacharysiefer8272]

Sir hats off to you for your airmanship that night. If I were in your shoes I would have yanked that ejector handle as hard as I could but the sheer force of my explosive bowel movement from that first flash and boom would have been more than enough to get out of that hornet. Again hats off to you good sir and I'm glad you made it home safe and sound.

[@SortaProfessional89]

Man, if this is truly your story, and you were the pilot... Bravo sir. Thank you for your service, and thats some darn fine flying sir. Thats what i call a true Naval Aviator!

[@francisschweitzer8431]

I was an Air Force Crew Chief.... counterpart you your Plane Captain. That was Balls On some fine flying and freaking Paddles.... OMG Max ..his voice is like butter. I would by rocks from that guy believing whatever he told me. I know this is an old video... now I feel bad for hanging the Iron Maiden on my Tanker ....

[@eizzle78]

In reality you probably wouldn’t have been able to pull your ejection handle *BECAUSE OF YOUR GIANT BRASS BALLS!!!*

[@stevethecountrycook1227]

Former USAF here, Hats off to all involved! Landing on a postage stamp "AT Night" takes some balls! Always impressed!

[@MrWadsox]

former Navy deck ape here. We used to plane guard on my destroyer for the FDR. Stopped dead in the water using signal lights to search for people on several occasions. Never found anybody. Every job on a flight deck is dangerous, especially at night. I tip my hat to them.

[@stevethecountrycook1227]

@@MrWadsox agreed!

[@sdfritz59]

I flew the F/A-18C in the late 1980’s. That video tighten up my chest a bit. Carrier ops at night is absolutely the most intense flying ever invented. And to through in a single engine night barricade with a “sick” engine ! Wow. Oyster and the CAG LSO were on their A game that night. Fitz

[@BobbyGeneric145]

What is a cag... Always hear it on The Tomcast Podcast.

[@StrayCatOrwell]

CAG: Commander Air Group, the senior pilot onboard in command of the assigned air wing

[@play3rthr339]

Not only single engine, but the 2nd was also damaged and only produced enough thrust for flight in burner. FOD is one hell of a bad time.

[@joojoojeejee6058]

I'm pretty sure that Japanese kamikaze pilots or many WW2 pilots in general would disagree on the intensity... ;)

[@12345fowler]

"Welcome aboard" Words that matters !

[@jessielee1369]

A different breed of men. Incredible nerve.

[@roberthall2405]

I served on board the USS constellation from 1972 until 1975 I was an aviation bosun's mate now you know why practice makes perfect as far as the barricade goes we practiced it and practiced it and practiced it pretty good for a bunch of 18 19 year old kids I'm very proud of the work that we get on board the constellation

[@timothyjewell8158]

Good to hear from you shipmate. I was an AO in G-Div. from 70 to 74. Probably crossed paths. Take care.

[@MaxSquid_CV-66]

abe gear cv-66 uss america 80-83,roger on the practice practice practice.

[@BrucknerMotet]

In WW2 it was practice practice practice all the time in fire control that really saved a lot of vessels and lives too. Major props to the fire crews and all other teams that practice like mad to get it right when the time comes. Time is your enemy in these emergency situations but you can't go too fast and lose your team coordination etc, so it's a delicate balance that only practice can familiarize you with, and it's this familiarization that gives you the confidence to take care of business when the time comes.

[@johnwalsh4271]

Sailed aboard DD-945 '74/'77. I'm pretty sure we did lifeguard duty with you guys at some point. Love to all our bird farmers!

[@Hannibal54689]

I remember those barricade drills 🤣🤣Never went through the real thing but its awesome to see.

[@ericnhenson]

I was among the crew that rigged the barricade that night. It was our squadran maintenance officer in the plane, and je magically kept it in the air long enough for a flyby and then a capture. We spent over a month fixing the torn leading edges caused by the barricade.

[@charliehilbrant]

Are you serious? Crazy how you can meet people on KZbin comments with experiences like this! Where’d life take you after service?

[@cocodojo]

You couldn't walk around the hangar deck without seeing how torn up those edges were, the maintenance crew worked HARD to get that bird flying again during that WESTPAC. Anytime you're there, there was a crew working on it 24/7 every single day until it was flying again.

[@tonyhaynes9080]

That’s why when an aircraft takes the barrier they can’t eject. As I’m sure you know, but many readers might not be aware of this.

[@tonyhaynes9080]

Any veteran has a ton of stories that civvies will never believe. I gave up on my stories because so many didn’t believe me, until a couple came round my house and saw the photos. Us old farts were young once remember.

[@davidabarak]

The calm demeanor of the LSO helped that pilot get back on deck, but it still took some great flying and a lot of guts to stay with it. With only 1,100 pounds of fuel after the wave off he only had one last chance to make it. When the pilot called "Clara," that meant that he couldn't see the ball, but it was mentioned that it would be blocked briefly by the barricade stanchion. The goal for rigging the barricade is three minutes from the time it's called for until it's ready. Everyone - pilot, flight deck crew, LSO - all did a great job,

[@geoben1810]

As a proud U.S. NAVY veteran I salute the pilot, paddles, and crew of the Connie. Naval Aviation at it's finest. I got to see an F4 come in wheels up when I was stationed in Iceland while on NATO duty in the 70's. Foam was spread on the runway and when he came in it raised a "rooster tail" of foam like 100ft high all the way down the runway. Pilot and equipment were both ok. 👍🏻

[@KlLLERROBOT99]

If you ask “Well this is 1999, so the cameras must have gotten better over the years right?” Nope.

[@polackwizerd]

Hahaha welcome to the Navy..

[@Cambpro]

Can confirm lol

[@mytmousemalibu]

You would think they would have improved, VASTLY, on their video systems, especially for the flight deck but..... no. Go watch some Vietnam era footage, its about the same. Honestly some of the WWII carrier ops footage is better! Thats just sad!

[@KlLLERROBOT99]

You can make nuclear powered carriers but you can’t upgrade the cameras on said carrier to be newer than 1980s technology lol When you ask why they say “It’s not in the budget.” Yeah sure it isn’t and you buying your wife that new sports car doesn’t have anything to do with it either xD

[@ezragonzalez8936]

The reasoning behind the obsolete video system is that its tried and true robust equipment newer more sophisticated systems might not ve as reliable in all conditions.. same reason the spacecraft sent out on space usually use 20 year old technology on camera sensors and on board equipment components etc..

[@pointingdog7235]

I have to admire the calm of everyone involved with bringing the aircraft and the aviator in safely.

[@systemspm8055]

Imagine how confident you'd have to be if you're the guy helping from the ship over the headset. The pilots life is in your hands and that guy was outstanding

[@christopherfischer6998]

The LSOs. They are naval aviators too

[@scottbirchall5607]

I was on this deployment with VFA-151 this was our sister squadron VFA-137. Left engine fodded with catapult seal on cat shot. Awesome group of guys!!

[@24602400]

Thank you for your service!

[@scottbirchall5607]

It was supposed to have been removed prior to flight ops.

[@USNVA11]

Mark Hepworth - It is a nice voluntary courtesy to acknowledge an active duty/retired/or veterans service to the nation, however, it is certainly not mandatory. 🇺🇸

[@SSaugaCriss]

@@scottbirchall5607 Rog, will delete incorrect comment.

[@scottbirchall5607]

Mark Hepworth thank you! It was my pleasure to have served.

[@bleeke69]

I remember this day clearly. I was on day shift and we all got called up on deck to man the nets for one of our birds that took on FOD. 407 took some time for us to get up and running again. Awesome job landing that bird safely👊🇺🇸

[@irishred9752]

I've told the story of that night many times but never though to see it on youtube. I was standing on catwalk maybe 10 feet away from that jet getting ready to launch. After catapult run some sparks came out of an engine but I did not give much thought about it. However the plane wasn't climbing as usual and that was odd. AB was lit so it was visible when something splashed. I almost fell down to my shop (which was right there under flight deck next to the cat) and yelled "a jet just crashed". I guess it was a bit of misinformation but I was so sure it went down. After "Rig the barricade" announcement it was clear that jet did not crash and is coming back. I was glad to be wrong this time. And if anyone cares, I was with VMFA-323 Powerline.

[@mikegallant811]

And that, boys and girls, is the reason why the FOD walk was invented.

[@Bartmanfly]

@Mike Gallant It was because the deck left the cat seal in the catapult track. When the catapult hit the seal, it went down the left intake. It was hanging out the intake when he landed.

[@carolynthornton8017]

IN MY VIEW I want to tell you We all care! You don't get to visibly see all the love, respect and honor civilians have for you and the rest of you but it's there.❤

[@MeganChic]

I was looking for videos on how to catch hornets and this is not the hornet I was looking for lol

[@slowpoke96Z28]

Meganchick best comment so far lol.

[@Oceansta]

LMAO 😄😄😄

[@ethanpoole3443]

And yet I bet you watched it anyhow, just like all the rest of us who accidentally stumbled upon it! We are odd and curious creatures, one of our better qualities. Good luck with the “other” hornets!

[@sentinelmoonfang]

Still one hell of a trap.

[@donoimdono4868]

not as useful, but WAYYY more interesting !!

[@county365]

That’s one hell of an LSO. Great job keeping a pilot, that’s working hard as hell, calm on the approach. Hell of a job by the pilot to bring it back on deck.

[@Pammellam]

Just amazing. The pilot was so cool and collected. “I’ve got this” he says!! The LSO was so calm. A wonderful example of professionals calmly at work!

[@qua7771]

I never seen so much confidence. It was as if were routine.

[@porscheguy09]

That’s a good pilot who was very confident in his own skills. A lot of pilots would have ejected as soon as they were told to. This guy saved a multi million dollar aircraft and didn’t have to get wet either. Bailing out over water at night has got to be one of the worst experiences.

[@crispy5000]

I have no military experience so this may seem a silly question, but why didn't they get a helicopter airborne the minute there was a problem in case he had to eject in the water, so they could find him quicker ? If he didn't eject, it could just come back.

[@slowpoke96Z28]

crispy5000 there already was a helicopter out there. SOP is a helicopter in the air when airplanes are taking off or landing...

[@stargazer7644]

@@crispy5000 There was a tanker for refuel and a helo for rescue already out there for him.

[@johncorey1911]

@@crispy5000 the Helo is already in the air. It's the first and last one off and on. You cant see it since stays away from the ship in case its needed. But it's there.

[@potatopower707]

Ejecting when you could have saved it is so bad. Because the odds are that you won’t fly again, because of your broken back. I assume that when somebody ejects at low speed, it’s signing an unnecessary document to make your life harder.

[@caltagerone77]

That's amazing. I was there that night. I was a new check-in. I was in V-2 CAT one but was below decks at the time. I remember looking at the TV screen and seen it happen. I was confused and asked if that was normal. A few minutes later we all ran up on deck and rigged the barricade. I've been telling this story all of my career and its quite amazing to see it here on KZbin. Thank you for the upload. "Gunther Hermann". that is accurate! the CAT 1 guys left the last piece of rubber strip next to the cat and it was sucked in by the aircraft engines while it was taking off. The pilot talked to all of us in V-2 division a few days later. Although it was a massive mess up, he gave us credit for rigging the barricade in minutes and saving his life and the aircraft. 23 years later I'm 2 weeks from retiring and I remember that like if it was yesterday. I will always admire that pilot for his skills and courage.

[@HabitualButtonPusher]

Just watched Oyster & Jello discuss this take off and landing on a Happy Hour at The Fighter Pilot Podcast Patreon page. Absolutely awesome to get a play by play of this event.

[@AdamosDad]

Oyster kept his shit together and the LSO was cool as ice.

[@thomasdaily4363]

Kind of a job requirement for fighter pilots.

[@samuelhopely4853]

As a civillian, it's always so dang cool to see and hear true professionals at work.

[@johnf3111]

I remember in the 80s while operating in the Mediterranean two F-14s played a night ops game called "thumping" (one aircraft would approach another at high speed,with only passive electronics operating) and would attempt to fly under the other aircraft as close ly as possible. The shock wave was supposed to scare the hell out of the other aircrew. In this incident the "thumper" got too close and the canopy hit the underside of the other aircraft. Thumper crew and aircraft were lost at sea, 2nd aircraft made it back to carrier. 3rd aircraft remained over crash site awaiting SAR rescue aircraft. That aircraft ended up running out of fuel and crashing at sea. Don't remember what happened to that crew but do remember at least two died and two $45 million aircraft lost and one heavily damaged. Always admired the skills of these aviators but over confidence and sometimes negligence has killed many. Lots of old pilots. Lots of bold pilots but very few old, bold pilots.

[@2011SoxMD36]

They always used to show us an old video in Air Force Risk Management training of an F-14 doing a transonic pass over a ship and the acft ripping itself apart. Between your story, that one, and the Bud Holland B-52 crash, never was there a truer sentiment in aviation

[@thejohnbeck]

@@2011SoxMD36 weird, why did the F14 rip itself apart? unknown pre-existing damage ripped open by air pressure?

[@2011SoxMD36]

@@thejohnbeck acft was never recovered, the belief is engine failure. Those Tomcats were very prone to compressor stalls, especially at low altitude and in dense air. Pilot and RIO actually ejected and survived. The Video is on KZbin

[@thejohnbeck]

@@2011SoxMD36 thanks!

[@JoshuaOne_Nine]

I was there and an Ordie (AO2) in that squadron: VFA-137 Kestrels. The cat crew forgot to remove a section of the rubber strip midway down the cat, which was scooped up right into the intake.

[@crispy5000]

Do the people responsible get in trouble given they almost lost the life of a person and the loss of a expensive plane and possibly more damage and death if he had crash landed? Or do they just give them more training?

[@The360punkz]

@@crispy5000 possible court martial. At best captains mast

[@jerseyshoredroneservices225]

@@The360punkz I believe a court-martial is a criminal trial. How would that apply to somebody who just f***** up but didn't actually commit a crime?

[@InteriorDesignStudent]

4 commercial breaks in 13 minutes... come on, KZbin!

[@simonbyrd6518]

Adblock and UBlock. Ublock says 273 items, in fact..

[@rJayisawesome]

Adblock is not a gimmick. It actually works. I've had it for 10 years. It is beautiful. I use regular browsers at work, and the onslaught of ads always takes me by surprise.

[@onemoremisfit]

@@rJayisawesome Don't discuss it here.

[@WhatYouHaventSeen]

Seriously? That's not good. I have a love/hate relationship with ads. My channels wouldn't exist and I couldn't pay my employees without them, but I sure as hell don't want to watch them. Four ads in thirteen minutes is more than excessive. I'll look into fixing that in a moment. [UPDATE: There should no longer be any ads in the middle of this video, for anyone. Please let me know if that is not the case.] On the chance anyone is unaware, there is a solid solution available: KZbin Premium. Premium subscribers see no ads - ever - and they do so while still supporting the channels they enjoy. If you can afford Premium and you are considering a subscription, I highly recommend it. (I'm saying that both as the owner of two KZbin channels and as someone who pays for Premium every month.) There are two things that many people don't know about YT Premium: (1) On a per-view basis, Premium views are actually "worth more" to creators than ad-watching views. We are obviously talking tiny fractions of a cent here, but they add up. (2) Many so-called "demonetized" videos (like many on this channel, and roughly a quarter of those on Real World Police) are still eligible for KZbin Premium revenue, even though they will earn minimal-to-zero revenue from ads. Food for thought.

[@RK-zh5vj]

Still 4 ad breaks for me. At the start there are 2, then 3 more throughout the video. I'm going to stop using youtube without adblock as it has gotten pointless.

[@johnwyoder]

Wow. The calm, collected manner of the LSO is incredible. If I were flying an aircraft with a problem, that's the guy I'd want on the other end of the radio conversation.

[@danielkeirsteadsr6939]

Very cool and calm..Unlike my wife when there is a big spider in the kitchen.

[@nynthworld4152]

😆

[@cwguy8960]

Hilarious!

[@msgtpauldfreed]

😂

[@Shiva1945]

hehe

[@MrBobcatquebec]

That must be one of the funniest lines i have seen !!!! HAhahahha ... Thanks for making me laugh!

[@robbowker6014]

Wow! I served on the Lincoln and the Stennis with VS-41, never saw anything like that thank the lord. Side note, one of my shipmates from boot helped rig the barricade in this video. Props to him and all aboard for saving both the pilot and assets.

[@armyofshea7941]

No idea Bob Ross served as an LSO before his painting career.

[@videouploader9110]

Armyof Shea lmao

[@krakennn9067]

I know this was for giggles but, Bob Ross was a retired Master Sergeant, USAF. Served 20 years if I’m remembering correctly.

[@TyTanium1294]

Wow! That was amazing to hear the different crew members working together and managing the emergency. Especially the guy who highlighted to the pilot what would be different on the approach (power setting in and out of blower, loss of the glide slope down low, etc). That was crew resource management at its finest! Very nicely done!!! 💯🏆💪

[@seniorsurveyor]

I served aboard the USS Forestall during 1973-74 Med cruise with RVAH 6, as an AT. This of course put me on flight deck when we were launching our birds. This brings back many memories of those exciting and adventurous days of my youth. Glad he made it! Thank you for sharing.

[@nynthworld4152]

Holy friggin toledo! Great job to the pilot, LSO, crew, everyone out there on the deck! Thank you all for doing an awesome job out there!👍👍

[@simonbyrd6518]

"Not looking good, sports fans."

[@MikeM4729]

He did a great job of being calm and reassuring while passing on data.

[@HughesEnterprises]

Recorded with a potato onto VHS, played on an 8” CRT, recorded that screen with another potato, compressed to 144p and uploaded to KZbin.

[@cjuice9039]

That's how you know it's real

[@gsaunds100]

It's always better to call base and tell them you've lost an engine than to call base and tell them you've lost THE engine.

[@Ridlam77]

AT3 Rockey, VS-38 I was on deck that night and helped rig the barricade. I wish the Plat camera was in color so you could have seen the fire trailing that aircraft. It was pretty clear that both engines were fucked when he took off, it looked like he was using full afterburner just to keep from going into the drink. When he aborted his first pass, the plane was at an odd angle, fire and sparks from the only working FODed engine were striking the deck. I had a new guy I was training that night, it was his first time on the flight deck at night, so I dragged his ass to our line shack and told him to sit tight and not to come topside unless it was an all-hands effort to fight the fire. That could have been a really bad night, I think most of the guys on deck were hoping he'd eject cause we had a full deck of planes and live ordnance parked near the bridge. Had the pilot lost control or crashed, a lot of people would have died. Thank God the pilot was a smooth operator. I wish I knew the pilot; every guy on deck that night owes him a beer.

[@Bodhi594]

The guy talking to the Pilot had the Bob Ross voice.

[@Joe-bm4wx]

that's the LSO or PADDLES as you hear him referred to. Probably the best paddles I've ever heard. I bet he didn't buy his own drinks for a while.

[@Optikification]

waiting for him to say you have a happy little engine flame out.

[@quistan2]

No mistakes here, just happy little accidents.

[@SirFloofy001]

Happy little landings.

[@OmgReaverDrop]

Bob Ross was Air Force. But maybe this was his Navy equivalent here.

[@darrickbrown830]

This is what you get when people communicate well and are good at their job. These guys help me sleep at night.👍🏽

[@nathanjames1062]

My hats off to that pilot you're being so calm when that situation happened and to get that plane back on the deck and one piece I would gladly have him as my pilot any day when I fly this pilot has my up most respect

[@virginiaviola5097]

Max is the friend everybody needs. Calm, collected, reassuring. And unintentional ASMR. You got this Oyester.

[@schaind11]

I remember this night. As a member of the R&A ( Rescue and Assistance fire team ) I was geared up and on standby while watching the flight deck cameras on the TV.

[@kyleknott1097]

I wonder if his call sign was changed to “big cajones” after this

[@joshwithe7468]

If you go into combat with a call sign, you own it for life. According to Dan Hampton, a decorated F-16 driver. The call sign is usually based on something you really messed up or disgusting that you did. I can only imagine what oyster would have come from

[@THEfamouspolka]

Well after that night "Oyster" took on the honorific not the derogatory. I.e. that cat has done big brass oysters!!

[@MrBobcatquebec]

@@joshwithe7468 lol

[@oscarb9139]

@@joshwithe7468 Or it can be derived from your name, physical characteristic, or demeanor.

[@Joe-bm4wx]

Jesus Christ, best paddles I've ever heard. I'd want him talking me down any day.

[@CenterpointConnect]

No kidding. Cool under pressure.

[@addvali]

I'd want him doing the talking during any crisis because just his tone and cadence would let me know everything's going to be ok.

[@davelozinger1780]

Paddles was Max Stout. Tomcat guy.

[@45CaliberCure]

@@davelozinger1780 Better be a badass with a name like that. Hell of a job, there.

[@gmatty2975]

That Professional...Calm Voice that talked him all the way down was awe inspiring. The Pilot kept his nerve and saved his aircraft. Excellent Result and Video. Thank you so much for sharing this. ;0)

[@mikeryan6277]

Did you see how fast it dropped when he pulled power, that's from the shear weight of the pilots balls.

[@theangrybeaverpilot3973]

This has to be the hands down coolest video I’ve ever seen. Hats off to all involved.

[@ATP-Flo]

Holy cow, this is amazing. Insane skills from everyone. Great job!

[@tredog884]

I love the way the flight controller spoke confidently and positively. Very calming and professional.

[@tazmod7272]

My dad was CIC but also flew. He started with props and retired with jets. He was on two different carriers in his career. Glad that pilot made it ok.

[@starga-fr7qx]

The LSO's are really something else, even in the most stressful times they talk with calm soothing voice, bring confidence and support when its needed

[@davidchicoine9209]

This goes in the Hall of Fame along with "Bug" talking down "Atlas." Thanks for sharing.

[@fredfaucher3919]

I had the same thought while watching this video. I did a couple of tours with "Bug", a friend and one of the best to wave.

[@tippo5341]

Just wow...I've watched many many video's and shows about why the US Naval pilots undergo so much training...and this video sums up every second of that training and how it pays off...Oyster's calm nature under the duress the situation must have placed on him is nothing short of phenomenal...bet he has a helluva a poker face!!!! The professionalism displayed by the pilot, the LSO and ATC is beyond reproach...the work of the crew to rig the net as efficiently as they did just showed how well an oiled machine the entire operation of a carrier comes together when needed...indeed the situation could have ended much worse...and thankfully it didn't...I hope this video is a part of training of new pilots now...as to me...a simpleton...it would teach me a lesson of how to react and not panic...job well done to ALL involved in the safe recovery...and to allow Oyster to be graced further years on this planet!!!! Cheers from Sydney Aus!!!!

[@RA-uj3nm]

That pilot has such a big "pair" that he probably grew a full beard in the short time he was in the air...... outstanding work!

[@DrummerKenz]

I need an LSO like that in all aspects of my life. His voice is so calm and reassuring.

[@davidabarak]

I was in Vikings as a SENSO and we had a few unusual traps, but Vikings seem to want to fly. One was a single engine trap because of an engine fire warning, another was a very flat approach because our extended MAD boom wouldn't retract, and the other was an oopsie - long story, but we launched with both brakes set and blew our tires. Our trap about 15 minutes later was a bit bumpy but uneventful. I figured if the pilot wasn't yelling "Oh sh I t" then I had nothing to worry about... except for one thing. Another longish story leading up to it but it was believed we may have had a broken tailhook as we were waiting in marshal to land at night. Maybe broken, maybe not. We were within range of Perth as a divert field (I would have loved another day or two there) but it was decided we'd trap back aboard. It ended up being fine, but the risk was that we'd catch the wire, it would start to slow us down... until the hook broke off, and at that point we'd be too slow and too far down the deck to get back airborne. If that had happened there would have been four 'chutes in the air, and ejecting at night is not a thing I was really looking forward to. That was the only time I was a bit apprehensive - not scared, just more alert to the sounds and sensations.

[@RyanMiller-mu9mu]

I just love watching and hearing this kind of professionalism.

[@melodynpepper]

Really nice skills on behalf of everyone on that ship and jet-Congrats! Thanks for sharing this video clip.

[@johnmartinez316]

Welcome Aboard says it all! I admire your commitment to each other!

[@mjl1966y]

"Paddles, CAG" - that woke me up, even though I've been out for ... a while. The Old Man is getting on the horn, yikes.

[@mooshdaddy123]

what does it mean?

[@johnhanson9245]

@@mooshdaddy123 That is the Carrier Air Group Commander, A Captain calling the LSO (paddles) a LT. Everyone is watching even below decks and CAG is head of the entire Air Wing on the Carrier. Huge responsibility and he commands full respect and attention

[@philipmarq]

Kudos to LSO (or Paddles, who ever was talking to the pilot). His tone of voice and his words must have given much confidence to the pilot. Without saying it you could feel the silent message, "You can do this, you are just fine". While the pilot flew magnificently, it took a team to get him down. Great video.

[@waynecoulter6761]

Wow... Single burner wave off... he didnt miss the barrier by much

[@danielwatts7375]

This was from my first deployment on the Constellation. We were five days out from San Diego. The shooter and assistant shooter (I forget the terms, the yellow shirts who launch the jets) didn't pull up the rubber track that's placed into the catapult between launches. As the catapult pulled the jet down the flight deck, the shuttle kicked up the rubber, which was then sucked up into both intakes on launch off of Cat 1. I was in my shop (VMFA-323 avionics) watching it on the flight deck camera. When the jet launched, there was a HUGE fireball coming out of the back, even more so than you'd see on an afterburner launch. Then it dropped almost to the waterline, but managed to gain altitude. The jet was hangar-bound for at least a month as some parts had to be flown in due to the damage to the wings and stabilizers from the barricade, as well as the engines getting almost destroyed. Kudos to the pilot who kept the plane airborne and to the sailors and Marines who set up the barricade like the professionals they were.

[@thegeekwholived3646]

I was on board that night, taking a smoke break on Sponson 1 when the launch happened. Sponson 1 was located roughly 40 feet below the flight deck, and maybe 20 feet aft of the jet blast deflector for Catapult # 1 which he launched from. Not a great view. I remember a really bright flash of light as he launched, followed a few seconds later by the flashes as he pickled off his external stores. I think they were just drop tanks, no ordnance on board. We were still pretty near to Hawaii, on our way out on deployment, so if he was carrying weapons, they were probably inert. When we saw him drop the stores, we knew it was bad. After a minute or so, we lost sight of him, and since I didn't work on the flight deck, I only saw the aftermath. When they brought the aircraft down to the hangar, there were pieces of the barricade webbing still embedded in the leading edges of both wings. They'd cut in probably 4 or 5 inches. I also got to read the unclassified portion of the Mishap Report. This was day two or three of a training evolution (COMPTUEX) that is normally a separate at-sea period on it's own, but for some reason that year we were doing it as part of the initial stage of our deployment. We'd been flying pretty heavily for the whole time. The catapult crew came back up on deck for this launch cycle, and saw the Catapult Officer removing a section of the slot seal from the track on catapult #1. Since he was moving one of the middle sections, they assumed he had already removed the section forward of it and did not check. Nobody walked the catapult track prior to launching aircraft. When the aircraft launched, pieces of the slot seal shot down both engines. The left engine immediately flamed out, and the right engine began essentially coming apart at the seams. Since the only way to maintain enough airspeed to stay airborne was to keep that right engine in afterburner, and the external fuel tanks were already doing a submarine impersonation, the Hornet was burning gas like crazy. If he hadn't caught the barricade when he did, he would likely not have been able to make another pass, as there was only about 400 lbs of fuel remaining.

[@markfnorm]

@Jo T in full afterburner you burn like 1000 lbs a min, dont know if he was in full afterburner but probally less and half that for 1 engine and he probally had less than a minute of powered flight left with 400 lbs in the tanks.

[@gregoryholland6126]

Jo T No. They don’t. They’re AFTERBURNING JET ENGINES; you can’t compare fuel consumption to a car. Like 1200 miles fully fueled cruising at high altitude; way less when you ditch your external tanks and stay in afterburner at sea level. Dumbass

[@peter5.056]

It's amazing the pilot could even see the ship with only 144p resolution to work with.

[@sw8741]

"Eject eject!! get out get out!!" Huh? I got this "You're too low!" So?

[@bryanward3327]

Finally somebody that didn't punch out of a still flying jet, like the A-6 and F-14 that flew away with no crew.

[@rnichol22]

@@bryanward3327 I'm sure I read the F14 began to climb after ejection due to all the weight being lost after ejection. Not sure if it's true, but a canopy, two crew, two ejection seats and all gear must weigh a fair amount

[@justScrollin0627]

Amazing that he didn't eject when told to ,just out of human survival mode he had to have been in..Just wow 👏

[@36thstreethero]

Yeah did we miss something?

[@709mash]

I was so stoked when he landed! Must have felt amazing. Great job by the guy talking him in. Stayed super calm and reassuring!

[@MrWestland]

F-18 with two engines, happy ending with a skilled crew. F-35 with one engine, total loss of aircraft and hopefully the pilot survives the ejection at night into the sea.

[@TealJosh]

It wasn't the dual engines that saved this plane, it was extreme skill of the pilot and pure luck. By all logic the second engine should've died too.

[@chillout1109]

Even though he was advised to ditch, he still decided to battle with a crippled multimillion jet, and succeeded in saving it too. That's bravery and dedication at its finest. And that soothing, calm and reassuring voice of the LSO. That was the best man to have guiding you in the moment of pressure. What a team. Salute.

[@Doggtyred]

He felt his chances were better trying to fly back aboard than do a night ejection into the water...

[@mikegallant811]

​@@Doggtyred plus it's always good when you can save both the pilot and the aircraft. 😊

[@slayer6936]

Great calm voice great job..Cag..

[@Aardvark892]

Very brave pilot. Excellent work by everyone. Thank you for posting this!

[@drbobopt]

I saved this description of the incident at least 10 years ago: Here's a personal story of an F-18 Hornet's recent recovery by barricade . at night . . on an aircraft carrier in the Pacific. . [ Note : the barricade is a 20 foot high net that stretches across the carrier's deck to 'catch' airplanes during extreme emergencies.] " Oyster, here. This note is to share with you the exciting night I had the other month. It has nothing to do with me wanting to talk about me. But it has everything to do with sharing what will no doubt become a better story as the years go by. So.... There I was .. ' manned up' a hot seat for the 2030 night launch about 500 miles north of Hawaii. I was taxied off toward the carrier's island where I did a 180 degree turn to get spotted to be the first one off Catapult # 1. They lowered my launch bar and started the launch cycle. All systems were ' go' on the runup. And after waiting the requisite 5 seconds to make sure my flight controls are good to go, I turned on my lights. As is my habit I shifted my eyes to the catwalk and watched the deck edge dude and as he started his routine of looking left, then right. I put my head back against the head rest. The Hornet cat shot is pretty impressive. As the cat fires, I stage the afterburners and I am along for the ride. Just prior to the end of the stroke .. there's a huge flash . . and a simultaneous . B-O-O-M . ! And my night world is in turmoil. My little pink body is doing 145 knots or so and is 100 feet above the black Pacific. And there it stays -- except for the airspeed, which decreases to 140 knots. Some where in here I raised my gear. And the throttles aren't going any farther forward despite my Schwarzze-negerian efforts to make them do so. From out of the ether I hear a voice say one word: "JETTISON ! " Rogered that ! And a nano second later my two drops and single MER [about 4,500 pounds in all ] are Black Pacific bound. The airplane leapt up a bit but not enough. I'm now about a mile in front of the boat at 160 feet and fluctuating from 135 to 140 knots. The next comment that comes out of the ether is another one-worder: " EJECT ! " I'm still flying . . so I respond . . " Not yet . . I've still got it." Finally, at 4 miles ahead of the boat, I take a peek at my engine instruments and notice my left engine . . doesn't match the right. ( Funny, how quick glimpses at instruments get burned into your brain.) The left rpm is at 48% even though I'm still doing the Ah-Nold thing. I bring it back out of afterburner to military power. About now I get another " EJECT ! " call. " Nope ! It's still flying." At 5 1/2 miles I asked tower to please get the helo headed my way as I truly thought I was going to be ' shelling out '. At some point, I thought it would probably be a good idea to start dumping some gas. But as my hand reached down for the dump switch, I actually remembered that we had a NATOPS operation prohibition against dumping fuel while in afterburner. But after a second or two [contemplating the threat of the unnecessarily burden] I turned the fuel dump switches on. Immediately [ I was told later ] . . A SIXTY FOOT ROMAN CANDLE . . BEGAN TRAILING BEHIND. At 7 miles I started a ( very slight ) climb to get a little breathing room. CATCC control chimes in giving me a downwind [ landing pattern] heading . . and I'm like: " Ooh . . what a good idea " . . and I throw down my tail hook. Eventually I get headed downwind to the carrier at 900 feet and ask for a Tech Rep [Manufacturer's Technical Representative]. While waiting, I shut down the left engine. But in short order, I hear Scott "Fuzz" McClure's voice. I tell him the following : " OK Fuzz, my gear's up . . my left motor's off . . and I'm only able to stay level by using minimum afterburner. And every time I pull it back to military power, I start down at about a hundred feet per minute." I just continue trucking downwind . . trying to stay level . . and keep dumping fuel. I think I must have been in afterburner for about fifteen minutes. At ten miles or so I'm down to 5000 pounds of gas and start a turn back toward the ship. I don't intend to land but I don't want to get too far away. Of course, as soon I as I stuck in that angle of bank . . I start dropping like a stone. So I end up doing a [shallow bank] 5 mile [radius] circle around the ship. Fuzz is reading me the single engine rate of climb numbers from the ' book' based on temperature, etc. And it doesn't take us long to figure out that things aren't adding up. One of the things I'd learned about the Hornet is that it is a perfectly good single engine aircraft . . flies great on one motor. So why do I now need blower [afterburner ] to stay level ? By this time, I'm talking to the Deputy CAG ( turning [duty] on the flight deck) and CAG who's on the bridge with the Captain. And we decide that the thing to do is climb to three thousand feet and ' dirty up' [gear and flaps down] to see if I'm going to have the excess power needed to be able to shoot a night approach for a landing. to be continued...

[@pfsantos007]

Replying just to get the notification for the next part.

[@UD2]

Reply for notifications

[@jcast25]

Same, replying for notification Edit: 2nd part of the story got posted a little further down, in case anyone was wondering.

[@donald8750]

Same

[@dewizle5026]

Engines worked all the way to the barricade. I was there part of the barricade rigging team we rigged it faster than we ever did it during any drills.

[@MSWSB]

“Welcome aboard.”

[@Sirmellowman]

To every man or woman that risked/risks your life for my freedom. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

[@1JackTorS]

That was so nice, we had to see it twice.

[@mk1cortinatony395]

Great calmness as standard for fighter pilots. Thanks for the coverage .

[@thorny6021]

The video illustrates the condition of “balls of steel” perfectly.

[@gregwarneford3377]

LOL that was my 50th birthday and I was in the Connie's ASW cell when this FA-18 FODed it left engine on T/O. We all ran up to Vultures Row to watch this remarkable bit of airmanship. This "Lawn Dart" jockey was able to fly the pattern until they got the barricade rigged. Flames were shooting out of the exhaust as he orbited. We were half way between Ca and Hawaii black ass night. Perfect landing and hell of a birthday show for me. I was a contractor for General Dynamics on the ride to HI to install and train on a software package I had just delivered to the ASW Module.

[@shubzilla755]

Waving off late with one engine dead and the other one damaged? Yeah, that's scary enough on its own before you remember you have to do it again and make it work this time.

[@SangheiliSpecOp]

Exactly what i was thinking

[@GruntPa101]

Alternate Title - When your having a bad day, but you are surrounded by heroes. Salute to everyone involved, epic teamwork.

[@randallshughart]

"Welcome aboard" I cracked up a laugh.