F/A-18C Carrier Landing/Recovery: Pro Tips wanted

[dburne]

Man oh man all of a sudden I am really struggling with my carrier landings again.

 

Bad thing is I appear to be lined up proper, I have the orange circle in the middle like I am on correct path. Touch down on the carrier and then just proceed to roll off( yes the hook is down).

Really frustrating in figuring out what I am doing wrong here. I will make it a time or two, then manage to miss several times.

I really want to get to where I can nail it every time before moving on and learning other things.

 

Will keep persevering !

[Buckeye]

Man oh man all of a sudden I am really struggling with my carrier landings again.

 

Bad thing is I appear to be lined up proper, I have the orange circle in the middle like I am on correct path. Touch down on the carrier and then just proceed to roll off( yes the hook is down).

Really frustrating in figuring out what I am doing wrong here. I will make it a time or two, then manage to miss several times.

I really want to get to where I can nail it every time before moving on and learning other things.

 

Will keep persevering !

 

 

 

You’re not inadvertently flaring and hook slapping, are you?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Mule]

Man oh man all of a sudden I am really struggling with my carrier landings again.

 

Bad thing is I appear to be lined up proper, I have the orange circle in the middle like I am on correct path. Touch down on the carrier and then just proceed to roll off( yes the hook is down).

Really frustrating in figuring out what I am doing wrong here. I will make it a time or two, then manage to miss several times.

I really want to get to where I can nail it every time before moving on and learning other things.

 

Will keep persevering !

 

That's exactly what we are all trying to do. I'm getting there now, nailing the numbers in the case 1 but it does take time. I think I trap an OK Pass, one out of ten. Not good but i can feel it now and my memory of where I should be feels more in front of the jet as opposed to fighting it. I also practice getting the on speed 8.1 degrees. This has helped no end.

 

Keep at it :)

[antagonist]

He seems to have it right :thumbup:

 

 

 

 

[Edit] Jabbers did this video and he deserves credit for that :thumbup:

 

Should the hook go back up into the fully retracted position after catching a wire?

[Growling Sidewinder]

Easy folks. We have no reason to doubt who he says he is. We enjoy his videos, and they are valuable to help make our Hornet better.

 

Thanks

 

this. u can't call a guys credibility into question cuz he forgot 1 thing after 20 years Jesus. if u watch his video he has sooooo much technical data on the hornet backed up with tips and tricks that its impossible for him to be making that shit up. I have no doubt he was a legit hornet driver. maybe a little rusty but his information is more than valuable.

[dburne]

You’re not inadvertently flaring and hook slapping, are you?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

:thumbup:

 

I just completed two very successful carrier landings in a row, came back and saw this and I think that may have been exactly what I was doing before.

These two I pretty much just flew the bird right down onto the deck and the hook grabbed me no problem.

 

 

With that I will call it a day with those two consecutive landings. Will see if I can remember it again tomorrow. I have gotten pretty good at keeping my approach angle and speed about right (using mainly throttle to adjust on approach to keep the orange circle lit and e bracket aligned as should be).

 

Even folded the wings, opened the canopy and taxied to parking and shut her down.

 

Will see if I can remember it in the morning lol.

[Growling Sidewinder]

That's exactly what we are all trying to do. I'm getting there now, nailing the numbers in the case 1 but it does take time. I think I trap an OK Pass, one out of ten. Not good but i can feel it now and my memory of where I should be feels more in front of the jet as opposed to fighting it. I also practice getting the on speed 8.1 degrees. This has helped no end.

 

Keep at it :)

 

how are u managing to keep a consistent altitude on those passes. I cant keep her steady. constantly fluctuation +_ 100 feet.

[arkroyale048]

any tips for lining on the angled deck for landing ?

 

I am able to use the instruments provided to line up nicely on the heading the carrier is going... but not the angled landing area...

 

What should I look out for ?

[Growling Sidewinder]

any tips for lining on the angled deck for landing ?

 

I am able to use the instruments provided to line up nicely on the heading the carrier is going... but not the angled landing area...

 

What should I look out for ?

 

 

i'm no pro, i'm just speaking from having landed a bunch of times now. I put the plane at a slight offset to the right. so line it up as ur saying u do, but be slightly offset to the right, when you enter the groove (15-18 seconds to touch down) give her a slight heading change to the left and bring her in like that.

 

this is obvs the dumb mans version of doing it. but in what i'm seeing in these videos if you can hit ur numbers on ur 180 and 90 turns you'll just naturally be lined up with the offset of the carrier box. (angled landing area you refered to)

[Ahmed]

any tips for lining on the angled deck for landing ?

 

I am able to use the instruments provided to line up nicely on the heading the carrier is going... but not the angled landing area...

 

What should I look out for ?

 

just scan meatball -> AoA -> deck centerline over and over again. Practice a few dozen passes and you should be alright. You will need constant lineup corrections.

 

Don't deckspot with your VV as that will work in sim but is not the correct technique IRL.

[jamie_c]

Thanks for the videos guys, I had the good fortune of trapping the 1 wire first attempt only approximating what I saw Wags do. It was all meatball and throttle adjustments to keep the E bracket in place. I'd like to do it properly and know it's not a fluke, as well as understanding why the procedures are what they are and eventually do some more challenging traps.

 

As for remembering stuff after serving, I served for over 10 years, left about 18 months ago, I remember things I've used since and not much else - mostly phonetic alphabet and navigation related stuff. I'm certain if I was tested against the criteria for my former job today I would fail. You don't get to choose what your brain prioritises for storage.

[Terzi]

how are u managing to keep a consistent altitude on those passes. I cant keep her steady. constantly fluctuation +_ 100 feet.

 

 

I also had the same problem but now I can manage it quite nicely. One should practice keeping the E bracket and velocity vector together. Try ascending and descending while doing keeping them together, and practice that a lot. Also remember to use trim as necessary. When you can really grasp the idea behind the power setting and the AoA, the process becomes automatic. Once that happens you can focus on other things better. Do not adjust the power purely based on where the bracket is, but rather where it is moving to. In other words, "speed" of the bracket movement is the key to your power setting. Try to anticipate it.

 

 

When you drop the flaps during downwind the aircraft tends to lose ~50 feet and descent amount of speed. This can be mitigated by applying a bit pull-up before dropping the flaps and a fair amount of thrust after a second.

[aaron886]

In other words, "speed" of the bracket movement is the key to your power setting. Try to anticipate it.

 

Don’t do that. Stick controls AOA. Power controls glideslope.

[Terzi]

Don’t do that. Stick controls AOA. Power controls glideslope.

 

 

Yes but correction with stick gives you a temporary solution. Still after a second or two, more power will be needed. Of course this was just my experience/feeling. Maybe I should study more before posting to "pro tips" topic. I just started this 2 days ago :)

[Mule]

how are u managing to keep a consistent altitude on those passes. I cant keep her steady. constantly fluctuation +_ 100 feet.

 

I am getting better. I also have those fluctuations but the more I rely on getting that on speed 8.1 degree nailed and using that to adjust for small corrections in altitude the better I get. +- 100 feet is about where I am at also.

 

Although on rare occasions, I do get a nice smooth set up and I can really control that nicely. I find if I give myself a bit more room when I catapult off the boat into wind say about a mile or so then make the left hand turn to setup for the 180 I give myself more of a chance.

 

I hope that makes some sort of sense.

[hansangb]

It's obvious i can't make my self clear, but thats ok i guess.

 

I never wanted to sell it as the better way to do things, but as an alternative to those who struggle with the procedures, taught by the tutorials. I expected to receive some kind of shitstorm yet i didn't knew better :P

 

 

 

 

It's a game folks. It's not like he's flying a "real" plane with real consequences if you screw something up. Hell I too landed the FA18 by eyeballing it, and ignoring pitch for speed, throttle for altitude rule. *BUT* I was just having fun because there are no downsides to crashing the jet.

 

 

I *will* learn the proper way and enjoy the hell out of it. But in the mean time, let the man fly the way he wants to. To each his own. As much as we pretend this is serious, it's a game/simulation. So let's enjoy it.

[Brun]

I think the problem with following the CASE I examples is it gives you very little time to get a feel for what an on-speed three-degree approach should feel like.

 

I've changed tactics and am trying some straight-in ones. The mission setup gives you a good opportunity to immediately reduce throttles to idle, let speed to drop below 250kts for gear and flaps, and then wait to be on speed before descending. You get a nice, long approach with plenty of time to get used to how the AOA and descent rate are affected by control inputs.

 

It's a bit dull in comparison, but my hope is that if I can nail that consistently, it'll be a lot easier doing it the 'proper' way.

[javelina1]

I think the problem with following the CASE I examples is it gives you very little time to get a feel for what an on-speed three-degree approach should feel like.

 

I've changed tactics and am trying some straight-in ones. The mission setup gives you a good opportunity to immediately reduce throttles to idle, let speed to drop below 250kts for gear and flaps, and then wait to be on speed before descending. You get a nice, long approach with plenty of time to get used to how the AOA and descent rate are affected by control inputs.

 

It's a bit dull in comparison, but my hope is that if I can nail that consistently, it'll be a lot easier doing it the 'proper' way.

 

 

What I've been doing too... A nice long straight in shot. Once I'm solid, then I'll start going more towards the proper way too... ;)

[Kazius]

Only landed on the carrier once so far and it wasn't pretty. I have aborted a lot of carrier landings but I might try doing it again now. i think I found a great way to practice.

 

Take off from some airport with about 6000 lbs fuel and empty weapons. Then just practice flying the pattern around the airport at ~130 knots and 8.1, but instead of 3 degree slope, just try to keep it level the whole time. This helps you learn to anticipate throttle power increase and decrease before leveling off / turning. My last dozen or so landings on airfields have all been pattern landings and although not perfect, they are getting better every time.

 

So I might now try carrier landings again. Hope my tip above helps.

[Growling Sidewinder]

Only landed on the carrier once so far and it wasn't pretty. I have aborted a lot of carrier landings but I might try doing it again now. i think I found a great way to practice.

 

Take off from some airport with about 6000 lbs fuel and empty weapons. Then just practice flying the pattern around the airport at ~130 knots and 8.1, but instead of 3 degree slope, just try to keep it level the whole time. This helps you learn to anticipate throttle power increase and decrease before leveling off / turning. My last dozen or so landings on airfields have all been pattern landings and although not perfect, they are getting better every time.

 

So I might now try carrier landings again. Hope my tip above helps.

 

whatever works for you man, I just jumped balls deep into the carrier landings and just crashed into the back so many times I finally got the hang of it.

[Growling Sidewinder]

I also had the same problem but now I can manage it quite nicely. One should practice keeping the E bracket and velocity vector together. Try ascending and descending while doing keeping them together, and practice that a lot. Also remember to use trim as necessary. When you can really grasp the idea behind the power setting and the AoA, the process becomes automatic. Once that happens you can focus on other things better. Do not adjust the power purely based on where the bracket is, but rather where it is moving to. In other words, "speed" of the bracket movement is the key to your power setting. Try to anticipate it.

 

 

When you drop the flaps during downwind the aircraft tends to lose ~50 feet and descent amount of speed. This can be mitigated by applying a bit pull-up before dropping the flaps and a fair amount of thrust after a second.

 

I am getting better. I also have those fluctuations but the more I rely on getting that on speed 8.1 degree nailed and using that to adjust for small corrections in altitude the better I get. +- 100 feet is about where I am at also.

 

Although on rare occasions, I do get a nice smooth set up and I can really control that nicely. I find if I give myself a bit more room when I catapult off the boat into wind say about a mile or so then make the left hand turn to setup for the 180 I give myself more of a chance.

 

I hope that makes some sort of sense.

 

fellas ive asked this all over the forum now still no response that has fixed my issue, I can not for the life of me get the trim to work IN AIR. I tried it on the ground and both up and down pitch trim works fine. but as soon as i'm in the air ZERO trim happens. what is going on?

[Hiddenxreaper]

You need to hold the trim for a very long time in air it’s a very fine trim. The only time it is coarse is on the ground and in landing configuration.

[mx22]

What I've been doing too... A nice long straight in shot. Once I'm solid, then I'll start going more towards the proper way too... ;)

 

The difficult part of carrier approach is that you need to be hitting all kinds of specific numbers in a very short time window during the last/second 180 turn (degrees of bank, AoA and vertical velocity). I feel you will get more from just trying all kinds of turns during which you maintain proper AoA and some predefined vertical speed.

[pete_auau]

Incredibly debatable for you. And mostly you. Because he forgot a small detail he never paid much attention to during his active days 20 years (!) after retiring.

 

I highly recommend watching his videos on CASE 1 recovery and so do most people here.

 

 

 

 

totally agree with you since he flew over 20 years ago you would forget some minor details. He has some agenda with this user and dont know what it is.

[Mule]

totally agree with you since he flew over 20 years ago you would forget some minor details. He has some agenda with this user and dont know what it is.

 

I served in the military 20 years ago. They wouldn’t let me near any weapon system now because of the amount I have forgot. That and my bloated middle age body :)