Ward…. And Hozer! Omg I was so incredibly humbled to hear that Hozer thought highly of me back in his advanced jet days at VT-7. Coming from a guy like Hozer, that absolutely floored me. I am so glad I was able to have an impact in his life that way. Wow…. Personally, I went on to serve as Cag Paddles onboard USS Carl Vinson, and I hung on every word Hozer had to say about that experience. For me, it was incredible WestPac pitching decks, Bering Sea high winds and blinding snow, and later on back on the East coast as dept head on Theodore Roosevelt, I was right there enjoying those North Atlantic rollercoaster rides too. What memories all of that stuff brought back. Thank you BOTH for an amazingly good discussion. Again thanks so much for the honor of you mentioning this old tired LSO on your channel. Tremendously humbling. All the best! Peebs
Mooch, This interview with "Hoser" is excellent. Answers a lot of questions I've always had. He explains the complexities of coming aboard the carrier with high performance A/C. I worked on F9F5's (Panthers) and FJ4B A/C 1957- 1959 in VMA 223. (The Battling Bull Dogs) I witnessed a lot of A/C accidents. I became a commercial pilot in the 60's and the rest is history. Semper Fi.
I remember a stormy nasty night in the Med doing ops, our Maint. Officer was flying the the last event of the night and wound up boltering 3 times before getting aboard in one of our 3 flyable Prowlers. This was at the end of a LONG flight day, 10 events, and our troubleshooter crew was really tired and wet up on the deck. We were up there cheering him on like in a football game to get this bird back aboard. When he climbed out out of that cockpit he was as drenched as we were, in his own sweat. This is truly the Varsity out there. And this was during peacetime, 81-82 time frame on the JFK. The bird came back with no down gripes.
Your lucky...when two or three years before we lost Prowlers like napkins on a dinner table....cause they'd lose generators and APU's no need to worry about bolstering when they disappear in a storm... Then on the Indy we had VA176
My two rules to waving probably passed down to me from the myriad of awesome paddles I had the priviledge to wave with: 1. Tie goes to the runner = if it was a tweener pass it was the higher grade of the two. 2. Grade the correction and not the mistake (unless it was truely a gross error). My favorite debrief was "Low start, nice correction, OK pass" Waving was awesome. It was the clique within a clique. You knew every pilot in the airwing and most of the NFO's. -Just to add a couple of things to the very well done video. There were usually 3 LSO's, or at a minimum 2 on the headset. 1 controlling LSO who would grade the pass and mostly concentrate on glide slope, a backup LSO who was often more senior than the controlling LSO and devided his/her time between glideslope and lineup (they had the PLAT in front of them on the platform so they could see the camera down the angle and tell if the jet was on centerline as it constanly moved away and to the right due to the angled deck), and the CAG LSO who was in charge of the whole operation. -When waving you had to use more than just your eyes and what you were seeing. You could tell far more and be ahead of the pilot by listening to the spool of the engines which would tell you not where the airplane was but where it would be based on the power input the pilot made. -When I was a sqaudron LSO in the FDNF we did MOVLAS at least twice a day (one day and one night recovery) and all of us, not just the CAG LSO's did it. 4 months into a 6 month cruise and you'd be pretty good at it. We'd play what we called MOVLAS baseball and the peanut gallery would call out what wire to put the next plane on. Good times.
Seconding what he said. Thanks for the informative post. I'm wondering one thing (same as about the video), being that everyone's scores are tracked, wouldn't putting them on a different wire with the MOVLAS impact that?
Ward, I really enjoy your RUclips videos. My son, currently a pilot in 102, bought me Punk’s War and I now have the two follow on books to read. Keep up the great work!
This was so enlightening .....really gets down to the nitty gritty of what the LSO does, alot more than just talking and pushing buttons.....Again, thanks Mooch and Hozer for letting us groundlings in on your experiences.....Cheers, PB
These guy's had some of the glory but not all of it...some of us ground pilots.. aviators to you ground magnets...knew and had some of it too... like rolling down the deck cause one of these guy's took the wrong turn cause their landing nose gear just went bad...and the gear went spinning in circles... that's the fun of it.. especially in foul deck weather waves over the bow at the same time.... and all lights dark 30... even added fun... I loved the flight deck duty at night...was the best ops period...and LSO's had a blast with roundup...
Not only with this LSO episode but with most of these uploads I find it fascinating as a dutch normal average civilian with no military background to read the comments of retired or still serving US navy/ army/ air force/ marines and even the occasional coast guard men and women. Dealing with such daily responsibilities and dedication on a aircraft carrier is for sure inspirational for young people willing to become the best person they can be.
Ward- all this shit is fascinating, further cementing how HARD it is to be a member of the Navy fighter community: the standards, the grading process....which NEVER ends. I've followed military fighter aviation for decades....and NEVER heard the insights offered from a LSO. Or offered from ANY other content creator. #Kudos
Not everyone is afforded that option benji. Some of us had the scores and the desire and drive to join but a single medical condition kept us out of the Naval picture. To no fault of our own. It was a very hard pill to swallow.
Great discussion about the LSO world! During one deployment, to break up the monotony, my Crash guys and I use to hold up cards 1-4 showing the pilot what wire they caught and a line of thumbs up or down if we liked/disliked the pass... During MOVLAS we just showed the wire card. Stay safe, heads on a swivel.
@@snapjamwoodworks710 If I looked up and my director was way out in front of me I knew that was gonna be a bad debrief aka 1 wire. I like the thumbs up or down... I'd be bummed to get a thumbs down. That might be worse than the LSO debrief :)
Very interesting to know what an LSO responsibility for helping pilots safe landing on a boat. I am proud Dad of my son selected as LSO to his squadron lately.
Really enjoyed this interview (as ever). The ready-room LSO debriefs put such a different cast on ops than what we did in the Air Force. I never fancied the Navy lifestyle of long deployments at sea, but I really admire and like a lot of what I've learned from you over the past few years about the Navy ways of doing things. Big respect.
Should point out that every pass at the ship is recorded via the PLAT. Any significant disagreement between pilot and LSO can be resolved by going to the replay. In my experience, the LSO is virtually always right. They also replay the PLAT tapes after recovery and pilots always watch their pass after recovery.
@@davidschwartz5127 Absolutely. There was a dedicated channel just for watching launches and recoveries. Not that I needed the TV to see what was launching on the starboard forward cat... my office was on the O3 level right below the starboard JBD... I could tell what was launching just by the sound lol!
Nice. I particularly enjoy the assessment part, how to polish up skills without recklessly destroying pilot careers by needlessly humiliating people. I wish that mentality was used in a lot of other high stress professional careers.
Ours was a culture of continuous improvement, with constructive criticism (every day!) delivered the proper way. Concur, many professions could benefit from it.
I enjoy your channel very much. As an AO, working the flight deck, I was aware of what was happening on the flight deck as far as loading, preparing an aircraft for launch and passing it off to the next station toward launch, as well as recovering and securing the aircraft. These videos allow me to complete my understanding of what we all were working together on as a team and understanding what the aviators were dealing with in addition to all of the other actors on the flight deck. It's amazing how everyone's training allows each piece of the puzzle, that makes up a squadron, as well as ship's company, to automatically come together for safe launch and recoveries with very few emergencies or injuries in a world where the odds were always stacked against us. Speaks volumes to the quality of the individuals and the training that each receives! AO VF-11 Red Rippers, USS Forrestal CV-59 1991
Funny Non-Com story from a former AZ2. I was deployed on IKE, CVN-69 with VA-46 and was serving as an Ops Yeoman for our pilots at the time. I would sit in the ready room with the headset on, recording the landings of our pilots, wire, bolter, t&go, etc.. One night, I wrote on the chalkboard, "When I grow up, I want to be the guy the says, ROGER BALL." The next day, LT. Tim Kennedy, a fantastic officer and pilot, took me up to the LSO platform and let me observe the recovery operations, explaining along the way. It was big moment for a 19-20 year old kid and I gained a greater appreciation for the Navy Pilot. BRAVO ZULU!
My brother flew F4U’s and was a “ Paddles” during WWII (Pacific Theater). Watching wing camera/landings was intense for a 5 year old. He used arms/paddles/feet and body bringing his mates aboard - lots of movement - fascinating. - I inhaled deeply and was hooked for life ! Still flying and loving every minute. - - . Do a session on WW II paddles -
I knew Hozer in the Corsair community. I flew A-7E’s on my first tour and qualified as a squadron LSO aboard the Saratoga (CV-60). After returning to Cecil we transitioned to the Hornet and during my post F-18 RAG transition I got to run up to Oceana and cross train on the F-14 Tomcat. I thoroughly enjoyed my LSO days and went back to the Hornet RAG as an instructor running the carrier qual as the PhaseHead. My only FA-18 burner waveoff was a student going through the RAG. I had orders to the IKE as the CAG LSO but turned them down to pursue the civilian aviation career. My LSO days gave me the experience I needed to be a good bush pilot flying into some crazy locations throughout Alaska. Landing a 737 on a 3800’ runway in Dutch Harbor, Alaska made me appreciate those Navy landings!!
What an amazing fraternity of men to belong to. No shortage of witty, intelligent gentlemen with a positive attitude. I envy you guys as I thoroughly enjoy the interplay between you all.
Hozer's bio intro reminded me of a convo a Navy buddy (ex F-14 RIO) & I had about 13 years ago: "Dude, you know you're getting old when your jet is now on a stick in front of the gate at the base." Keep up the great work, Ward - enjoy the memories very much.
Mooch, I've noticed that a lot of folks in the brownshoe world call the carrier "the boat". To a retired Chief blackshoe surface snipe this goes against all I've ever been taught regarding vessel identification. "Ya puts boats on ships unless referring to a submarine". EMC(SW) USN(ret.) Marty Palmiere
I was 12 years old when Top Gun came out, and since then I've always had an interest in naval aviation and carrier ops. This channel is outstanding! Thank You!
You knew it was going to be a fun night getting aboard when you switch to the final controller and the first thing you hear is the pitching deck calls along with a screaming burner waveoff call. Thanks to all the LSOs that kept me off the ramp!
Really intersting insight into the role of an LSO! Didn't know they'd get pilots to deliberately trap a 2 wire for fun, i'm using that as an excuse for all my 2 wires in the DCS F14!
What a flashback. Spent many a day and night standing the duty corpsman watch at OLF Whitehouse (79-81) We had a Dodge Power Wagon 4x4 "Crackerbox" ambulance that you would check out from Cecil Field Clinic to support FCLP at Whitehouse. Most Corpsmen would stay down in the Crash Shack with the CFR crew, but I always enjoyed spending my time in the tower listening to the LSO out on the runway critiquing the A-7 & S-3 pilots. CDR, another great subject / video, about ops around the boat. OK-3 is my grade. Keep'em coming.
Great interview. I was subs so I know little to nothing about naval aviation and what they all do. Should have gone surflant but that's life. I am enamored by your content. Can you get interviews with chiefs who headed up enlisted air support - weaps, fueling, etc? A lot probably go into CMC roles. I'd like to know how they all interacted with pilots and what the relationship was. What officers headed up those divisions like arresting gear, handling, etc?
I missed ‘visual aids’ today. I worked for Newport News Shipbuilding and was shift supervisor for reactor test so i got to ride a bunch sea trials and carrier acceptance trials by the navy. A highlight was a demonstration of the auto throttle with an A-6. I was stationed on the LSO platform as the A-6 flew the groove and waved off. Memorable to say the least. I also was impressed with a man overboard situation. I was in central control watching a helo get its rotors folded when man overboard was called. I swear i looked around the room and 2 minutes later that helo was getting airborne. It impressed the hell out of me. What was equally impressive was how fast the ship accounted for the entire crew. I was embarrassed to say they had to make announcements over the 1MC looking for shipyard workers to report in over an hour later. Mooch, how about an episode on survival?
Awesome to see two great authors and aviators together again. I've read Kevin's trilogy twice, and have the 2nd punk book on the way to me in the mail right now! Can't wait to finish reading the Punk trilogy.
It must be said that your channel demonstrates the intellectualism of US naval aviation and even US naval service. Pretty damned impressive; thanks so much for this.
Damn Ward, I'm impressed with your boundless enthusiasm for gleaning every drop of pertinent information out of this fella. Your command of the English language is really very good.
Very informative interview. I concur with an earlier post: please visit a carrier. Would be a great series to see carrier op's from an aviator's perspective!
Some great insights on what it is to be a LSO. And as always Ward does a great job of highlighting the human dynamics and relationships. I was fascinated with the discussion about the group landing debriefings, how the CAG LSO has to handle potential conflicts such as taking over for a junior LSO in the face of potential blowback from a senior pilot. And of course the tight relationship between the RIO and the pilot that once again demonstrates why there is such a string esprit de corps in the Tomcat community.
The late John Mitchell, was my neighbor and a former skipper of JFK. His licenses plate was OK 3 and mine is ACLS. He was an Academy graduate and Naval aviator from the early 1950's. Miss talking aviation with him.
At the end of your videos is a list of things to do, as you real them off I am complying like a preflight checklist or in my case a reactor startup. Keeps me in the moments I used to like. Thx
One of my jobs on the DD & FFG I served on was calibrating / maintaining / repairing the flight deck landing systems, including the Fresnel Lens & Wave-Off systems. Many a stormy night, when there was zero visibility and the ship was rockin’ & rollin’, I had several pilots thank me for helping land those pigs. Good stuff for a young sailor to hear.
Another interesting episode! On one cruise, mid 70s in CV-64, I was assigned as the post flight maintenance debriefer for the A-6 squadron. I shared a little cubby hole of an office with the squadron AK (supply) located across the passageway from Maintenance Control. So, I would be debriefing the air crew when the LSOs arrived to pass on their words of wisdom. Hoser’s description of the de-brief was exactly what I saw. One outlier was LCDR pilot who had transitioned from P-3s to A-6s. I liked him personally, but he did not like LSOs. He never got dangerous grades, but he also never got a lot of OK-3s either. To me his grades seemed to go down hill after he started calling the LSOs ass holes and SOBs.
My dad was a LTCDR on the Lexington in Pensacola. We used to go on tiger cruises. I can remember the smell of the grease. Everything was either claustrophobic or overwhelmingly immense. It's a bizarre and extreme environment to witness as a kid. I can't imagine living on it. Let alone landing an airplane on it.
Learned a lot about LSOs, thanks! Very timely, the latest English episode of the Omega Tau podcast is all about flying the F-18, one of the interviewees discusses his experiences as an LSO. This helped fill in a lot of the gaps.
Mooch . . . great piece. I remember my one stint on Lincoln with COMCARGRUONE, and we were qualifying the Aviators on their launches and recoveries before deployment. This was one of the first Marine legacy Hornet deployments mixed with Tomcats. I requested to experience a Recovery from the LSO spot. We went through the whole routine just like Hozer described it, and got out there just as the sun was setting. it was unnerving to watch the jets coming RIGHT AT YOU . . . until the last instant when they developed the Left Bearing Drift. The net was illuminated in case we had to bail, but truth be told if things went that bad you would probably 'Buy the Farm'. That exercise I got to witness an after dark in flight arrest of a Tomcat (Triple Sticks). Blew all the tires and they had to do FOD Walkdown again before we could recover everyone still in the stack. The next morning I saw Triple Stix launch. They didn't call it GRUMMAN IRON WORKS for nothing! TORCH Out!
Came across this video by chance and After "Hozer" said he was with VA-82 deployed on Nimitz, it made me pull my Cruise Book from 68's change of homeport journey during 86/87...And after seeing his photo and mine, thanks (insert sarcasm here), we were young then which means we are old now. :) My guys, (OE-14) maintained all of the ship's navigation systems including the SINS feed to your aircraft. Great story, thanks.
I remember 1st night of work ups on the America April 81, we had an A7 ramp strike. AC came to rest into the lens. Can only imagine all those LSOs diving into that net below. At least for a pilot, I always felt LSOs held the most responsibility together with the Air Boss.
Very cool hozer came through meridian in Buckeyes and Skyhawks, I m a plane captain at nas meridian working with both vt-7 and vt-9 with t-45c goshawk, my mom was pc on buckeyes and Skyhawks and my stepdad was pc with buckeyes. Another great video
Another great video Ward. Hozer seems like a really great guy as do you and all your former shipmates. Thanks for letting the world in on your "mostly" boys club.
Even just in DCS landing on the boat using real life procedures and standards for case 1 - 3 is pretty daunting. When you add in some one acting as paddles and it becomes next level knowing you're being graded. Much respect for those few that have done it for real.
@@nexpro6118 hey numb nuts.....notice the first word in the paragraph is the word even. Meaning it's not close to being the same. It's a statement talking about how hard real life carrier ops are.
Thanks for another great episode, Commander! It was really nice to see things from Paddles’ POV and to see Capt. Miller (another excellent writer!). 🤙🏼 Would you or have you ever considered doing an episode with your wife on ‘how to be a naval aviator’s wife’, or even ‘Navy wife’. There might be a few other subscribers interested in that issue. Thanks again! 😊
Very interesting! Wow, talk about a lot of stress on the job. It takes real team work to bring home those planes! Nice, I just got my shipping notification from USNI. Weird that only War and Fight are listed as shipped though. Oh! Great vid with Rick by the way.
Insightful interview Ward and Kevin! I didn't have the opportunity to interview an LSO for NNAM so hope someone there got this one for the record 'cuz it is really important! Thanks for bringing us on the platform! (Could be added to the display, eh Hozer?)
My first tour as an E-2C NFO the squadron had what they called a "Lucky Mole" board where they tracked each pilot's landing against which NFOs were in the aircraft. I found this distasteful immediately, landing grades are a pilot thing. I think they meant well, so that NFOs would care about the process, but during landing E-2 NFOs can do nothing to help. I appreciate that RIOs could have an effect on the landing and I appreciate that you still sat back during the debrief.
This is great stuff. I’m a carrier buff . My eyes were not very good when I was a teenager so I was not in the cards for me. I am head of maintenance of Flight School curretnly so in my own way I have a squadron. This type of information is really helpful as I have 20 different CFI‘s and four different A @P ,s and I need to be firm out them but also mentor. You guys do a great job of teaching how to mentor but also critique. Thank you for making this video and looking Forward to watching more.
That was very interesting to hear two aviation professionals talk about their experiences. My experiences as a lieutenant and captain in the Army were not that professional. Field grade officers seemed to take extreme pride in punishing / embarrassing a junior officer rather than serving as a mentor. Maybe, that was my own experience, but it drove me out of the Army. Since then I've worked with many retired senior Navy and Air Force personnel in the private sector and there appears to me at least to be a much higher degree of professionalism in both the Navy and the Air Force from what I experienced many many years ago.
Well stated, sir. Retiring as an AF/ANG E-8, I've appreciated meeting & working with vets from any service; whether enlisted or commissioned, one hitch or retired career, there is that unspoken nod of understanding & ease in communicating -- we've all made it through the BS, gained priceless experience, maturity and likely some excellent skills & confidence in our specialties. That (loudest and most distracting) small percentage of "leaders" in positions of authority/command, with truly malicious characters, do incredible, long-term damage to the otherwise great spirit and huge potential of the men & women around them. I never set-up my trainees or co-workers to purposely fail, or put up with that (sometimes vicious) unprofessional crap of humiliating anybody as entertainment. If everybody left our class, or day of working together on operational gear, feeling involved and more confident, then that was great in my mind. My dad was an AF RIO and navigator, and knew very good aircrew -- folks you really wanted aboard with you -- who separated when the next rung of their professional advancement was their compulsory stint at the Pentagon or some headquarters/staff gig... not worth being imbedded with a busload of the same type of people who caused you to end your army career.
@@dananichols1816 My dad was an Army Air Corps E-8. As a company commander, I had a great first sergeant and I became great friends with our brigade command sergeant major. I learned much more from those two men than I ever did from the commanders and staff above me.
@@aardvark121212 Man, the phenomenal mil culture and tech evolutions he must have lived through! With the young folks I trained and worked with, I sincerely told them to seek out the older heads in whichever shop or unit they were in -- especially those who appeared to be patient & willing to share the great wealth of what they knew -- once the mentors see that you're sincere about learning, out it pours, and the resulting pride & confidence soars. John, the experience you gained during your time in, good & bad, is worth a million bucks.
I'll always remember anytime I had to get a part or aquire something from a F14 Squadron their Maint. Control Board was a sea of red!!! My hat was off to your maintainers!!!
Very interesting. I think I'm slowly getting the hang of the US Navy jargon. I'm a glider pilot and you just have to it right first time (or, else !). The "LSO" carries a heck of a lot of responsibility it seems. When in the Fleet Air Arm (UK) engineering, I made a point of regularly checking the hook's damper for the correct response. I'd heard tales of the hook 'skipping' wires if this was not the case. We were never given an exact formula for this but, it was done by 'feel' (and experience) particularly on the UP stroke.
He used to tell me about the double Golden Knights ( 100 + night landings ). That they were the most bad ass , cream of the crop , and fearless guys on the Carrier. Incidentally, he was also a courier and in charge of the 5” guns on the starboard side. We miss you dad. ❤️
15:45 "If you really have to deliver a message, then you have to deliver a message...and then we would leave." That has to be the most badass Mob/Soprano attitude by a Navy pilot/LSO. LOL
I'm not a naval aviator (dad and brother were). But I'm a pilot and own my own airplane. Open and honest discussions about landing is so critical for defining a trained pilot, whether on a safe runway firmly concreted into the ground or a pitching deck. I reprise in my mind my approaches and landings for days or weeks after every one. What was not nominal? Why? How do I learn from it and correct the next one? I loved every second of Mooch's and Hozer's reminiscing about the human and technical skills needed to land a jet on the boat.
I was on the Teamwork 92 deployment onboard USS Guadalcanal LPH7. Roughest, coldest seas I ever sailed in. North Atlantic is definitely no joke. We definitely earned our Blue Nose
Ward…. And Hozer! Omg I was so incredibly humbled to hear that Hozer thought highly of me back in his advanced jet days at VT-7. Coming from a guy like Hozer, that absolutely floored me. I am so glad I was able to have an impact in his life that way. Wow…. Personally, I went on to serve as Cag Paddles onboard USS Carl Vinson, and I hung on every word Hozer had to say about that experience. For me, it was incredible WestPac pitching decks, Bering Sea high winds and blinding snow, and later on back on the East coast as dept head on Theodore Roosevelt, I was right there enjoying those North Atlantic rollercoaster rides too. What memories all of that stuff brought back. Thank you BOTH for an amazingly good discussion. Again thanks so much for the honor of you mentioning this old tired LSO on your channel. Tremendously humbling. All the best! Peebs
You never forget your LSO! Thanks for teaching us, Peebs. You did make an impression.
Mooch, This interview with "Hoser" is excellent. Answers a lot of questions I've always had. He explains the complexities of coming aboard the carrier with high performance A/C. I worked on F9F5's (Panthers) and FJ4B A/C 1957- 1959 in VMA 223. (The Battling Bull Dogs) I witnessed a lot of A/C accidents. I became a commercial pilot in the 60's and the rest is history. Semper Fi.
I remember a stormy nasty night in the Med doing ops, our Maint. Officer was flying the the last event of the night and wound up boltering 3 times before getting aboard in one of our 3 flyable Prowlers. This was at the end of a LONG flight day, 10 events, and our troubleshooter crew was really tired and wet up on the deck. We were up there cheering him on like in a football game to get this bird back aboard. When he climbed out out of that cockpit he was as drenched as we were, in his own sweat. This is truly the Varsity out there. And this was during peacetime, 81-82 time frame on the JFK. The bird came back with no down gripes.
Your lucky...when two or three years before we lost Prowlers like napkins on a dinner table....cause they'd lose generators and APU's no need to worry about bolstering when they disappear in a storm... Then on the Indy we had VA176
My two rules to waving probably passed down to me from the myriad of awesome paddles I had the priviledge to wave with:
1. Tie goes to the runner = if it was a tweener pass it was the higher grade of the two.
2. Grade the correction and not the mistake (unless it was truely a gross error). My favorite debrief was "Low start, nice correction, OK pass"
Waving was awesome. It was the clique within a clique. You knew every pilot in the airwing and most of the NFO's.
-Just to add a couple of things to the very well done video. There were usually 3 LSO's, or at a minimum 2 on the headset. 1 controlling LSO who would grade the pass and mostly concentrate on glide slope, a backup LSO who was often more senior than the controlling LSO and devided his/her time between glideslope and lineup (they had the PLAT in front of them on the platform so they could see the camera down the angle and tell if the jet was on centerline as it constanly moved away and to the right due to the angled deck), and the CAG LSO who was in charge of the whole operation.
-When waving you had to use more than just your eyes and what you were seeing. You could tell far more and be ahead of the pilot by listening to the spool of the engines which would tell you not where the airplane was but where it would be based on the power input the pilot made.
-When I was a sqaudron LSO in the FDNF we did MOVLAS at least twice a day (one day and one night recovery) and all of us, not just the CAG LSO's did it. 4 months into a 6 month cruise and you'd be pretty good at it. We'd play what we called MOVLAS baseball and the peanut gallery would call out what wire to put the next plane on. Good times.
Fascinating Stuff👍
Seconding what he said. Thanks for the informative post. I'm wondering one thing (same as about the video), being that everyone's scores are tracked, wouldn't putting them on a different wire with the MOVLAS impact that?
Ward, I really enjoy your RUclips videos. My son, currently a pilot in 102, bought me Punk’s War and I now have the two follow on books to read. Keep up the great work!
This was so enlightening .....really gets down to the nitty gritty of what the LSO does, alot more than just talking and pushing buttons.....Again, thanks Mooch and Hozer for letting us groundlings in on your experiences.....Cheers, PB
These guy's had some of the glory but not all of it...some of us ground pilots.. aviators to you ground magnets...knew and had some of it too... like rolling down the deck cause one of these guy's took the wrong turn cause their landing nose gear just went bad...and the gear went spinning in circles... that's the fun of it.. especially in foul deck weather waves over the bow at the same time.... and all lights dark 30... even added fun... I loved the flight deck duty at night...was the best ops period...and LSO's had a blast with roundup...
ypaulbrown. My thoughts exactly.
Great video, thank you Hozer and Ward. The best LSO were also teachers, not just debriefers. Well done.
Not only with this LSO episode but with most of these uploads I find it fascinating as a dutch normal average civilian with no military background to read the comments of retired or still serving US navy/ army/ air force/ marines and even the occasional coast guard men and women. Dealing with such daily responsibilities and dedication on a aircraft carrier is for sure inspirational for young people willing to become the best person they can be.
Ward- all this shit is fascinating, further cementing how HARD it is to be a member of the Navy fighter community: the standards, the grading process....which NEVER ends. I've followed military fighter aviation for decades....and NEVER heard the insights offered from a LSO. Or offered from ANY other content creator. #Kudos
Not everyone is afforded that option benji. Some of us had the scores and the desire and drive to join but a single medical condition kept us out of the Naval picture. To no fault of our own. It was a very hard pill to swallow.
Great stuff! I was on the Kennedy from 84-89 as part of ship’s company! Some of the best years of my life. Thanks for this look behind the curtain
I love how you show all the moving parts of a carrier operation 👍👍
Love the episodes with Hozer 😊
Mooch needs to visit a carrier. People have done it before, and it'd make a great video!
Great discussion about the LSO world!
During one deployment, to break up the monotony, my Crash guys and I use to hold up cards 1-4 showing the pilot what wire they caught and a line of thumbs up or down if we liked/disliked the pass... During MOVLAS we just showed the wire card. Stay safe, heads on a swivel.
Ha thats pretty funny! But we could usually tell what wire it was by how far you rolled out down the LA...
@@mattshane8409 Lots of pilots were still look over their shoulder while taxiing into the Yoke.
@@snapjamwoodworks710 If I looked up and my director was way out in front of me I knew that was gonna be a bad debrief aka 1 wire. I like the thumbs up or down... I'd be bummed to get a thumbs down. That might be worse than the LSO debrief :)
Very interesting to know what an LSO responsibility for helping pilots safe landing on a boat. I am proud Dad of my son selected as LSO to his squadron lately.
Interesting stuff! I served as an LSO spotter with V-5 aboard the Vinson and loved being out there with those guys.
Lop yeah I bet. Nobody is just an LSO lol ALL LSOs are also pilots.
Wow what great stories Hozer is one hell of a Man thank you for your excellent service we need school teachers like Hozer and Ward
Really enjoyed this interview (as ever). The ready-room LSO debriefs put such a different cast on ops than what we did in the Air Force. I never fancied the Navy lifestyle of long deployments at sea, but I really admire and like a lot of what I've learned from you over the past few years about the Navy ways of doing things. Big respect.
Should point out that every pass at the ship is recorded via the PLAT. Any significant disagreement between pilot and LSO can be resolved by going to the replay. In my experience, the LSO is virtually always right. They also replay the PLAT tapes after recovery and pilots always watch their pass after recovery.
If I remember that all the Air OPS Launches and recoveries were shown on the ships TV system and everyone in the whole crew could see them
@@davidschwartz5127 Da. Normal routine is to loop the previous recovery until next launch starts. Launch and recovery normally covered live.
@@davidschwartz5127 Absolutely. There was a dedicated channel just for watching launches and recoveries. Not that I needed the TV to see what was launching on the starboard forward cat... my office was on the O3 level right below the starboard JBD... I could tell what was launching just by the sound lol!
Nice. I particularly enjoy the assessment part, how to polish up skills without recklessly destroying pilot careers by needlessly humiliating people. I wish that mentality was used in a lot of other high stress professional careers.
Ours was a culture of continuous improvement, with constructive criticism (every day!) delivered the proper way. Concur, many professions could benefit from it.
@@kevinmiller5780 Thanks, Kevin, for your professionalism.and service to our nation!
Hear,Hear!!!
I enjoy your channel very much. As an AO, working the flight deck, I was aware of what was happening on the flight deck as far as loading, preparing an aircraft for launch and passing it off to the next station toward launch, as well as recovering and securing the aircraft. These videos allow me to complete my understanding of what we all were working together on as a team and understanding what the aviators were dealing with in addition to all of the other actors on the flight deck. It's amazing how everyone's training allows each piece of the puzzle, that makes up a squadron, as well as ship's company, to automatically come together for safe launch and recoveries with very few emergencies or injuries in a world where the odds were always stacked against us. Speaks volumes to the quality of the individuals and the training that each receives! AO VF-11 Red Rippers, USS Forrestal CV-59 1991
Mooch and Hoser,
Nice work, gents!
All the best, Benz
Funny Non-Com story from a former AZ2. I was deployed on IKE, CVN-69 with VA-46 and was serving as an Ops Yeoman for our pilots at the time. I would sit in the ready room with the headset on, recording the landings of our pilots, wire, bolter, t&go, etc.. One night, I wrote on the chalkboard, "When I grow up, I want to be the guy the says, ROGER BALL." The next day, LT. Tim Kennedy, a fantastic officer and pilot, took me up to the LSO platform and let me observe the recovery operations, explaining along the way. It was big moment for a 19-20 year old kid and I gained a greater appreciation for the Navy Pilot. BRAVO ZULU!
Outstanding episode with Hozer. Home run every time.
love the bit about the Superbug driver 'leaf blower"-ing the flight deck. aviators come up with the best expressions
My brother flew F4U’s and was a “ Paddles” during WWII (Pacific Theater). Watching wing camera/landings was intense for a 5 year old. He used arms/paddles/feet and body bringing his mates aboard - lots of movement - fascinating. - I inhaled deeply and was hooked for life ! Still flying and loving every minute. - - . Do a session on WW II paddles -
Yes Pease do that!
He "leaf blowered" the flight deck. Felt bad for that pilot, but that comment and vid was priceless.
"I'd take the book", a sign of a great leader. Well done!
I knew Hozer in the Corsair community. I flew A-7E’s on my first tour and qualified as a squadron LSO aboard the Saratoga (CV-60). After returning to Cecil we transitioned to the Hornet and during my post F-18 RAG transition I got to run up to Oceana and cross train on the F-14 Tomcat. I thoroughly enjoyed my LSO days and went back to the Hornet RAG as an instructor running the carrier qual as the PhaseHead. My only FA-18 burner waveoff was a student going through the RAG. I had orders to the IKE as the CAG LSO but turned them down to pursue the civilian aviation career. My LSO days gave me the experience I needed to be a good bush pilot flying into some crazy locations throughout Alaska. Landing a 737 on a 3800’ runway in Dutch Harbor, Alaska made me appreciate those Navy landings!!
What an amazing fraternity of men to belong to. No shortage of witty, intelligent gentlemen with a positive attitude. I envy you guys as I thoroughly enjoy the interplay between you all.
My dad (grumpy)retired in 67 and I still have his paddles from his log books it looks like he flew alot of planes starting with the Stearman
Ward is up there with Blanco Lirio for great aviation content (especially his take on military matters.)
Better
Fascinating listening to these guys, I was a radar tech in the RAF mostly on Tornado back in the 80s and I miss this 'guy talk' great channel.
Hozer's bio intro reminded me of a convo a Navy buddy (ex F-14 RIO) & I had about 13 years ago:
"Dude, you know you're getting old when your jet is now on a stick in front of the gate at the base."
Keep up the great work, Ward - enjoy the memories very much.
😅 All weather Friend Iso
Extremely interesting as usual. Thank you very much to both of you.
Mooch, I've noticed that a lot of folks in the brownshoe world call the carrier "the boat". To a retired Chief blackshoe surface snipe this goes against all I've ever been taught regarding vessel identification. "Ya puts boats on ships unless referring to a submarine".
EMC(SW) USN(ret.) Marty Palmiere
Good discussion, its hard for me to believe my flew off the Enterprise on F6F at night in WW2. Highest respect for all of you and your service.
We love Hozer also because he has respect for all especially like us the DCS f18 naval pilot comunity !! Thanks very “Much”
Great video topic. Thanks Mooch!! Thanks Hozer!
I may be retired and on a fixed income but it didn't take many YT views for me to conclude your channel was worth supporting on Patreon.
I was 12 years old when Top Gun came out, and since then I've always had an interest in naval aviation and carrier ops. This channel is outstanding! Thank You!
Stuff keeps getting better! Interesting insight in LSO stuff!!
You knew it was going to be a fun night getting aboard when you switch to the final controller and the first thing you hear is the pitching deck calls along with a screaming burner waveoff call. Thanks to all the LSOs that kept me off the ramp!
Another great topic and video. Interesting longform content. Thank you guys.
Fascinating episode. Thanks Mooch and Hoser. I've seen LSOs operating before, but this gave great insights into the importance and skill of this role.
Really intersting insight into the role of an LSO! Didn't know they'd get pilots to deliberately trap a 2 wire for fun, i'm using that as an excuse for all my 2 wires in the DCS F14!
Number 2 wire: The professionals preference!
Sometimes i'll have the LSO role in DCS in VR with my squadron, i guess i found something to play with 😁
DCSs F14s look pretty fun
Wow!!! You play DCS. You can like be the real thing and even an instructor at top gun lol
What a flashback. Spent many a day and night standing the duty corpsman watch at OLF Whitehouse (79-81) We had a Dodge Power Wagon 4x4 "Crackerbox" ambulance that you would check out from Cecil Field Clinic to support FCLP at Whitehouse. Most Corpsmen would stay down in the Crash Shack with the CFR crew, but I always enjoyed spending my time in the tower listening to the LSO out on the runway critiquing the A-7 & S-3 pilots. CDR, another great subject / video, about ops around the boat. OK-3 is my grade. Keep'em coming.
Great interview. I was subs so I know little to nothing about naval aviation and what they all do. Should have gone surflant but that's life. I am enamored by your content. Can you get interviews with chiefs who headed up enlisted air support - weaps, fueling, etc? A lot probably go into CMC roles. I'd like to know how they all interacted with pilots and what the relationship was. What officers headed up those divisions like arresting gear, handling, etc?
Educational, I often wondered how the L.S.O. was trained. I would have guessed they where old salts with more than a handful of cruises.
I missed ‘visual aids’ today. I worked for Newport News Shipbuilding and was shift supervisor for reactor test so i got to ride a bunch sea trials and carrier acceptance trials by the navy. A highlight was a demonstration of the auto throttle with an A-6. I was stationed on the LSO platform as the A-6 flew the groove and waved off. Memorable to say the least.
I also was impressed with a man overboard situation. I was in central control watching a helo get its rotors folded when man overboard was called. I swear i looked around the room and 2 minutes later that helo was getting airborne. It impressed the hell out of me. What was equally impressive was how fast the ship accounted for the entire crew. I was embarrassed to say they had to make announcements over the 1MC looking for shipyard workers to report in over an hour later.
Mooch, how about an episode on survival?
Awesome to see two great authors and aviators together again. I've read Kevin's trilogy twice, and have the 2nd punk book on the way to me in the mail right now! Can't wait to finish reading the Punk trilogy.
It must be said that your channel demonstrates the intellectualism of US naval aviation and even US naval service. Pretty damned impressive; thanks so much for this.
Great episode. What a calm, thoughtful guest. I guess that’s exactly what you’d want in a LSO
Damn Ward, I'm impressed with your boundless enthusiasm for gleaning every drop of pertinent information out of this fella. Your command of the English language is really very good.
Hozer thank you for being involved in DCS !!!
Very informative interview. I concur with an earlier post: please visit a carrier. Would be a great series to see carrier op's from an aviator's perspective!
I agree.
Another fabuous video - big thanks to Ward and Hozer!
Some great insights on what it is to be a LSO. And as always Ward does a great job of highlighting the human dynamics and relationships. I was fascinated with the discussion about the group landing debriefings, how the CAG LSO has to handle potential conflicts such as taking over for a junior LSO in the face of potential blowback from a senior pilot. And of course the tight relationship between the RIO and the pilot that once again demonstrates why there is such a string esprit de corps in the Tomcat community.
Fascinating stuff. Thanks for a peek into the rare world of carrier ops.
The late John Mitchell, was my neighbor and a former skipper of JFK. His licenses plate was OK 3 and mine is ACLS. He was an Academy graduate and Naval aviator from the early 1950's. Miss talking aviation with him.
Class of ‘82? My first tour ended in ‘83 after two trips to Top Gun, WTI, and Red Flag. All with the Phantom (red helmet)
At the end of your videos is a list of things to do, as you real them off I am complying like a preflight checklist or in my case a reactor startup. Keeps me in the moments I used to like. Thx
One of my jobs on the DD & FFG I served on was calibrating / maintaining / repairing the flight deck landing systems, including the Fresnel Lens & Wave-Off systems. Many a stormy night, when there was zero visibility and the ship was rockin’ & rollin’, I had several pilots thank me for helping land those pigs. Good stuff for a young sailor to hear.
Another interesting episode! On one cruise, mid 70s in CV-64, I was assigned as the post flight maintenance debriefer for the A-6 squadron. I shared a little cubby hole of an office with the squadron AK (supply) located across the passageway from Maintenance Control. So, I would be debriefing the air crew when the LSOs arrived to pass on their words of wisdom. Hoser’s description of the de-brief was exactly what I saw. One outlier was LCDR pilot who had transitioned from P-3s to A-6s. I liked him personally, but he did not like LSOs. He never got dangerous grades, but he also never got a lot of OK-3s either. To me his grades seemed to go down hill after he started calling the LSOs ass holes and SOBs.
Yep, that'll do it.
My dad was a LTCDR on the Lexington in Pensacola. We used to go on tiger cruises. I can remember the smell of the grease. Everything was either claustrophobic or overwhelmingly immense. It's a bizarre and extreme environment to witness as a kid. I can't imagine living on it. Let alone landing an airplane on it.
Learned a lot about LSOs, thanks! Very timely, the latest English episode of the Omega Tau podcast is all about flying the F-18, one of the interviewees discusses his experiences as an LSO. This helped fill in a lot of the gaps.
Slick Vasina is a legend and one of the BEST officers I’ve ever served with. A great human being.
Mooch . . . great piece. I remember my one stint on Lincoln with COMCARGRUONE, and we were qualifying the Aviators on their launches and recoveries before deployment. This was one of the first Marine legacy Hornet deployments mixed with Tomcats. I requested to experience a Recovery from the LSO spot. We went through the whole routine just like Hozer described it, and got out there just as the sun was setting. it was unnerving to watch the jets coming RIGHT AT YOU . . . until the last instant when they developed the Left Bearing Drift. The net was illuminated in case we had to bail, but truth be told if things went that bad you would probably 'Buy the Farm'.
That exercise I got to witness an after dark in flight arrest of a Tomcat (Triple Sticks). Blew all the tires and they had to do FOD Walkdown again before we could recover everyone still in the stack. The next morning I saw Triple Stix launch. They didn't call it GRUMMAN IRON WORKS for nothing! TORCH Out!
Came across this video by chance and After "Hozer" said he was with VA-82 deployed on Nimitz, it made me pull my Cruise Book from 68's change of homeport journey during 86/87...And after seeing his photo and mine, thanks (insert sarcasm here), we were young then which means we are old now. :) My guys, (OE-14) maintained all of the ship's navigation systems including the SINS feed to your aircraft. Great story, thanks.
Thanks shipmate!
I remember 1st night of work ups on the America April 81, we had an A7 ramp strike. AC came to rest into the lens. Can only imagine all those LSOs diving into that net below. At least for a pilot, I always felt LSOs held the most responsibility together with the Air Boss.
Impressive!!! Thank you for your service gentlemen.
I grew up in west Jax and seen all types of military aircraft flying around. I love war planes and even seen the Blue Angels at Cecil feild.
Absolutely love your videos. It's not often I will watch 30 min videos start to finish
That was absolutely fascinating! Thank you!
Very cool hozer came through meridian in Buckeyes and Skyhawks, I m a plane captain at nas meridian working with both vt-7 and vt-9 with t-45c goshawk, my mom was pc on buckeyes and Skyhawks and my stepdad was pc with buckeyes. Another great video
Another great video Ward. Hozer seems like a really great guy as do you and all your former shipmates. Thanks for letting the world in on your "mostly" boys club.
Even just in DCS landing on the boat using real life procedures and standards for case 1 - 3 is pretty daunting. When you add in some one acting as paddles and it becomes next level knowing you're being graded.
Much respect for those few that have done it for real.
Wow!!! You play DCS. You can like be the real thing and even an instructor at top gun lol
@@nexpro6118 hey numb nuts.....notice the first word in the paragraph is the word even. Meaning it's not close to being the same. It's a statement talking about how hard real life carrier ops are.
Another good one, Mooch. Your channel always makes my day. EKA3B NFO in VAQ130, Det 61, Ranger, 67-68, 68-69.
Gave me chills in a good way the comradrie. Excellent presentation
Thanks for another great episode, Commander! It was really nice to see things from Paddles’ POV and to see Capt. Miller (another excellent writer!). 🤙🏼 Would you or have you ever considered doing an episode with your wife on ‘how to be a naval aviator’s wife’, or even ‘Navy wife’. There might be a few other subscribers interested in that issue. Thanks again! 😊
Very interesting! Wow, talk about a lot of stress on the job. It takes real team work to bring home those planes!
Nice, I just got my shipping notification from USNI. Weird that only War and Fight are listed as shipped though. Oh! Great vid with Rick by the way.
Thanks, Barry!
Whoa really awesome questions you prepared with viewers in mind, and good answers from Hozer.
Brilliant video, fascinating to listen to Hoser.
Insightful interview Ward and Kevin! I didn't have the opportunity to interview an LSO for NNAM so hope someone there got this one for the record 'cuz it is really important! Thanks for bringing us on the platform! (Could be added to the display, eh Hozer?)
Ask Ward, he owns the rights!
My first tour as an E-2C NFO the squadron had what they called a "Lucky Mole" board where they tracked each pilot's landing against which NFOs were in the aircraft. I found this distasteful immediately, landing grades are a pilot thing. I think they meant well, so that NFOs would care about the process, but during landing E-2 NFOs can do nothing to help. I appreciate that RIOs could have an effect on the landing and I appreciate that you still sat back during the debrief.
Well… It looks like I sure missed out on all the fun as an Air Force Wennie! Thanks very much this was extremely interesting!
What a SUPERB perspective into that 'angle' of the team that must work together to keep the Sounds Of Freedom strong. God Bless all of you.
This is great stuff. I’m a carrier buff .
My eyes were not very good when I was a teenager so I was not in the cards for me.
I am head of maintenance of Flight School curretnly so in my own way I have a squadron. This type of information is really helpful as I have 20 different CFI‘s and four different A @P ,s and I need to be firm out them but also mentor.
You guys do a great job of teaching how to mentor but also critique.
Thank you for making this video and looking Forward to watching more.
That was very interesting to hear two aviation professionals talk about their experiences. My experiences as a lieutenant and captain in the Army were not that professional. Field grade officers seemed to take extreme pride in punishing / embarrassing a junior officer rather than serving as a mentor. Maybe, that was my own experience, but it drove me out of the Army. Since then I've worked with many retired senior Navy and Air Force personnel in the private sector and there appears to me at least to be a much higher degree of professionalism in both the Navy and the Air Force from what I experienced many many years ago.
John: Were you in the IOBC class that started in Feb 1980? If so, we were in the same class, and I've still got the EIB you bestowed on me.
Well stated, sir. Retiring as an AF/ANG E-8, I've appreciated meeting & working with vets from any service; whether enlisted or commissioned, one hitch or retired career, there is that unspoken nod of understanding & ease in communicating -- we've all made it through the BS, gained priceless experience, maturity and likely some excellent skills & confidence in our specialties. That (loudest and most distracting) small percentage of
"leaders" in positions of authority/command, with truly malicious characters, do incredible, long-term damage to the otherwise great spirit and huge potential of the men & women around them. I never set-up my trainees or co-workers to purposely fail, or put up with that (sometimes vicious) unprofessional crap of humiliating anybody as entertainment. If everybody left our class, or day of working together on operational gear, feeling involved and more confident, then that was great in my mind. My dad was an AF RIO and navigator, and knew
very good aircrew -- folks you really wanted aboard with you -- who separated when the next rung of their professional advancement was their compulsory stint at the Pentagon or some headquarters/staff gig... not worth being imbedded with a busload of the same type of people who caused you to end your army career.
@@RANDALLBRIGGS Randall: I was ten years before you.
@@dananichols1816 My dad was an Army Air Corps E-8. As a company commander, I had a great first sergeant and I became great friends with our brigade command sergeant major. I learned much more from those two men than I ever did from the commanders and staff above me.
@@aardvark121212 Man, the phenomenal mil culture and tech evolutions he must have lived through! With the young folks I trained and worked with, I sincerely told them to seek out the older heads in whichever shop or unit they were in -- especially those who appeared to be patient & willing to share the great wealth of what they knew -- once the mentors see that you're sincere about learning, out it pours, and the resulting pride & confidence soars. John, the experience you gained during your time in, good & bad, is worth a million bucks.
I'll always remember anytime I had to get a part or aquire something from a F14 Squadron their Maint. Control Board was a sea of red!!! My hat was off to your maintainers!!!
Very interesting. I think I'm slowly getting the hang of the US Navy jargon. I'm a glider pilot and you just have to it right first time (or, else !). The "LSO" carries a heck of a lot of responsibility it seems. When in the Fleet Air Arm (UK) engineering, I made a point of regularly checking the hook's damper for the correct response. I'd heard tales of the hook 'skipping' wires if this was not the case. We were never given an exact formula for this but, it was done by 'feel' (and experience) particularly on the UP stroke.
He used to tell me about the double Golden Knights ( 100 + night landings ). That they were the most bad ass , cream of the crop , and fearless guys on the Carrier. Incidentally, he was also a courier and in charge of the 5” guns on the starboard side. We miss you dad. ❤️
15:45 "If you really have to deliver a message, then you have to deliver a message...and then we would leave." That has to be the most badass Mob/Soprano attitude by a Navy pilot/LSO. LOL
That’s how we fire people as well - bring the bad news, no sugarcoating, no discussion. It’s just like that.
Behind every live Naval Aviator are LSOs that saved his life more than once.
Timestamp 24:50 his face transforms as if he is actually back on a carrier operating the MOVLAS speaking to a pilot. Fascinating.
Thanks Ward for another informative look in to Naval aviation especially for non-flyers. G A Reed ETR2 1964-68 USS BELKNAP DLG-26 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🦅
I'm not a naval aviator (dad and brother were). But I'm a pilot and own my own airplane. Open and honest discussions about landing is so critical for defining a trained pilot, whether on a safe runway firmly concreted into the ground or a pitching deck.
I reprise in my mind my approaches and landings for days or weeks after every one. What was not nominal? Why? How do I learn from it and correct the next one?
I loved every second of Mooch's and Hozer's reminiscing about the human and technical skills needed to land a jet on the boat.
Fascinating as ever Mr Carroll.
Wow. Great discussion. Very interesting and informative.
I was on the Teamwork 92 deployment onboard USS Guadalcanal LPH7. Roughest, coldest seas I ever sailed in. North Atlantic is definitely no joke. We definitely earned our Blue Nose
I loved bing a Paddles, great time. Difficult but so worth it. Great video again Mooch...Bunky