CARRIER SUITABILITY DEMONSTRATION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP74B00836R000300190001-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 30
• Document Creation Date: December 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 25, 2002
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: January 12, 1970
• Content Type: REPORT

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CARRIER
SUITABILITY
DEMONSTRATION
SP-15b4
NAVY review(s) completed.
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tt ~~,, // ,~/ ~ .-- -
.~.e?I'9lGlIP~~ ~x~~ UI1;1~~"lL~t~~~d
Ai~aANCE~ DE1/ELOPA+IENT PROJECTS
Q i l {"2 B A N K r A L I F Q R N I A
REPQRT NO. ~ 6P-~~~;.
MODEL u2-r-,
DATE
COPY NO
~~R SUI3'ABILT~'Y~ Dr~TsTSTRATIO~i
STAT
C. D. Joh{~son
VfeQ PrcaEfdent
Advanced Deve? went Pro~eets
APPROVED BY
REV[SIONS
STAT
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Page 1
The carrier suitability of the U2-R was demonstrated aboard the USS America
in November of 1969. Two landin s a li htwei ht and a hea STAT
g , g g vyweight takeoff
.were accomplished by
Immediately following the two demonstration landings, four operational pilots
from the 1130th ATTG each made four landings in the same aircraft. Only two
arresting cables were used and all arrestments but one were on the ~1 cable.
Two go arounda for missed cables due to hook bounce were experienced. The
hook bounce resulted from the liquid spring in the hook down mechanism
losing its charge. There were no wave offs given by the LSO or elected by
the pilot.
Minor aircraft damage caused by hook bounce and repeated arresting cable whip
were experienced. The damage was experienced on landing only so it would not
compromise an operational mission.
The U2-R was tak?n below to the hangar deck to demonstrate that it could be
done for servicing and transporting.
It is concluded that the U2-R meets the model spec. (SF-1125) and can be
operated aboard a "Kittyhawk" class carrier.
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Pale i
TABU' OF COT~`1'ENTS
Sint, terry
Introduction
Description of Tests
1
2
3
PiJ.ot Training
Conf i~tarat i on
Deployment
Landint, Demonstration
Runout
3
3
}}
7
Go Around
9
Heavyt~i~ht Takeoff'
9
Movix~; Aircraft to anti frar~ Ha.n~as Deck
IO
Aircraft Dame
12
Conclus3.ons and Recar,~nendatians
P_~..lats Report
F-~ lure Index
Phata~raphs and Drawings
15
"~6
I~3
19 thr~; 2~
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Page ii
REFEFtEAFCES
1. SF-152$, "Carri?r Suitability Test on Land", 1 Oct, 1969,
STAT
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Pam 2
~Tt3.UDUCTI017
STAT
A pro~rau~ with the U2-R eras conducted aboard the aircra~ ca~~^rier America
~CVA 6G} oza 21, 22 and ?3 I+taver~ber 1~6~:. Purpose oi' the pro~r2xt2 wa.s to
clomanstrate ~che casr3er suitability oa' the U2-R and to ohecl; out and
aualii'j four operational pilo-~s.
's-'he pro~rarz tra:, liven the unc? assified nay Blue C~zi].l V. The I~.3o-Uh ATTG
from Edwmrds Air Farce Bare provided raaintez~zee, opera;ionw and lo~i:.tics
support. I,ocSthee$ ADP was responsible fur the suitabilit~~ demonstration
axed the ll3t)th ~~as ro:~pon.7ible for the operational gsil.ct checrtiouts.
Thais repor'c z~~ili deal prizasrily ~rlth the suitability deznons?~rativzz and till
refer to the chectiout pro~razi3 ozaly drhere it is pertir~n4 to the aircrai't
operation.
The I13?~~tSz ATTfi under the corrt2d o;'I ~hP,d a z~ll or-:azr .. ~ , .
is ed staff' both aboard the carrier and a-t -che chore station. Their excellen~,
sugpQrt functions made it possible to acconpiish the pxo~;razn s~'ely and e.:-
pad it i[xzsly.
Thz: America wa,c under the coznrn~szd of Capt. R. .:. Runble, U~TS. His r,.cen
interest in the pro~,raai:z and hiW desire t~ operate the shzp as re~uirc~d to
optimizo conditions for the U2-A, contributed ~estly to uhe success o~ the
pro~;resu.
Tr,+e deraonstrat:;.on landins and talseoi'f Mere zntzde by 1
STAT
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P~,e''e 3
Ds'~'~CI~CPTIO~I C~' TESTS
PILOT TR~.II~PdG
Prior to ~oirtg aboard ship ~.rith -che Er;?-R, all pilots zrere liven carrier
qualification trainiz~ at Pensaeala and ire qualified in ttze T2 aboard
the USS t+asp. Vane of the pilots :uzv?lve~ 1n Blue Gull V had tal.en vlze
U2-G aboaa~d rt carrier. The LSO assi~led to the Zl34th ATTG uor'~ed frith
the pilots at Ldtirards Aix Force Base, I~ar~th Base on a serieU of U2-R
T~Iirrox Lsnndirt Practice flights. Bach pilot had six T~'3,~' flights within
i:wa ~eks of the actual. carrier landings.
CO~'ICUF~ATION
1ST0 U2-R aircraft were prepared ~'or the proLrazi. Sep ia3 nu~tber 055 was
clesi~2ated .~rirzary at~.d 051 t~r4.s the baeku7,. Arresting hook lsit T3:Y-ZO( was
ins?cal.led an each aircraft. The kit consists of a boat: asse~tbly, hoop
covax assembly, tail ~eax cloox deflectoro acid a ta.iJ_ wheel defector.
T~;ain 1_andirt~, less strut F~5-9 :~ro,s instaa.].ed in both aircraf~:. This strut.
had been proven by ~~ests to have better e_zerLy absorbiz~; characteristics
artd is sehcd.uled as a change to all U2-R's by Service Bulletin i~'7S-
Oasnera~, ware installed oi~ 055 for the initial. arrest::~tzts. :t;:~:ert~al po~.c
were ~,nstal.led to phato~xaph +:he e~,a.irz lanc:ir~ gear, the hook and tai]. ~~ ,
and the caxrisr dccls.
All unnaceUsa~,; e:Lectronic u;~ster-eu ~~rcre removed ~`ra2~~ the ui~.?cra~'t and it
was ballasted far a zero fuel wei,ht oi' 18,:35 pounds.
The apart bgttreen the coz~cetors an the r~rxesting cable is 10'-~ feet and flea
tJ2-R ~~rixt; sr~n is 1.03.5 Poet. Thi6 requires the aircrafv beir~ close to
elect:. centerline to avoid dares if a tip hit 3 the elect: alzc~ac~. of file cable.
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Purge ~
CON~'It~iJI~1TI4N Cont. )
To preclude 'che possibility of damaging the wing tip a spriz~ steel de-
flector (RG~7~ was designed and i:lstalled. This temporary installation
was made as a precautionary safety item far the test pro,~ram. Time c?id
not permit designin;; and fabricatin; a "no drag" device for this purpose
after the need was reco,+,~nized.
1~#::PTAYP~IT
The equipment required aboard ship was air lifted to Tdorfol?: lYaval Air
Station and placed aboard prior to the sailing date. A mfl.,~or itez~ in-
cluded prior to sailing was a fuel. trucT; serviced with certified spec.
compliance JP- 5 fuel. Altho ~, i the Jl'- 5 fuel on board ship shvu_ld have
been satisfactory, it appeared advisable to have separate fuel because
the America zras 3ust coming out of a ten ~!onths ley up in the ship yard.
The i~ersonnel and shore based equipment were airlifted to Wallops Sta,,
Virginia on 19 Sovember 1969. The two U2-R's were ferried to Wallops
Sta. on 20 November 1168.
Personnel vaere ferried out to the A~r1.ca via C-lA's from Wallops Sta.
early on 21 Sioveraber 1960. The equipment already an board wa..7 placed in
nositian, line: Tor positionizzg the U2-R on the deet~ and elevator trere
laid out a~ painted and the U2-R started ~nakin~; to*.a approaches in early
afternoon.
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Pa~c 5
TANDIi~t~ I7r~QNS`1'RI~TIQN
The aircraft arrived over the ship Frith sufficient, xuel to make low ,passes
and establish a pattern technique. The Breather was not ideal i'or a first
lancing test. TY~e sett eras causing some deck Hitching but it was not
noticeable to the pilot. Tficr' fires moderate turbulence end varyir~ uind:~.
The captain was tr~ring to hold 25 knots relative wind dam the ar~.~;le deck.
frith the ship held on a constant heading; and speea the wind eras varyint;
bett~en l' an{3 33 Y.nots and 3o de~ees right and left of the six;,]_e decks
ce~xterline
The pattern wau flown at, 70 knata plus :? !:not for each l0~ gallons of fuel
on board. TPae turbulence tiros severe a,t tir~a. It was causnn; a plus anc~
minus 30 knotty i'luctuation in airspeed but aircraft con#:rollability teas
Uatisfactory. One very noticQable diiferonce in i'lyiz~ t;he nn;ttern on the
ship from the P~SLP`s ws.v the burble behind the ship. The air::raf~~ z~ri.ll lose
a~.titude and speed as it approeches the fa.nta.il then regs,in it as tlxe fetri-
~ail is passed. The tendency for the pilo~ as to add pour as the aircraft
steats to sink. i~ze aircraft has a.I.reacly started 'cc rise before the power
responds so the t~owor mast be recuced im2nediatel,y. Oa the go grounds the ul~
drai`t fro~z the :intersection of tl~e araglo deck rind the .stx-ai;;~t decd; caused a
sudden firing drop 'out it ua.u easily controllable.
After sev+aral law passes the fuel load teas dawn to where; touch u.id goo , could
be started. No x~roblems Fire encountered durirk; the touch anc ~:~3 so ;> 1 and
~~ arresting cables ~rerG strop for the firs~c land~.ng. During 211 flying; an
1130th ATItG navigator on board the A~.neriea ~.c~ii~cored shi?~ position and con-
tinuously updmted "Bingo I'ue1" (~ninit~ur~ fuel necessary for sate rt?tul^n to an
airport) and heading for the pilot.
The landing approach required a 5 to 10 de,~?ee lea"t drift correction. After
the I,St3 gave tixe cut it wa.3 necessar,~~ to a3ake a correction to the right tea
line up w'1.th the angle deck centerline. This caused the lalu~ii~ to be r;ade
Frith right tiring; down. .Cho wind; tip def3.ecor hit first, follo'a?Qd b;~ the tail
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Pa?e
I,.4NDTPtG DI'.,bdONSTRATIpFi {Cont.
gear and riuu~in gear. The touchdo~m was smooth with no bounce or left wins;
drop. The 71,-1 cable was hooked and the aircraft stopped. The pilot re-
ported amild deceleration. Runout tra.s 1~3 feet. Fuel load at landing was
~T16 gallons. Wind across the deck was varying considerably but was record-
ed a~t 2G knots at the Lnoment of arrestment.
After the landing the hook was latched up and the pilot taxied forward over
the arrestin cable. The cable Sras retracted and the pilot shut the engine
down. Hoc rer~s,ined in the coc~~pit chile the aircraft ~;-as towed ba,ek into
nosi~cion for 'cateoff. Startint, point was ,just forward of the ;,~: cable
station. The aircraft was not refueled bet~reen i'lights. After engine start
t12e sump tank level remained at the ~8 - 50 gallons (~ucboard tanl.) transi'er
J_ev~l. This gave assurance that the tanks containing fuel were feeding the
.pump.
The takeoff was made on the straight deck. Po~;os ~rere not used so the air-
craft was balanced b;~ a man at the right win; tip. Lateral control was
effective as soon as the aircraft started rolling. Takeoff distance ~~
150 - 200 feet. Fuel load was X00 gallons.
The second landing-; was much better than the first one. Althou,h the same
conditions were encountered on fines, approach, the winos were held level at
landing and through the runout. On both landir~s the aircraft was steered
Frith the rudder pedals during runout. t-'in~t speed at arrestment was 30 ',snots
an the second landing.
Ax`ter the second landing it was ar~;reed that the U2-R z~s carrier qualified
and was ready for the operational. pilot checkout program to start the follow-
in~, day, Saturday 22 November 19ba.
The pilot checkout pro{;ram want quite satisfactorily. The fir:~t c~ay the sea
was smooth and the air conditions i~rez~e much srwother in the morning than the
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~~ 7
Lt~IDING ~L~~NSTRA.TI OISt (C ont .
day' of the first landings. Twa pi3ots mace four landings each and one gilot
made two landings before oparations were ceased in the 1a?t~)
Lt1ND3:NG
Nix
FUEL
raw.
k~IPtD
~~s
ATRCRlLF"r
Rt1P10UT
f-~
x+.Nr~s
1
~r16
26
163
Hit rt. tip first, no bounce
~
3~
3~~
162
Good, one bounce, no nose ~iip
1
t~~0
21
183
Good rotation, smooth
2
535
17
~~4
Good
3
~~
191
Good
~~
42 -~
1?
176
Good
1
360
1;'
183
Slight bounce, mild nose clip
~
530
25
217
Caught ;''2 wire Frith power on,
one bounce, more dip
3
476
24
1~4
Good
~+
3~`~
2IE
173.
Good
1
3&'O
24
1y0
Bounced, dipped badly; nose
Ir)'~ flrom deck
2
546
25
13`.i
No photos
3
31~+
33
163
Slight bounce
4
516
36
luc
Perfect
1
3~
2~?
1g5
Caught cable in air, bad dip
2
470
31
17:)
Caugh~ cable in air, mild dip
3
370
33
161
Caught cable in eir, bad dip
4
288
33
161
Bounced at hook up. mi.id dip
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RUNOUT (Cont.)
the ramie to Qxpect i'ar the i12-R. In one case where ~r.he pilot hissed the
,~l cable due to hook bounce, he advanced the throttle to go around and
caught ?~ cable. The power response uas o rapid the aircraft h~~.d started
to fly again as it caught the cable. Thi., caused the main gear ~to ;darn
dawn. and the aircraft pitched around the rain gear. - The nose
dipped below horizontal but sti7? had adequate deck clearance. Th~.s
"pour oiz" arrestnent gave the lon,+;est deal: runout of 21'( Peet. 111 err
~agoznents were w'~thin ts~ro feet of centerline. There t~rere 4'tro go arounds
caused by missed cables. Otherwise all e2~gager~enL-s were with the ~l cable.
It is believed that all cable hisses were caused by a hoot=. snubber ~a3.-
fux~ctian. This is discussed in detail cancer Aircraft D~~nag;e in this repot.
wring the landings, the pilots learned cleat the aircraft can be steered
easily d.urixi runout. The ease of steerin and the tihor ; runout: measured
indicate that all four cables can be used if desirod. Fir~ure -'L shows runout
an all "Kittyliawk" class carriers. The s-r:.nE; tip position va~?ies slightly due
to deck angle differences.
G4 ARUUPJA
In both go around cases the throttle eras advanced after the I~ilot eras cure he
had rLLissed the cables. The throttle vas advanced frcui cut ~u~sii;ion (idle) b~~t
the engine had not fully unwound to i@lo. Power response wah excellent and
the aircraft lifted oPP with plenty of deck to ;pa~~e.
~~r~zr=xT TA~o~
The heavyweiht takeoff was dettonstrated at the completion of the pilot
queliiicatian prograu~. Fuel load Par the takeoff was 2,0&3 ~;allans. It was
distributed by filling; the uti~xnp tank, both outboards anti 750 r~allons i~z each
inboard.
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Pace 10
H~JLLVYt?I.~GiiT 'I'AF~OF'F' (Cont.
R:ri:re~ie care was used to balance the fuel lead laterall~r and maintain tring3
level while waiting for takeoff. In spite o~: tY~ue precautions the left
tirinG was heavier on takeoff. Tills was a minor probleu on a1.1 talteoffs
aboard ship. It is believed that ship heel in turning and or wind off of
the island tend to cause this problem. +~henever.the aircraft has partially
filled tanks this can be e.~cpected to sore degree.
~? full potrer takeoff on the s?trai ght deck was made with 30 l:not:~ wind across
the deck. S`cartin~3 point zras dust ahead of the ;r~ cable location and take-
off point eras even with the end of the slant deck. The takeoff distance was
1+3a feet. The riuYlt pc~ro fell clear with?_n 104 feet of roll and slid for
appxoxir~ately 140 feet. The Left po~a re:::ained in ton er because of the z~rin~
heaviness and fell clear in about: 244 feet and slid another 150 feet.
The aircraft lifted off abruptly and cliral:yed out steeply. Laren if the deck
had been pitching, the aircraft would net have touched the deck after the
initial Lift off.
PiaVING AIRCRAFT TO AND FROP-i HANGAR DECK
At the completion of the first days lfin,~;, the aircraft Sra,s placed on the ~~~
elevator and taken below to the hangar deck. Thy size of the U2-R :Wade precise
positioning of the aircraft on the elevator important.
Prior to deployment, measurements of the 1)SS A~.zerica elevator and bulkhead
openings were taken and handling drawinGs revised. Ply~?rood bulkheads to
simulate the openill.G to ?the llan~ar deck k*ere cut out and sent; to ydwards Narth
Base. An elevator was laid out on the rump, bulkheads positioned, anal soveral
practice runs were made with the U2-$,
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Page 11
1~SUYTDiG .AIRCR~T fi0 AND FRC~i HANGAR Di~K {Cont. }
Figures ~ and 5 show how the aircraft is handled. The main and tailgear
are rotated Q degrees and the aireraftt is pushed sides-rays onto the elevator.
The lines on the deck anal elevator positican the airer~t so that it clears
the bulkhead opening by approxinmtely 2 feet at the nose and 1 foot at the
tail. bianu,al msnr'ement is easiest in thesc~ close quarters.
t~dith the landing gez!r ~? feet 6 inches frog. the outboard edge of the elevator,
one entire ~?ri.ng panel is out over the water. To preclude arty sudden mvve~~ent
of the aircraft the ship must be slo~red down or headir.~ changed to cancel out
the wind across the deck. This eras done and the operation conducted in
relatively-calm air. Another important consideration is fuel balance. To
assure the lateral CG favoring the declt side the inboard trim, i+ras kept low
? by 25Q pounds oi' shot placed near the tip. This caused the fuel to run to
the lc~w side and eventually the tip was so low that the ~,ri.n? could not be
lifted by the crew.
flue aircraft was pushed onto the elevator by rnanpc~*er quite easily. ~xeept
for the heavy vin; the aircraft came off cif the elevator and through the
bulkheads onto the hangar dock easi]~y. Once onto the liar deck the gear
tras turned sufficiently to guide the aircraft around to where an adequately
wide pascagc~?ray or "fire lane" exiuted in the harWr~.r deck. This whole
operation took 55 minutes.
In returning the aircraft to the flight deck the procedure eras reversed.
Prior to moving, fuel tress trarisferrecl to level the win s. The shot bags
were placed on the inboard win; but the wing was held level by manpower.
Once on the elevator, awing tip stand was placed antler the ~.rin~7 and the win;;
secured to the elevator by a chain at the pogo. This hold the wings level
enough to prevent fuel running toward the outboard tirir~3. After the elevator
reached the flight deck it was de~texgnined that the inboard win; eras the
heaviest prior to releasing the tie dorm chain.
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P~Ue 12
mC7VING AIRCRP~T TO !~D FROM H1~NCd~tR D~K (C ont . )
f
The fuel moverient prableru going down eras a {food lesson to everyone. It
shoz~redrioRa urirlan~eable the aircraft would be if the fuel roved outboard
~-rhile goin; on or aff of the elevator. It is conceivable that the air-
craft could roll overboard and no one cL>uld stop it.
the return 'co flight status on the fli~;lzt deck was uneventful anc3 requirod
approxima.toly the same brie ~zs going down. It apj,~ears that this :ove~~ent
could be reduced to ,~0 minutes each tra,}r as a routine operation.
AIRCRAT~"P 1~21A.G
As predicted from earlier arxestmerrc tests, there teas sorac~ r~inor c~arla;;e to
the aircraft. Cable trhip dalx~{;ed the .~'t~;e~zr claors and door actuator rods.
Aoolc bounce danced the underside o? the fusela~,=e. `1^he I~lastic hook fair-
ings were also dar,~,.ged.
Ai ~ gear door deflectors are pa~:~~ of the RX 107 kit. Purpose of the de-
i"1.ector is to keep the cable a~;ay from the door during engar~;euent t~rhip of
the catale. Althou ;h the deflector takes uos~t of the blotir, -the cable still
hits the door sli ;fitly. The load ~,ai:sn bar the deflector is tran:~~kit'ced
through the door to the actuator rod. Failures Ntart t~ritki rod am": bracket
bendin;-;, then door craekin~ and f inal]y rad failure. Figure 7.
the failures S.~re progressive anci did not create c. probler:~ after just one
arx~estinent. Ti~is -type fa~.lure should riot compromise P.n operr~.~tional t~~i3sion.
A study of the hir;h speed f i1~;~~ of the laa.diriF;s shotirs no tendeYicy for thz
taut cables to come up hi~a enough. to hit or catch on the c.ircra.; t. All
dama~~: zs done by the cable after I;he hook picks it up.
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~TRCRAFT DAPf~4CxE (Cont. )
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Page 13
It appears that the deflectors afford some protection to the doors and
should be installed for operational ~'li~;hts. However, if the deflectors
and tail gear doors were retuoved for training pro~ams, there should be
sufficient clearance for cable whip and no aa~e should result.
1}esiunge to the underside of the fuuela~e ~.~s ri:inor but did require a re-
pair after the program was completed. The dau~sge is cau.~ed by the hook
hittir~ the structure either at initial arrest~nt or when the hoop bouncev
up from the deck. E~igure 8. Hi{;h speed photos chow one' case where the
honk hit~the deck and bounced up aainst the fusela;e and apparently missed
hooking the ;~1 cable. Figure g. The hook bouncing did not start- until
aitQr seven arrestrlents. The liquid spring hook damper was found to have
lost its charge when checked at the corspletion of the pro~?am. The lack of
darnpii~r was not noticeable to the men manually cocking the hook an the deck..
It is assumed that the damper lost ~.ts charge somotime prior to the eighth
axrestment.
The damper had bean serviced prio:c? to the runway test:. at L~zl.ehurst in
September l~C~. IJu.rir~ the Lakehurst testa it was subjected to ten taxi
arrestments and two landing arrestments. H~aging speeds in the Lskehurst
casts tirei?e rsuch higher than those on the carrier. Friar to deployment to
~dallops Sta. the dami~er tras checked and found to be satisfactory and did not
reguire resezYvicing. Pictures taken of the hook cn the first lanclin,s shot:
it staying "glued" to the deck sroia initial contact until it pict;ed up the
cable. The damper is under investigation and appropriate cox~reetive action
will be ta~:en.
The- plastic fairings around the hook and the pls.etic cone arc cif the hank
were damaged -the first day=. They were rer:.oved and 'not replaced. The damage
is caused by cable ~dhip also. 'i'bis damage to cheap replaceable parts occurs
a:c landin{; and -therefore will not cor~?~romise a,n operational t~issa.on. Figure
1).
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~P-15'v~~~
Pa`e 14
AIRCRA~"P IlAt~iA.~E (C?nt. }
The wind; tip deflector t~ras bent srnne on the first laxiditag. It is estimated
that a tip load of 740 - 800 pounds caused the 'bending. The wing is de-
uigned for a tip load in excess of 1,000 mounds. Ro dama~?e ~co the wind; tip
attachment could be detected. The wing tip deflectors touched the deck
aheetd of the ctable several titters duriz~; the prom. It appears desiresble
to revise the tip skid leading ed,e shape so that it gill slide up over the
cable connector or pulley.
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sP-15~+
Pa e 15
CONCLUSIC3IP~ n1tD R~QR14~,~NL~TTONS
1. The U2-R can be safely operated from an aircraft carrier. Because of
the lamer ?levator and opening at the hangar deck, only the "Kitty-
hawk" class (CVA 63 and above should be considered.
2. ~Jind across the deck between 20 knots and 35 knots for landir~ is
satisfactory. Arresting gear settir~ should be 20,000 pounds. At
normal. lasldir~ weight, runout will be bet~reen ZGO feet and 225 feet
depending on relative wind velocity.
3. All four arrestment cables can be used by the U2-R. If the pilot land
of'f centerline he can steer to the safe side during runout.
/~. Takeoff performance on either angle deck or straight deck is sans-
factory. Pogos should be used for heavy takeoffs. To preclude Fresnel
Lease damage by a pogo, heavy takeoffs should be made on the straight
deck.
For future training operations the aft gear doors and hook fairings
should be xemoved. This will allow su.ff~.cient clearance for cable whip
without dalr~eging the aircraft or fairns.
h. Z?dZen fueling aboard a carrier for a heavyweight takeoff, obtaining fuel
balance is more difficult than on land. The wings should be secured to
the deck in a level position. If possible, the ship should be ballasted
level and held on a straight course between thc~ fueling period and the
takeoff .
7, The RX 107 kit should include a device f'or the tip skid to slide up over
iarotuberances on the deck.
~. Extreme caution must be exercised a.n maintaining lateral balance of the
aircraft while vn the elevator.
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Page 16
PILOTS SPORT
Date : 21 Doyember 1~a6~3 A/C Serial : {~ Pilot :
'Teat: Carrier Landing Demonstration
Weather: Scattered clouds with gusty winds. Ten miles visibility under
the clouds with moderate turbulence. Wind varying Zg - 33 knots
30? left and right of carrier slant deck centerline.
Deport: I toots off from Wallops airport and headed directly for the ship
at S,OC)Q feet. The ship was spotted fifteen miles out and the
pattern was entered at ~-~30 feet to the right of the shig on the
ships heading. I flew three minutes beyond the ship and made a
left turn onto the dawn wind using 20? 'bank angle. e-~eral low
passes were made in order to finalise the pattern and burn o~.?t
some of the 1,2{`'0 gallons of fuel on board. The turb-~lence eras
extremely bad, however, lateral control was no problem in the
pattern. The burble effect from the rear of the ship eras quite
noticeable, During the final, stages of the approach the air-
craft loses airspeed and sinks, then the pcxwer must be added
and just as the power takes effect the airspeed is increasing;
and the aZt=_tude is increasing as the approach end of the deck
is Grassed. On ~;o around at the crotch, where the at~;1e decd:
meets the straight deck, there is a tremendous up draft alonta
with a rapid left wing drop which ~s easily controlled. Chi the
first arrestment I was holding, from ~ to 10? d_*'ift correction
dawn the final approach and the airspeed was fluctuatir~ ? 1{">
l.nots during the mast turbulent periods. The usual b~Zrble effect
was encountered and after the L4O gave the cut I had to make s.
correction to the right to line up with the centerline of the
angle deck. The touch down was made right wing first then tail
wheel then raa~.n ;,ear. The touch down was smooth with a very mild
deceleration on the run out. Steering corrections were made
STAT
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SR l56?-
Pabe 1?
Report: Cont.
throughout the roll out to r.~aintain just sli?htly right of center
line. After the e~.ts po~*ar was left at idle throughout the runout.
C?n the PTo, 2 lamming the same ~ - l0? left drift cori~etion eras
held on final, the same burble ef'f'ect was encountered, and after
the cut an this landin?; a sl~.ght right t~.zrn. was made to line up
with the angle deck center line. The touch down t~ras two point and
the wings remained level throughout the r~uio~~t. The right rudder
was used to ,Meer the aircraft t;o the right during the runout.
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FIGURE II~'DL~:
Fib;. PTo.
Title
Page FJo.
I
Seccnd T.,sndfng Pho~i;os
2
Second Landing Photos (Cont.)
3
Low Nose D~::p Laxlciing Photos
1,.
Land9_ng Runout 4n Carr_er.
5
Elevator and Hangar Deck Layout
o
7
Ai rp7_ane Handl ~ On Carr:: ers
Tail~;ear Door Da~~e
3
Fuselage Dames-,e
to
IQ
Hoof: Bounce Photos
Fsfrfng Damage
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FI G. 1 SECOND LANDING
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FIG, 2 SECOND LAIVD I NG CONTINUED
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Ya ~_ ~~ Z !
FIG. 3 LOW' NOSE DIP CAUSED ICY CABLE HOOKUP ON BOUNCE
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FI G. 7 DAMAGED L. H. TAI LGEAR DOOR
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5P- L'~n?~
1'a~,c 1.7
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DENTED SKIN ANI) RING STA 608
Fl G. $ FUSELAGE DAMAGE
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Pa~c~ Z6
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0. 0 5EC~
FI G. 9 HOOK BOUNCE CAUSED E3Y DEFLATED HOOK SNUBBER
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{j-}
,;
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