U.S. NAVY AIRCRAFT CARRIER LANDING MISHAPS & CRASHES Training Film 9002

My Dad was one of these incredibly brave and supremely skilled individuals. When he retired,he'd logged over 18,000 hours and 900 plus arrested landings. He left our world at the age of 84...He's still up there and I can only imagine what he sees and experiences. Fair winds and following seas,Dad. I love you.

''Official use only'' means I'm a fighter pilot now, woo hoo!

I am a Plankowner on the TR CVN-71 and on our first med cruise we had an arresting cable failure. It hit a parked Sea King helo and damn near cut it in half. The only thing preventing complete separation was the engine shafts. There was four Red Shirts in the crash crane that are the luckiest four men on earth. The cable passed about two feet over their heads. We had one barricade arrest because the landing gear on the Tomcat would not fully deploy. But that was it.

US Navy, 72-76 AE2. I wanted to take this opportunity to say something to the actual Pilot audience here. We really had a lot of respect for you guys, you were the ones who put their personal posterior on the line, and this was deeply appreciated. Just wanted to let you know what your enlisted teammates were often thinking. thx guys.

For years I filmed the flight deck of USS Saratoga CV-60. Landing gear collapses, hung ordnance coming off and bouncing down the flight deck, or into the forward bow striking sailors working on planes. I have seen and filmed flight deck crew who for just a moment quit paying attention and get run over and killed, or forget never to walk through a prop ark and walk right into an E-2 Hawkeyes prop. In Desert Storm we wore the non skid off the deck, and planes literally slid into each other like they were sliding on ice...smash and crash. I even filmed "Tilly" our aircraft crane, going overboard in the North Atlantic in heavy seas...tiedowns broke and she just rolled across the deck and over the side. After years behind the Camara and on the flight deck, I can tell you all...it is an easy place to die. But I can also tell you it was the most exciting part of my life. Helicopters going in the water, men blown overboard during a JBD malfunction, crew falling off planes, too fires and 500 pound bombs falling and rolling across the deck. I can only say, that to live it and experience it....and come out alive is a great feeling....IC United States Navy Ret.

My late friend served safely on carrier flight decks in 1958-59 and often remarked it was without question the world's most dangerous workplace. Night landings scared the bejesus out of everyone as 7 tons of screeching metal whizzed by their faces. There were accidents and men died. But crews did their jobs then and do so today, beautifully. God bless 'em all!

My father was a career Air Force Command pilot.  His respect for our naval aviators remained immense throughout his life.  This film brings home to me why he felt this way.

Early in my career in aircraft carrier operations, I concentrated on speed control. My entire career in aircraft operations. I remained accident free. I flew day fighters in WW11, night attack in Korea, Transport on my final tour.

Wow, this film took me back "a few years". As a veteran of the A7E, both as a Fleet Pilot and later as a RAG instructor...I remember these films. In fact, the first time I saw one was the day before my first jet carrier qual in the TA4J. Of course all of us watching knew it would not be any of us buying the farm the next day landing on the USS Lexington. Thanks for posting this!

A few times I would sneek up to a catwalk above the fantail and just below the flight deck and watch planes land at night. Looked like they were coming right at you lol Navy Vietnam Vet, USS Enterprise.

My dad was on the USS Ticonderoga CVA-14 in the 50’s and USS Bon Homme Richard CVA-31 in the 60’s. He was a pilot but his job was in Combat Information Center (CIC). In his Navy career he started flying prop and retired flying jets.

A close friend spent seven years on carrier decks without a scratch. A few years after getting out, he was killed out at Glamis by drunk teens in a 4x4 running him over. That was in '99, and it seems like yesterday. He's been at Ft Rosecrans Cemetery since. We miss him very much.

A few years ago I had the privilege of meeting Melvin Brantley, the gentleman that replied on here about being a pilot thru 3 wars. I met him at a showing of the movie Dunkirk in the Ft. Lauderdale area. He was kind, humble with a twinkle in his eyes. He watched the movie from his wheelchair, by himself. I had the feeling that he must of been a pilot so after the movie I went down to chat with him. It's something that I'll never forget. I wanted so badly to offer to buy him dinner so that I could hear more of his stories. He'd already been generous with his time and I didn't want to monopolize any more of his time. BTW, the final tour he is speaking of, as you probably guessed was Viet Nam. To the "gentleman" that was insulting him, with all due respect, neither of us is worthy of washing a true hero's jock strap. That man managed to survive 3 wars - as a pilot!!! Just goes to show the difference between the greatest generation, and today's younger punks. (Not saying all young are punks, clearly not the case.)

Fascinating. I love these USN/USAF RAF/RN safety/instruction films. A lot of common sense advice...but in these high pressure situations, it's often hard to remember even the basics. These films have saved many lives, even though they sound cheesy and corny to us today.

“I never did anything in space that was more difficult than a night carrier landing. I think we sometimes get credit for more heroism than we deserve.” Alan Bean, Apollo 12, Skylab 3.

14:52 "Believe in the meatball". No truer words have ever been spoken.

That brings back a lot of memories. I must have watched this video a couple dozen times over my career. Even after finishing flight training in the early ‘80’s, every squadron seemed to play it multiple times during each cruise. Fun times.

Great fun to watch these guys do what they do. My father was an Air Force pilot from way back, like WWII. I think I have airplane fluid in my veins! I love watching these guys do what they do in such dangerous conditions. True professionals!

Cool video. I love watching old training films. A history lesson loaded in each and every one !

Got to spend 4 days on a Essex class carrier when I was 13. Norfolk to mayport on the Franklin D Roosevelt CV 42. Last run before retirement. My dad got to come home early with 7 chiefs and got 40 boys to meet the ship before she left Norfolk. The Nimitz was there. No A-4’s. There were A-8’s I was given a camera snd shot rolls of film for a few days for Mr. Chapman who was the ship’s photographer and family friend. It was an incredible experience.