How Do You Catapult A Plane Off A Battleship?

[@Ashfielder]

“Yeah I have a black powder firearm. What calibre? OS2U Kingfisher.”

[@timengineman2nd714]

Actually you have 2 of them!

[@valhalanguardsman2588]

@@timengineman2nd714 3 counting the reload

[@timengineman2nd714]

@@valhalanguardsman2588 I was referring to the Cats, not the "bullets"! LOL!!

[@DuelJ007]

Just as the founding fayhers intended

[@bobkay2827]

Answer = Very Carefully. The most interesting to me is getting them out of the water, back onto the catapult.

[@loosehandle1]

For sure, I wonder what the success rate was for water skiing on a canvas sled and hooking up a cable...

[@frostedbutts4340]

@@loosehandle1 I bet more than a few planes were simply abandoned in the water in rough seas / possible enemy spotted

[@TheGooberOfGoobs]

Getting them back aboard was actually not hard not very dangerous at all, just very time consuming. In rough weather its still plausible and the crew will make all attempts to get the plane back as well as the pilot. If a enemy was spotted however the plane would likely be left and the pilot until the ship can safely return to pick the plane back up. If the ship is in no state to do so the plane will be abandoned and left at sea and the pilot will be taken back aboard. Or if there is another ship around capable of taking it, that ship will take the plane with it.

[@jonathanhorne6503]

My dad as a 23-24 year old ensign in 1942 flew SOC from the New Orleans. Lots of stories.

[@spacetrucker2196]

I remember as a kid building the models and wondering. How could this possibly work?

[@levijennings5655]

A great video as always. Sorry about the noise from setting up the evenings entertainment. The fact that you stopped filming to help us finish setting up did not go unnoticed and was greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[@williamlyerly3114]

There for awhile I thought it was my stomach growling. Thanks for the clarification!!

[@philbell7952]

Wish you would say something about the pilots who flew’em !

[@BattleshipNewJersey]

Thanks for having us and putting up with our antics!

[@calibrus9589]

@@BattleshipNewJersey what if the battleship have autoloading mechanism on the main guns

[@aw34565]

The spotters on the USS Arkansas, Nevada, and Texas were based in England and given Royal Air Force Spitfires to fly for D-Day and the Battle of Normandy because of the threat from German fighters to their Kingfisher floatplanes.

[@graham2631]

That must have been a good day to go from a kingfisher to a spitfire.

[@matthayward7889]

I didn’t know that!

[@planenut767]

Some of them flew Spitfires while others flew P-51 Mustangs. Matter of fact the first aircraft to land in Normandy after D-Day was a Navy Observation pilot in a Mustang who had to put down for an emergency.

[@tomnewham1269]

Awesome information you shared there and I doubt many people would know this fact.

[@s.marcus3669]

@@tomnewham1269 Agreed. I'm going to suggest it to Mark Felton!

[@stanfordcoffee]

Video idea: I would be keenly interested in a video about the life rafts of WWII. The rectangular ones (not lifeboats made of wood), that were usually stacked 3 high, and mounted to the deck, different exterior walls, and even the sides of gun turrets. I am interested and how they were constructed, and the materials used, as well as the quick release mechanisms. There is surprising little information on the Internet that I can find. Cheers

[@johnbeauvais3159]

They are called Carley floats, they were a metal tube made of sections that were filled with cork or other buoyant material so that if one section was punctured it would still float. The center was basically netting and there were plenty of lines attached so that if guys couldn’t climb into the float they could at least hang on and all be together. As far as attachment I think they just hung on a hook, easy enough to lift off and toss over and in theory they would float off a sinking ship.

[@fredericlepeltier3435]

Life rafts were first manufactured and used in WWI and then in greater numbers during WWII. Of course you had the before mentionned Carley floats. But there was also an other type of more rectangular rafts known here in france as "radeau type Brest". Those and similar ones were made of non strategic materials - balsa wood and rubberized tarp for the float proper and a wood grating in the middle. Contrary to the Carley float, that grating did not sit lower than the float but was fixed to it. And of course some rope net around the float to hang to it. A third and rare type was just made of a tin rectangular box (in sections) covered with tarp. (Source : Handwritten journal of the officer (then) in charge of life raft manufacturing, Saigon navy yard, 1915) If Carley has his name associated with his design, it is very hard to trace the origins of the US and other designs. Were they independant ideas, took inspiration from one an other or the result of tech exchange beetween allies?

[@b1laxson]

A reminder a carley float was just that a float not a boat. It kept people safe from drowning. Some of the people or some of parts of people were in the water for temperature exposure. Being pulled under water and drowning kills quickly while the temperature varier from rapid in the arctic to days elsewhere. The blessing of the floats war resilence to minor damage like shrapnel. That shrapnel often active in the "significant emotional events" that sunk the ship in the first place. Folding and inflatable boats would eventually replace them.

[@billbrockman779]

Some of the rescues of downed aviators by cruiser and battleship floatplanes were truly heroic. The aviators flying from USS Astoria had a number of great rescues.

[@nobolony690]

Thank you! This subject of float planes on BB's has fascinated me on how everything worked. I'm looking forward to seeing the hanger on the cruiser too.

[@jsk2360]

My father was a gunnery officer on the California in WWII. One of his jobs was to fire the catapult. The trick he said was to fire as the ship rolled away from the direction the catapult was pointing. This a pilot explained to him after he fired the catapult onto the ship’s roll and the plane bounced off a wave before getting airborne.

[@garyt4800]

I think it’s awesome that Ryan wears these “Chambry” shirts like our old dungaree uniforms.

[@garyt4800]

He should stencil Szimanski on the left upper pocket

[@johnbeauvais3159]

@@garyt4800 that would be a nice touch

[@jeremykamel9655]

These videos are great. I’m on the board of director of a wooden boat museum. I’m trying to convince our executives director to start doing something similar.

[@timengineman2nd714]

According to Wikipedia, the Kingfisher's landing speed was 55 knots, (seems a bit high to me, but then again it is a floatplane so you couldn't slow down as much since you needed to be close to your (minimum) take-off speed if you had to do a "go around'!). This means that between the catapult, the ship's speed, and the wind speed (since the cat did swivel into the wind direction), you were probably already pretty much at a safe speed for take off before you reached the end of the catapult! Final note: I fought a JP% fuel fire on the helo pad of a ship, I used solid stream! (Instead of letting the fire sit there, while waiting for the foam and cooling to put out the flames, I merely was doing my best to blast the flaming fuel off of the deck!!! (since the pad and the leak were on the fantail!))

[@johnknapp952]

Just a little less than a Cessna 172 (65 kts). But you can only go so slow till you stall, and the planes are built to handle water landing.

[@timengineman2nd714]

@@johnknapp952 Yup! To Clarify: The Float adds a lot of weight & drag, this is why with it's small engine, the OS2U Kingfisher had to keep it's speed up during landing, since if it had to go around (for any reason, up to and including enemy action), it's landing speed had to be close to it's minimum to maneuver and fly properly.

[@seeul8rwaynekerr]

As a sailplane pilot who is used to winch launching I'd be more than happy to be catted off these majestic ships

[@markmclaughlin2690]

Thank you for visiting BMP as a resident of the Mississippi Gulf Coast I have visited the park many times. They do a great job and have weathered many storms being on the coast. Today 25 October we recognize the Battle of Leyte Gulf my Father served aboard the USS Gambier Bay. This was the greatest battle in US Naval History. Bless all of those who served in Taffy 3.

[@aw34565]

HMS Warspite's Fairey Swordfish float-plane was the first aircraft to sink a U-Boat during World War 2. Her Swordfish sank the German U-boat U-64 with 250lb bombs at Narvik in April 1940.

[@CSSVirginia]

That fact blows my mind.

[@lettersandnumbers81]

Is there anything that warspite cant do.

[@Gegs-f6r]

@@lettersandnumbers81 Is there any ship a swordfish can't sink?

[@Cat-y4w]

@@Gegs-f6r bismar- oh wait

[@gipsydangeramericasmonster9632]

@@Gegs-f6r do airships count? Considering they don’t sink unless over the water when shot down

[@scottspitlerII]

How aren’t the sub numbers higher. I feel like I am surprised every time I watch a video that the numbers haven’t broken past 150k subs yet

[@tonytrotta9322]

That catapult in the video is off off a cruiser. The USS Alabama were removed and scrapped. I like the Heavy Cruisers that had Sea plane hangers like Northampton class (first ships to have hangers), Portland class, and New Orleans class for the crew could repair the sea planes in an enclosure. Thanks for your video!

[@holyherpaderp3435]

USS Salem was the first ship i had the fortune of visiting when i was abaout 11 or so. its a magnificent beautiful ship and i cant wait to go back, hope you enjoy your visit to the "sea witch"

[@petesheppard1709]

I'd be good with the launch. Landing and recovery looks like the hard part. I'm looking forward to the SALEM video. I once read that fantail hangars had a bad resonance problem, being a large void close to the screws, and were not used much. Your video will be very informative.

[@chetzaiko511]

Enjoy your videos a lot. Got on the Missouri, but not the New Jersey. This video was especially interesting and my grand kids enjoyed it. My father was stationed at Pearl Harbor when it was attacked but his ship, the USS Chester,CA-27, was out on escort duty with the carriers when the attack occurred. He was an aviation machinists mate working on the Kingfishers on the cruiser. His duty during the war was amazing and I enjoyed his stories so much that I joined the Navy and spent 6 years active and was a Guided Missile Fire Control Technician. I didn't realize how many of the major battles in the pacific that his ship was in. They were torpedoed and bombed but was still in action at the end of the war winning 11 battle stars. My grand kids enjoyed knowing what he did during the war. Keep those videos coming.

[@doctornerd_md996]

I love watching your videos and learning something new every time. I've been to the Alabama countless times in school and still enjoy learning more about it

[@stevencasteel6799]

You've answered so many of my questions about this in the first minute of this video. Thanks much.

[@josephbaca1899]

Awesome... Ryan is the best. Love the lecture.

[@josephburke7224]

My last trip to Bama, I tried to figure out why the catapult did not seem right. I could not visualize its swing. Now I know that it is larger than the original. Thank you. The cranes can be lowered down and lashed to the deck. Important when firing the main battery. I doubt the guns would be trained aft. But possibly damage from the blast could affect them. I always understood that the planes were launched as the blast would destroy them.

[@Naviss]

Can't wait to see your footage of Salem! I always wondered what their hangar looked like inside! And why it's slightly off center?

[@IvorMektin1701]

She has a KZbin channel if you want a sneak peek. It's huge, like a basketball court.

[@PanzerDave]

3:02. The aircraft did indeed land in the wake of the ship, however the ships were in a turn. If you look carefully at the video you will see the ship is turning. This turn flattens out the sea a good amount. You can see a similar effect if you push your hand through water while keeping your arm straight.

[@pauta9]

I've been waiting for a vid like this. Always wondered what it was like to be a floatplane pilot in those days. interesting how the various powers/navies came up with similar systems in their recon/operational doctrines.

[@dmorrison7774]

Pro tip… record video on location using a shot plan that matches the script you will read to do a voice over as if you were on location. This is a great technique to use for outdoor shots, echo heavy spaces (coal bunkers) etc Keep up the great work!

[@BattleshipNewJersey]

We don't script our videos. Or plan them much. Or have the ability to record things multiple times. Just doesn't work with our time limitations.

[@angelarch5352]

Heck ya, I love float planes and I wanna go back in time and be launched off a ship on a cat :D Planes are still faster than helicopters anyway. Great vid and looking forward to the cruiser plane vid!

[@derek3954]

Excited for you guys to come see the Salem, Its a really neat ship!

[@CraneArmy]

I kinda want a compilation of every "hi, im ryan szymanski" in a vid.

[@PanzerDave]

In addition to the battleships he mentioned, there were other U.S. battleships that had the catapult. The USS Pennsylvania and USS Arizona also had them. The Pennsylvania received hers during a refit in March and April of 1922 and the Arizona received hers during her modernization in 1929. The USS Nevada, a slightly older battleship received hers during a modernization from 1927 through 1930. There were others too.

[@robertspears6752]

Ryan you would love uss salam

[@rogueoutbreak5967]

I cant wait for this video! Ive been wanting this for a while!

[@Candyman-Elite-Thunder]

Same I think it’s really an interesting concept and I never knew how they actually pulled it off.

[@lloydknighten5071]

Ryan, it is interesting that the U.S. Navy appeared to learn their lesson from the Germans about stowing the float planes aft. The BISMARCK, for example, had all of his/hers amidships; and the shellfire from RODNEY and KING GEORGE V caused a massive fire

[@jurgenebert7668]

The same happened to the float plane of the Admiral Graf Spee in 1939 in the battle with three British cruisers.

[@18robsmith]

Or perhaps someone in the US navy design office thought "hmm, we've got a big gas tank to hide somewhere, put it in the middle and it goes caboom, and floods the rest of the ship with burning gas... Let's hang it out over the back, at least when it goes caboom it won't flood the rest of the ship with burning gas".

[@lloydknighten5071]

@@jurgenebert7668 That's right.

[@SlipFitGarage]

I would absolutely take a ride in a Kingfisher off the fantail of a BB..... in calm seas, with beautiful weather and a competent pilot at the controls.

[@pauld6967]

Catapult launch in a Kingfisher? I have always liked that plane. Sign me up!!!

[@TheOneTrueDragonKing]

I'd like to see a video on the drone launching rails like the ones used by USS Missouri in Desert Storm.

[@edwardknapton7259]

I wonder if you'd be able to talk about the aviation assets of the Iowas between WWII and the Gulf War. There's a lot available about about how the Kingfisher was used in WWII, and how the Pioneers were used in the Gulf War, but there's not much about the places in between. I'd assume helicopters played a minimal role between those points, primarily in transport roles, but I'd love to have a detailed explanation of it, if indeed it's even noteworthy. Hope everyone at the museum is doing well :)

[@matthewmcpherson8831]

One of my favorite videos

[@31dknight]

Great video from the battleship.

[@RickLowrance]

Great subject. You're making me want to see the Alabama again. New Jersey first, however.

[@logicbomb5511]

Met an old flying chief who flew these late war pretty cool, these where still pretty relevant as spotters right up to the end of the war with all the shore bombardment Battleships did but along with air sea rescue, patrolling out for subs and especially serving as a courier was the real value of these that was only replaced by the choppers. You could fly VIPs like staff officers or specialist out to the ship to do a repair at sea or back to base to get a briefing or replacment. What I dont understand is why you don't still see these kinda catapults on thinks like cruisers or Amphibs especially with all the cold war interest in rocket assist runway-less fighters and all VSTOL jets there are now.

[@davidmiller2823]

Was just at the North Carolina it was awesome ship they had one plane and the crane was still there. Have also been to the Massachusetts another great ship need to see the New Jersey next

[@futurepastnow]

The floatplane launch sounds fun. The recovery- landing on the wake of a turning ship and trying to drive the plane onto that mat, then having to climb out and grab a hook- doesn't sound fun at all. Early war floatplanes like the Kingfisher and Seamew had a second crew member so the back-seater could grab the hook while the pilot kept it stead on the recovery mat. The Seahawk they started using in '44 only had the pilot and apparently they had a lot more trouble hooking up.

[@happyhome41]

I could have sworn, as a child, visiting the Alabama, they had the Kingfisher on board. And absolutely - I'd love to fly a Kingfisher catapulted off the back of a ship.

[@studinthemaking]

You did see it there. Read the bottom of the article about it. It use to be on the BB Alabama. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vought_OS2U_Kingfisher

[@happyhome41]

@@studinthemaking Thank you !

[@matthewschultz9022]

I worked in the Cashman yard next to the Salem for the last few years until recently

[@SnorlaxDaCat]

Yeah I would give it a go, seems like it would be a bit of a crazy ride.

[@bz3020]

The British put catapults on merchantman with hurricane fighters. After launching they defended the convoy till they ran out of fuel and ditched . Pilots being picked from the sea.

[@hueyman624]

I would absolutely like to ride a catapulted Kingfisher (The name of the Airplane on the North Carolina) off a catapult. Back in the 70s The North Carolina had a great book on the Kingfisher and where it was found crashed on the side of a mountain in AK. It was restored by retirees from Vought (the manufacturer). There are probably no more than a couple in existence. During the Vietnam War, Army O-1 Bird dogs were used to direct fire from the New Jersey from time to time. Army Hueys would sometimes land on the stern of the New Jersey off the Vietnam coast. While on catapults, you should do a video on the airplane and landing Army Hueys on the NJ. Maybe also include fire being directed by Army O-1 Bird Dogs on North Vietnam.

[@craigpennington1251]

Isn't that a Helldiver shown or the Brewster? Didn't some have the Grumman Ducks on board? The New Jersey was still active when I was in the Navy, many many moons ago.

[@stevewindisch7400]

All the fast BB's had the Kingfishers up until the end of the war, when one or two of them may have gotten the single-seat Curtiss Seahawks that were supposed to replace all other types (we know a lot of cruisers like Alaska got the Seahawks but no one seems sure about the BB's). It seems they just cancelled the change since they were considered obsolete anyway. Seahawk was a cool plane but it could not pick up anyone in the water.

[@jonny-b4954]

2:25 Damn, that's a shoddy paint job. Or a rush job. Them lines are wavvvvy haha. Always loved the float planes from ships of the era. Such an interesting concept. I'm surprised all our ships nowadays don't have specifically designed drones for surveillance and what not. I know they have some.

[@markwatson3135]

The line between the blue and Gray is not supposed to be straight and sharp. Supposed to simulate clouds for camouflage

[@martijn9568]

@@markwatson3135 Jup, countershading I believe. Just like some animals have

[@Ronaldl2350]

Darn, i used to live not too far from Quincy were the Salem is. Would have been neat to go and see you all film. It is a cool ship to visit.

[@bamagrad99]

Alabama’s Kingfisher used to be on display sitting on the catapult. However after Hurricane Ivan (2004) the plane was moved inside the museum building. The roof of that building partially collapsed during Katrina (2005) causing significant damage to the Kingfisher and many other aircraft and exhibits. As of two years ago when I last visited, the Kingfisher was still in rough shape.

[@josephburke7224]

I know not when. But it is scheduled to go to Pensacola for restoration. I think a swap between a couple museums is being worked out to get one quicker. Pensacola swaps quite often as they try to have combat veteran birds. They do have some extra aircraft. And they often restore SBDs or other for other museums with some swapping. They have a very large hanger and a large amount of NOS parts.

[@dshogan6174]

This facet of WW2 ships has been a hobby of mine for decades. So hard to find any good history of these relative to engineering, use and maint until just a few years ago things started showing up online. In any case, it would be excellent if you could find a pilot who flew this mission or a crew member that supported it directly and interview them. I have never found anything in any books with testimonial from any pilots or crew on this. On a closing note....I bet they ate through props like a knife through butter....all that spray in recovery

[@davelewandoski4292]

Thanks for another great video Ryan. Don't think I would have liked being shot off a Battleship catapult.

[@wfoj21]

I think we have an explanation as to how we ended up with the B-52 video last week (Still love it) . I thought most American cruisers had their aviation crane at the stern. Unknown how many cruisers had their catapult at the stern. Some had hangers amidships, I think many had not hanger. IF the seaplanes stayed on the stern, and they fired Turret #3 broadside- how with the seaplanes handle that?

[@timengineman2nd714]

From the USS Brooklyn onwards they had their cats and floats at the stern with the cruisers having a hanger there as well. All earlier cruisers had it amidships and I think most older battleships varied widely on the location of their cats, until after Pearl Harbor, but that was only for the ships that were rebuilt!

[@anthonyglass170]

The OMAHA class light cruisers had no hangars. There is a book called CRUISER FLYBOY about the USS MARBLEHEAD in WW2

[@timengineman2nd714]

@@anthonyglass170 Yes, they were too old when built to have floatplanes aboard. Not sure if they were intended to lower a floatplane over the side for it to takeoff (fully under it's own power). But then again they were too lightly built for much improvement and were an extremely outdated (for the USN & RN) design by WW2. In fact, for improvements they had to land (remove) guns to keep the ship stable!

[@wfoj21]

@@timengineman2nd714 Not sure I totally agree with you - but some stuff I read - I might be wrong, also highly increase my interest.

[@andrewwalker6358]

I assume they would launch parallel to the deck as often as they are able to turn into the wind to maximize lift…. Cool stuff!

[@constitution_8939]

WAR is a Sick & CRAZY Thing and it has produced some Brave Pioneers and Every One of those Pilots had balls of Steel as Most young men in the Service do....at least back in that generation.

[@peterdrought9334]

Wonder how vulnerable float planes were when stored on deck in heavy seas.

[@danielramsey1959]

I have the giant 1/200 scale Missouri model kit, have not started it yet, might be interesting to convert it to the Jersey.

[@planenut767]

Getting fired off a fantail catapult doesn't look any more, or less, dangerous than one off an aircraft carrier to me. However that recovery procedure with the sled and the crane looks a little funky LOL. Looking forward to seeing what a seaplane hangar looks like, I didn't know that none of the battleships left don't have any.

[@michaelsommers2356]

It's probably safer, since if something goes wrong, you're in a seaplane and can land, as opposed to being in an F-14.

[@06colkurtz]

Another great vid

[@TheShawna1]

Ryan I'll see you Nov 6th only 8 miles from there. I have activated that ship in the past for "museum ships on the air" once or twice .jim KB1PFL

[@george_364]

This does raise the question whether any battleship ever used its' floatplanes effectively for spotting during a naval battle. Or why not.

[@Edax_Royeaux]

At least with the US, the Japanese had a habit of attacking US fleets in surface engagements at night. USS South Dakota basically just shot her guns through her floatplanes given they didn't have any use at night. Floatplanes were generally used more for shore bombardment.

[@markwilliams2620]

USS Massachusetts used hers while shelling the French navy in port during Operation Torch.

[@Edax_Royeaux]

@@markwilliams2620 The question is, did the floatplane provide spotting when USS Massachusetts switched her fire to the escaping French Fleet, sinking a destroyer and engulfing a cruiser in uncontrollable flames?

[@orlandofuentes825]

Uss Texas had a catapult on her third turret

[@MrJeep75]

Interesting video

[@craigpennington1251]

This is some crazy stuff. You'll need a stiff belt after the hoisting is over.

[@willgibson9718]

Can you please make a video about Harpoon (missile ) on battleship New Jersey?

[@tridbant]

If I were there I would come out to Salem. That’s the same day as my birthday.

[@elindsey357]

I think it would be interesting to see how ammo for the 40 mm AA quad guns were delivered to the guns (which are in various positions on the battleship.)

[@realhuman4396]

I’ve been always curious how ships retrieve planes launched from catapults.

[@tedmiles2110]

The USS Alabama Memorial used to display a "Kingfisher" float plane; but sadly I believe it was destroyed by one of the hurricanes that hit Mobile in recent years. Did they find a replacement?

[@davidjoslin3829]

It's inside the aviation building

[@brandonkonicki2177]

USS MASSACHUSETTS 59 located in fall river Massachusetts has a catapult on the ship

[@markhindmarsh3667]

Hi Question I have is is : during deployments say in ww2 and after roughly how much time would sailors on a ship this size be outside in fresh air or spend below decks ? Did they get a certain amount of time above decks? Thanks if any answers from Nz

[@michaelsommers2356]

I can't speak about the war, but on the cruiser I was on in 1980 and 1981 there were no restrictions on being topside during daylight that I can remember. Except, of course, for obvious things like wandering around the flight deck during flight quarters, and you weren't supposed to be outside at night. But remember, you're typically working 12 to 14 hours a day, so there isn't much free time.

[@Rexery66]

This may be my call to visit the Salem after staring at her for my entire life.

[@RobertMattison-w4p]

I belief that a handheld microphone with a Foam Wind Sock over the microphone would provide better sound.

[@Train115]

YOOOOOOOOOO Youre going to USS Salem!!

[@BattleshipNewJersey]

Hope to see you on this trip like we did last time!

[@Train115]

@@BattleshipNewJersey I'm planning on it! Also I find it awesome you recognized me.

[@Train115]

@@BattleshipNewJersey oh yeah also, my birthday is on November 4, so it's kinda like a birthday present.

[@MalfosRanger]

It's a shame that none of the old treaty cruisers with amidships aviation facilities are still with us. Catapult seaplanes are such a niche part of aviation, it is nice to see some light shed on it.

[@SportyMabamba]

Petition to see how far a curator can glide following a catapult launch - but give Ryan some waterwings for the landing 😄

[@Maw4Play]

USS Salem (CA-139) has an airplane hangar? Great!

[@tylerponsford1394]

Why was black powder used for the catapults instead of a more more modern propellant like the ship's guns ?

[@TAllyn-qr3io]

Spottercraft planes and crew probably went the way of the audio-visual specialists (overhead projector or reel to reel projector or gramophone)

[@ernieschatz3783]

Good thing it was a black powder charge. The slowly-building explosion probably saved airframes.

[@Vid-FX]

OK, Royal Navy again. But quite entertaining. Filmed on the original Ark Royal , later named the Pegasus.

[@patrickkasper2776]

Very cool

[@firefalcon100]

Well, I looked for the Salem's website linked in the description below, but like the catapults, it's no longer there.... :P

[@BattleshipNewJersey]

try now!

[@arniestuboud]

I was in our Navy's pre-nuc submarine force in the late 1960s. I'd much rather go down to that 400 foot test depth in a sub, or even pilot on and off a carrier flight deck than have anything to do with flying off a cruisier or a battleship.

[@markcantemail8018]

Byron Picture this . Early Naval Aviation Trials before Carriers were Developed were off Battleships . Biplane on the top of the Turret with a Deck built on the Guns . 110 foot Runway , Head into the Wind and Take off . Take off Only .

[@phillipbouchard4197]

Ryan, Will you be doing a video tour of the Helicopter Control station or have you already done one ? Thanks.

[@beverlychmelik5504]

I believe he has done one.

[@EdAtoZ]

BNJ, I like the idea of the Catapult plane until the turbine power helicopters show up. But in my mind primary mission is Scouting over the horizon. Question on the fall of shot spotting, shore bombardment could radar keep that up on flat level ground and I assume small hill and large trees would be a problem for radar.

[@jeadie8131]

The planes would be vulnerable to the blast effects from the rear guns. Could they remake n on deck if the guns were trained to the side? Or were they always launched prior to using the guns?

[@jayglier]

The SOP was to launch out of before engagement but more than one float plane did get blasted off by the main guns fireing

[@hotcoffee5542]

I would absolutely love to be a pilot for a battleship!

[@Electronzap]

Dozens of ships with catapults seems more practical than a single aircraft carrier.

[@Billhatestheinternet]

Funny how they got catapults again in the late 80's early 90's; only this time for spotter drones.

[@bornfree2237]

I'm going to see if someone from my old job (entertainment audio recording) can donate a shotgun mic with a good windsock. What are you using to record, just a DSLR camera with a RODE 3.5mm jack?

[@Sundancer268]

I was not even interested in being catapulted off the flight deck of the USS Hancock (CV-19) when I was being transferred to shore duty and pulled every string I could to be left in Subic Bay three days prior to my official transfer in June 1975.

[@Bryce_TBS_Films]

My question is how do the planes reland- do they land on the ship or on land

[@BattleshipNewJersey]

Land on the water and are craned on board

[@robertsantamaria6857]

Fascinating that a cruiser catapult is bigger than a battleship one

[@WildBillCox13]

There was a great little WW2 era prototype competition resulting in two planes I'd love to fly off a battleship if she could launch them. Here's one of the prototypes: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airspeed_Fleet_Shadower This aircraft and its competitor were collapsible to a high degree and probably the smallest four engine planes ever. Since the Airspeed Fleet Shadower was only 4500lb empty, it's not too massive for a cruise or Battleship cat. The four engines were only 140hp each, tiny by aviation standards of the day. But just right for a Captain's gig. ;-) Fleet Shadowers were meant to do exactly that: hang behind enemy formations, well out of AA range, while using radio to keep the friendlies informed. For this purpose they were able to go slow for aircraft and had mission endurance of nine hours or more. Though this concept was soon bankrupted by the new kind of war at sea*, the Shadowers might've been perfect for AEW work. *I.E.: massed carriers and RaDAR