F6F Hellcat with damaged landing gear crash-lands on USS Essex (CV-9) in November 1944

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[@mandinigunasekara9312]

Intention was to break the right gear to avoid going off the deck. Stalled the aircraft from the perfect height to achieve that. Brilliant work.

[@thomasgilson6206]

Glad you clarified that. I was going to comment on what a reckless landing it was.

[@imapaine-diaz4451]

Still, that must have been a very hard kick in the pants for the poor pilot!

[@thomasgilson6206]

@@daviddou1408 Good point. looks fairly routine to me.

[@pizzafrenzyman]

Silly, if that was the "intent" then why didn't he just raise the gear? The fact is is that he didn't want the prop blades getting trapped by an arresting wire and cause the plane to flip on its back, risking a fire and then being trapped in the cockpit. Amazing how the internet makes the casual viewer an expert in all things.

[@pizzafrenzyman]

@@daviddou1408 Thanks David. I appreciate the respect. Cheers!

[@edgardoromero9607]

Excellent landing, the plane falling at a correct height as if it were a helicopter and the structure of the device absorbed it, the wind that was in front helped her a lot, but the pilot's calculation is incredible.

[@michaelbath6306]

I must have seen this landing a hundred times...or more.. But never in its full context like this..thank you.. My Father was on a British Aircraft Carrier..attatched to the US 6th fleet at Okinawa...44 - 45.

[@hw97karbine]

Dramatic as it is the crash itself unsurprisingly featured frequently in contemporary newsreels, however the before and after from the full sequence makes it more interesting in my view.

[@robertmarsh3588]

Great landing under a lot of pressure. Good to see someone walk away.

[@OldManAndTheSeaOfTooManyCats]

You can see the LSO in the lower right corner directing the landing. Right when the LSO gives the cut signal you see the Hellcat drop to the deck.

[@zimavpitere]

Какой молодец , как грамотно погасил скорость, фактически уронил самолет, чтоб не выкатился, реально мужик, не запаниковал, все сделал правильно.

[@O4KAST]

@Meeres71 шасси сломавшись частично погасили удар

[@victorpetchenev4119]

Вертикальная скорость высоковата, так можно и себя поломать

[@zimavpitere]

@Meeres71 мне кажется оно не убиралось

[@zimavpitere]

@@victorpetchenev4119 У меня у бывшего инструктора отца сбили на взлете над морем, он выходил под водой, этот пилот походу решил лучше шмякнуться , чем в воде открывать фонарь.

[@marine4lyfe85]

I think he slammed it down to break the right side gear and keep from spinning off the side. Nice work.

[@subaru22b18]

Hellcat and the thunderbolt are the fat fighters that landed safe and sound even with a harsh damage. What a legend

[@marine4lyfe85]

Made by Grumman.

[@davidh6300]

@@marine4lyfe85 an excellent company. They also built the lunar lander module.

[@joevignolor4u949]

@@davidh6300 And the James Webb Space Telescope.

[@Edyth_Hedd]

I love the way he just dropped the plane on the deck to stop its forward momentum. Hope his spine was okay.

[@jpgiuliotti]

Thought the same thing!

[@NorthForkFisherman]

"Not service related". Been there, mate.

[@atulchakma1176]

Iam happy that the pilot survived

[@nonsibi1087]

While serving on a US attack carrier, I watched a similar tense moment when one of our A-4 Sky Hawks landed without one of its three wheels, that wheel having been seen to fall off after the catapult launch of the same A-4. The deck crew set up, across the deck forward of the arresting cables, a sort of oversized tennis court net made of wide strips of parachute cord. Watching from the bridge, I watched the pilot make a belly landing, slide down the cleared deck, and place its nose between the parallel vertical parachute cord strips, come to a halt, and the gleeful pilot walk away.

[@jaimeriveras]

Fantastic flying skills on the part of the pilot. My respects.

[@dragomirpetrov4508]

Outstanding landing! That crane caused more damage to the plane than the belly landing. I assume they throw that Hellcat overboard as this was the usual practice with crash landed planes.

[@aimatepid6282]

Why throw it overboard, why not at least try to salvage it for parts ! I’m fairly certain it could not have been a complete loss !

[@AudieHolland]

Looks like he was the last to land. Usually, when more planes still had to land, they would clear the deck as soon as possible. And then they'd just shove the plane over the side.

[@bat2293]

Yes, and no. If there had been other aircraft that needed to land, then yes, it would have gone right over the side. If they had time, it would have been taken below deck for salvage/repair (depending on the extent of airframe damage). Keep in mind, it takes a lot of man hours to strip all the "high value" parts off a wreck. This is time that could be devoted to maintaining the combat readiness of the squadrons "healthy" aircraft.

[@ferrallderrall6588]

Gotcha home and really stuck the landing, thing of beuty tight there

[@charlescurran1289]

I hope he didn’t break his back stalling it like that.

[@M5guitar1]

My late dad served on the Essex CV-9a during the Korean war as a AA gunner loader. Top deck aft starboard. Neil Armstrong was a pilot on the Essex at that time. He told me stories of planes coming in and splat....fire.

[@user-he2dl3js5b]

Пилот мастер, уверен в себе. Более того ему разрешили посадить неисправный самолёт. Не приказали выброситься с парашютом. Разрешили посадку зная его квалификацию и он не подвёл.

[@AwesomeNinja1027]

That what makes the Hellcat a well loved aircraft by the US Navy. It can be easily fixed despite being getting a hard beating from enemy anti-aircraft flak guns and bullets from machine gun fire.

[@lawrencelewis2592]

They didn't call the Hellcat's builders the "Grumman Iron Works" for nothing.

[@AwesomeNinja1027]

@@lawrencelewis2592 I agree

[@Reactordrone]

Nicely done.

[@JD-tn5lz]

Just remember that every flight is nothing more than a controlled crash. This pilot had ice water in his veins, great job!

[@lawrencelewis2592]

I think you mean "every carrier landing" but fair enough.

[@steveb6103]

And he still got the number 3 wire!

[@stumac869]

You can see why civil airlines hire these pilots when they leave the services because where else would you get this type of training.

[@bigtrout]

Back when young men were real men.

[@creekwalker8178]

As good as it gets 👏

[@410142109]

Would they have dropped the aircraft overboard or taken it downstairs for repair or spares?

[@NorthForkFisherman]

Stripped it and then dumped the hulk. It was the middle of a war after all.

[@JGCR59]

There is a cut at 1:15 but still it looks like the got the damaged fighter away and unfouled the deck amazingly quick. But they had to as aircraft were probably stacking up in the landing circuit and burning fuel they didn't have while the deck was cleared

[@mr.whites5142]

Сел как будто хелкет СВВП. Чёткий летун.👍👍👍

[@marine4lyfe85]

At 1:05 you can see 6 or 7 sailors walk by, surely saying "Way to set her down!" "Great landing!"

[@prant8998]

I wonder if he could have cranked the good gear up, and make an easier belly landing?

[@martyyoung3611]

Plenty of good spare parts on that one.

[@migmadmarine]

They probably chucked her overboard

[@martyyoung3611]

@@migmadmarine, I'd say so.

[@Justwantahover]

A good landing.

[@nowthenzen]

that was a good landing bc the pilot walked away. Probably there was no fire bc the plane had no gas left.

[@davidh6300]

Homer: "it's just a little damaged, it's still good".

[@guywilloughby3383]

He even caught the hook.

[@jpgiuliotti]

...and he walks away smiling about his exploit. Military people are a world apart...especially when you think that most these guys were civilians a year or two prior. Can you imagine? "Hey Johnson, after you count out your drawer at the end of your shift, the Navy will be asking you to fly the newest mega flying weapons 7-thousand miles from here and after a harrowing few hours getting blasted by Japanese 20mm cannons, you'll be crash landing on one of those new aircraft carriers that will look like a postage stamp to you until about 30 seconds prior to hitting the deck." Yup - can't even fathom how all these guys were able to accomplish that. And here I am, enjoying extra covid "wellness days off' over year past the worst of it. #Grateful

[@trohlack5150]

So did they strip it for parts and then tossed it over?

[@arthurferreira1462]

Was It worth it/possible to fix the airplane? It seems such a waste to scrap It.

[@drott150]

It would be repaired or used for spare parts. Hellcats were brutally strong aircraft.

[@trippm4036]

Why did they remove the panels just to the front of the cockpit?

[@Aerospace_Gaming]

Those are for easy access to the engine for maintenance. The only reason i can think of is to check that there was no major fluid leak. It could be something else though.

[@911JB32]

For the crane.

[@drott150]

Checking for fire under the hood.

[@Reactordrone]

Looks like they slung the crane around the engine bearers so they needed access for that.

[@andysolution62]

GREAT pilot it was!!!!

[@mac4boys541]

I believe the correct term is NAVAL AVIATOR, no.. pilots.. in the navy. Please correct me on the nuances of Navy and or Marine speak.

[@jandoerlidoe3412]

Expert landing under most difficult conditions.... took time to get the pilot out of his plane...

[@miguelachucarro8565]

De donde sacaste estas joyas de videos

[@o-zone1217]

Did they just ditch the broken planes?

[@Schaneification]

Depends on if they can fix it and if the have a lot spare planes --- oh and if they have Planes in the air short of fuel

[@tuscanyjc]

Always part it if cant save

[@DeltaEchoGolf]

They would ditch planes that could be fixed if there were too many on the flight deck. Primarily those planes that were from other carriers that were listing or sunk.

[@richardcheese4722]

In this case yes. Grab the guns and sensitive gear. If the squadrons operating that airframe type need any spares off it the rush techs to the broken bird to grab what they need. Open fuel servicing points to facilitate flooding and over the side she goes. Note the missing acess panel in front of wind shield. Not sure if they pulled that for sinking or harvesting spares but techs have been hands on the carcass.

[@dartmaster501]

That probably broke the wing root. That would be extensive repairing.

[@kanza7990]

he decelerated so much that it stalled, but that was the only way he could keep the plane from sliding down the carrier. but yes the bottom of the plane will hit the runway Hardly

[@brian45auto]

anyone else notice the giant hole in the port wing?...and the one prop blade disappear into the great beyond.

[@ruypavancardim7512]

The perfect landing!

[@raymondyee2008]

Oh I saw this crash scene in an episode of “Reaching For The Skies”.

[@user-md6kt7km9y]

Красиво посадил!

[@johnshallman508]

that is amazing. i did laugh seeing a deck crew guy carrying a pair of wheel chalks up to the plane... : )

[@fieldkitchen]

Best part of the video was how they hoisted it away .

[@espressocookie8965]

You see gaijin, not all planes explode upon touching the ground like they have a bomb on the bottom of their plane.

[@joechang8696]

if the plane is just going to be pushed over the side, why not ditch?

[@MarkJoseph-vv4pj]

The Greatest Generation!

[@sunnyorbit]

They can fix that

[@bunion8579]

Over the side with that Cat? She slammed down hard.

[@derekpierkowski7641]

Well ✔done

[@Hoopaball]

Few men like that around these days

[@joesantamaria5874]

….or then! Superior airmanship.

[@Dejaelvicio507]

imagine it was an A6M.

[@user-nv9fq4ji1z]

すごいテクニックだと思うけど、後の機は着艦出来ないよね。まあ、米軍は空母も多数あるから他の空母に降りることができるから余計な心配か。

[@seashorelineone]

OK 3 wire. . …

[@Kichuiduoduma]

No flaps either

[@spaghettitaliangrizzly5673]

Крит стойки шасси ИРЛ

[@doglover31418]

Would it have been better to parachute close to an escort destroyer, and let the plane crash? It's dangerous to crash-land on deck because of the fire risk, and the plane itself is blocking the deck.

[@mikebrown1926]

Risk comes with the job on warships and the navy could not afford to throw away its assets, so depending on how badly damaged the plane was, it would have been repaired or stripped for parts. Every American carrier, then and now, has an extensive repair department with all the necessary tools, parts and technicians and can put damaged planes back in the air in an astonishingly short amount of time. This was USS Essex, carrier number nine. During the Vietnam war I served aboard USS Ticonderoga, carrier number fourteen, they were sister ships.

[@hw97karbine]

There's other risks associated with bailing out, you might hit part of the plane going down and be knocked unconscious, your parachute might not open, you might get tangled in it and drown, there was the very real risks of shark attack in the Pacific. This landing was risky, but bailing out would have had its own dangers and would be no guarantee of safety.

[@JGCR59]

Pilots generally prefered wheels up landings to bailouts because most didn't trust parachutes that much

[@RichardWHamel]

My Grandfather told a story about a plane that went over the side. The plane landed right side up. They saw the pilot get out, and stood on the wing, while the carrier went by. The plane had sunk by the time the escort destroyers got to it, and they never found the pilot.

[@Carrierbuilder406]

OK 3 to me