rhinodriver
More Cow Bell!
- Joined
- Dec 17, 2004
- Posts
- 72
It has certainly become safer as the equipment we fly improves, however there are still plenty of situations out there to raise your pucker factor.
The SPN-41, or "Bullseye" as we know it, is very similar to a civilian ILS and is flown in the same mannor. Although one would think that an ILS is very precise (and it is for most situations) on the carrier there is also an even more precise approach utilizing the SPN-42, or "Needles". It does indeed allow the pilot to couple the aircraft to the system (if you fly an F-18) and automatically land the aircraft. Other aircraft are not able to couple to the system based on limitations in the auto-pilots of those aircraft.
I just hit my 600th trap 4 days ago and I have yet to do a coupled landing. There is no way I'm going to let some system do my work for me. As a former LSO I have witnessed some coupled passes that you can not see any deviations in the aircrafts glide slope. I have also seen the system try to fly a guy into the round down. Just the other night I saw a Super Hornet manage to "save" a coupled pass. He "clicked out" when the system tried to fly him into the island. He ended up landing about 15' right of centerline and just about took out 3 aircraft and pilots parked along the foul line. Scary!
The SPN-41, or "Bullseye" as we know it, is very similar to a civilian ILS and is flown in the same mannor. Although one would think that an ILS is very precise (and it is for most situations) on the carrier there is also an even more precise approach utilizing the SPN-42, or "Needles". It does indeed allow the pilot to couple the aircraft to the system (if you fly an F-18) and automatically land the aircraft. Other aircraft are not able to couple to the system based on limitations in the auto-pilots of those aircraft.
I just hit my 600th trap 4 days ago and I have yet to do a coupled landing. There is no way I'm going to let some system do my work for me. As a former LSO I have witnessed some coupled passes that you can not see any deviations in the aircrafts glide slope. I have also seen the system try to fly a guy into the round down. Just the other night I saw a Super Hornet manage to "save" a coupled pass. He "clicked out" when the system tried to fly him into the island. He ended up landing about 15' right of centerline and just about took out 3 aircraft and pilots parked along the foul line. Scary!
