The difference between Air Force and Navy pilots in one short video

[rebewranger]

The difference between Air Force and Navy pilots in one short video
"One is gentle and graceful, and the other is a full-send yeet."

BY DAVID ROZA | PUBLISHED OCT 26, 2021 9:22 AM

 
If you’re an ignorant civilian like me, aircraft landings may look the same across the board. But you can actually tell a lot about an aircraft, and about the pilot behind the stick, just by the way it hits the runway.

That was on full display on the Air Force subreddit on Monday, where a user posted a TikTok video of an F-16 fighter jet landing at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, followed soon after by an E/A-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft. Though it’s unclear which unit the aircraft belongs to, there’s a big difference between how the two hit the ground and it has a lot to do with how Air Force and Navy pilots are trained.

First up, the F-16, which takes its time going down the runway before gradually setting down on its landing gear. After 10 seconds and a whole lot of concrete, the Viper, as F-16s are called, still has not set down its nose gear as the jet shrinks into the middle distance.

Then comes the Growler. Like a brick falling out of the sky, the larger jet gets all wheels down immediately after hitting the deck. You can practically feel a whoomph as the jet sends up a cloud of dust and smoke and immediately begins to slow down into taxi speed. Commenters on Reddit took notice.

“Air Force: gotta be careful with the tires … gotta be careful with the tires …. Navy: land the plane, nailed it,” one person wrote in the “Damn that’s interesting” subreddit, where the video was also shared.

https://taskandpurpose.com/news/air-force-navy-pilots-landings-video/

[rebewranger]

When I first got aboard my ship in Alameda, Ca., I enjoyed watching the planes at the air station but couldn't identify which branch they were when landing.  A senior PO told me how to tell and it was exactly as this article says.

[240B]

Was aboard a carrier for a little while. When those guys land they hit deck full force. It sounds like an explosion even several decks below. Then the tailhook catches the cable for rapid deceleration. And even that process is incredibly loud and vibrates the ship. Just like the picture shows. The goal is to hit the deck running and then to stop as quickly as possible. The ship will be heading into the wind during flight ops for obvious reasons. But even so, if you slow to land gently you will stall and crash, which happens now and then.

[PeteS in CA]

Carrier flight decks may be a bit shorter than many/most AFB runways.

[Bigun]

Anyone who wishes to have the difference demonstrated in person should take a United flight out and then fly Delta on the return trip!

[240B]

Carrier flight decks may be a bit shorter than many/most AFB runways.

It is not only that. If they miss the deceleration cable with the tailhook, they have to have speed to take off again without catapult assist.

[Elderberry]

It is not only that. If they miss the deceleration cable with the tailhook, they have to have speed to take off again without catapult assist.

They don't decelerate until after the tailhook catches the arresting gear cable. So if they don't catch one of the 4 cables they have plenty of speed to take off again.

I watched many landings and touch and gos on the Lex.

[Elderberry]

Was aboard a carrier for a little while. When those guys land they hit deck full force. It sounds like an explosion even several decks below. Then the tailhook catches the cable for rapid deceleration. And even that process is incredibly loud and vibrates the ship. Just like the picture shows. The goal is to hit the deck running and then to stop as quickly as possible. The ship will be heading into the wind during flight ops for obvious reasons. But even so, if you slow to land gently you will stall and crash, which happens now and then.

Our compartment was right below the 4th arresting gear cable. The first thing to hit the deck on a landing is the tailhook. A helluva boom. I did see newbie poker chips fly on that first trap on night ops. I was in the compartment once watching air ops on TV. The training jet was almost on deck and got a Wave Off. I saw the exhaust go black, the plane rotated up, but the tailhook caught the 4th cable and slammed the plane to the deck. That plane no longer had a nose wheel. Like a fool I looked overhead to see where it came thru. Of course the landing gear was driven into the plane.

[240B]

Our compartment was right below the 4th arresting gear cable. The first thing to hit the deck on a landing is the tailhook. A helluva boom. I did see newbie poker chips fly on that first trap on night ops. I was in the compartment once watching air ops on TV. The training jet was almost on deck and got a Wave Off. I saw the exhaust go black, the plane rotated up, but the tailhook caught the 4th cable and slammed the plane to the deck. That plane no longer had a nose wheel. Like a fool I looked overhead to see where it came thru. Of course the landing gear was driven into the plane.

@Elderberry

Same here. We were in one of the forward berthing compartments. When one of them landed it bumped you in your rack. BOOM! then a squealing straining sound as the arrested cable was pulled forward. (quiet for a few seconds as they unhook it) And then TACK! TACK! TACK! TACK! TACK! as the gear pulled the arresting cable back in place. Then it started all over again. All night long. Amazing what you can get used to and still sleep.

Never saw a crash first hand. But then, I was not on the ship very long so.

[Elderberry]

Sleep?  I never even hit my bunk during flight ops. I only saw two other mishaps in my 3 1/2 yrs onboard. Once we were trapping S2s and one was parked on deck with its tail over the foul line. One came in for a touch and go and hit the one on deck and left around 4 feet of its wing stuck in the tail of the S2 on deck. No one hurt and it flew off to land at a nearby airbase.

Another time a jet landed fine, but the pilot rode the brake as the arresting gear pulled the cable back in, fouling the tail hook on the cable. An airdale with a long hook went under the jet to pull the cable off the tail hook. The pilot was signaled to raise the tail hook. He raised his landing gear instead. That sailor was all bleep and elbows and somehow he got out from under that jet before he was squashed. I would have never thought that a jet could raise its landing gear while it was setting on deck.

I saw both of those watching air ops on the tv in our compartment on days that I was supposed to be cleaning the compartment. My favorite though was the few times I was able to watch air ops from high up the mast while I was working on radar antennas.

[240B]

I was on various naval ships, destroyers, USNS, T-AGS, and others. The carrier was just another short stint. I had nothing to do with flight ops.

[Elderberry]

For a long time, among my other duties, I was the only IFF tech on board. So whenever we were working a squadron of planes and a plane didn't squawk on the air traffic controller's radar display, I got called as if it was my problem. I would go up the Island to the IFF transponder compartment and watch the traffic on an o-scope. I'd go down to air ops to see how things are going. By then the non squawking plane had already landed and took off again. It was never my problem.  Once when I went down to air ops, it was completely empty. I went back to my compartment to discover the air traffic controller that called in the problem was sitting in my poker seat.

[240B]

Was on a Destroyer out of Pearl Harbor. We had a casualty. Before the Master at Arms could secure his locker for his belonging to be sent to his family, the crew had already broken into it. It was empty. Being in Military Service does not exempt a bastard from being a bastard.

[Hoodat]

Carrier flight decks may be a bit shorter than many/most AFB runways.

Ya think?

[rebewranger]

AF runways also don't pitch, yaw, rise and fall with the waves, and move away from the landing aircraft.

[Elderberry]

Was on a Destroyer out of Pearl Harbor. We had a casualty. Before the Master at Arms could secure his locker for his belonging to be sent to his family, the crew had already broken into it. It was empty. Being in Military Service does not exempt a bastard from being a bastard.

My oldest son fresh out of Nuclear Power School got orders for a sub home ported in Guam. But when he reported in it was at Pearl having some maintenance done. He loved surfing in Hawaii every chance he got.

[240B]

My oldest son fresh out of Nuclear Power School got orders for a sub home ported in Guam. But when he reported in it was at Pearl having some maintenance done. He loved surfing in Hawaii every chance he got.

Know Guam and Pearl Harbor very well. His ship was in Barbers Point.

In Guam knew many of the submarine sailors there. There is a place is Guam called Two Palms. Not a bar. It is literally two palm trees with half a dozen or so picnic tables under and around. Everybody went there BYOB. Playing Ozzie all night drinking, and goofing off. Good times.

There is a tour in Guam called a "Boonie Stomp". They lead you through the jungle to a waterfall swimming hole. I nearly drown there. Waded out to the waterfall and it sucked me under. The waterfall pressure erosion had carved out the lagoon bottom six to ten feet. I did not know that. So you are wading about waist deep until you get close to the waterfall, then you are sucked in to this deep depression underwater while being pummeled by the waterfall on top. Fortunately I am an excellent swimmer and trained in water survival. Even so, I still am not sure how I survived that. It was like being inside a washing machine.

Was at a bar in Guam with a crew of submarine sailors. Sitting at a table with a couple of beers, as you do. One of them asked me if I was gay? I said no. He said, Have you ever been with a man? I said no. He asked, Well then how do you know? You may like it. Hmm... I thought, specious logic in that I think, but I said no thanks man. He said watch this, grabbed the guy next to him and started making out at the table. See? It's easy. Nothing to it. Thanks for the drinks ... I left.

The ship lost a sailor there. At the time, Guamanians still had active tribal warfare. They fought each other all the time as part of their culture. And they had communal villages. If a village owned a tractor it was a big deal. Couple of rednecks happened to see a tractor in a field and thought it would be fun to take it for a ride. One got away back to the ship. Searched for the driver for two days. Eventually found him in a hole somewhere. Guamanians do not play if you mess with their tractor. That tractor meant 'life' to them for the whole village.

When the monsoons come in Guam it is like nothing you can imagine. Drops as big as golf balls pouring down like every square inch of land was under a waterfall. And when the typhoons come it is dangerous to be outdoors. The shanty houses blow apart and start blowing down the street. Corrugated tin rolling at 30-40mph hits you, you will not remember it.

From Guam we headed over to Hong Kong (still British at that time), but that is whole different set of stories.

@Elderberry
Thank You for bringing this up. I haven't thought about any of this stuff for decades. Wonder what I will dream about tonight with all these memories stirred up?