Brian Ross (bxr307@coombs.anu.oz) (11/06/89)
From: Brian Ross (bxr307@coombs.anu.oz)
Aircraft are often lost off carriers in rough weather. I know of
one case here a few years ago, in Australia before we lost our
carrier (to the economists, not an enemy :-(). The HMAS
`Melbourne' was steaming in rough seas in the Tasman Sea (the
patch of water between Australia and New Zealand) and they were
maneauvring an A4 Skyhawk in deck. The aircraft got out of
control and before the deck crew new what was happening, "SPLASH"
over the side went the aircraft. It seems that it was not that
unusual and the Navy, while obviously upset just put it down to
costs of operating a carrier. I also know of a case where the US
Navy lost an A4 off a lift in rough seas near Guam in 1969. It
was unfortunately carring a H-bomb. There has been a lot of flak
of late in the Australian and Japanese press of late as it has
only just been officially admitted to.
What interested me most about the episode on the Eisenhower was
that they lost 38 air-to-air missile which were obviously being
transfered from the magazine to the flight deck via the ordinary
aircraft lifts. Why weren't they using the armoured ammunition
lifts which are designed to transport the various types of
ammunition needed by the aircraft up an armoured trunking to the
flight deck? As these lifts are designed to prevent the
possiblity of a magazine fire/explosion and are actually inside
the ship (unlike the aircraft lifts in most US carriers which are
on the outside of the hull) would it have been more sensible to
have used them instead of the aircraft lifts for transfering
ammunition? Was it case of someone doing something he shouldn't
have? If so it was very expensive!
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
|
Brian Ross |Snail Mail:-
"Bill Bracket the self-made man who came|
in a a packet" | Brian Ross
----------------------------------------| Sociology Dept.R.S.S.S.
E-Mail Addresses:- bxr307@coombs.anu.oz | Australian National University
| CANBERRA,A.C.T.,2601,
bxr307@csc.anu.oz | AUSTRALIA
|
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-spikes@hplabs.hp.com (Bill Spikes) (11/09/89)
From: spikes@hplabs.hp.com (Bill Spikes) Those external elevators are good for offloading, too. The Hancock once offloaded an A4 and an F8 from its starboard elevator onto the Camden while unrepping. Too bad the Camden was a supply ship. The aircraft landed upside down on pallets of 250 pounders. No one was hurt, at least not physically.