USS Nimitz

[GrumpyPilot]

Back in 2008, PBS produced a documentary about the deployment of the USS Nimitz. The film crew had unfettered access to the ship (minus the nuclear reactor section)

It is a 10 part series.
All ten episodes were readily available.
Here is the list:

https://www.pbs.org/weta/carrier/full_episodes.htm

Unfortunately all the episodes are hard to find so I am posting some of the episodes (in no particular order) that are still available.

At the 34 minute mark you’ll see what a pitching deck on a carrier looks like and the challenges of landing on such (especially at night)

[GrumpyPilot]

[CharlieOneSix]

That is scary looking at the apprehension of the pilots in the crewroom and watching those night landings in that sea state. So much easier in similar conditions for us helicopter guys to stop and land rather than to land and stop like the fixed wing pilots.

[Boac]

I reckon Nimitz must be by far the easiest boat to throw an aircraft at! Back in the 70s I went on board off Spithead win a group - the sea was very rough and a lot of our folk were sick on the way out to her. Got on the boarding gangway and it was like stepping onto dry land. I stood at one end of the flight deck and could see absolutely NO movement against the horizon. Quite incredible.

[FD2]

Boac - I can imagine that. Peak to peak waves of 20 or 30 metres will have a big effect on a ship's boats but next to no effect on a ship over 330 metres long and displacing up to 100,000 tons. I suspect these swells were caused by a severe storm some way away and were lengthy enough to cause the ship to pitch so much that the night deck landings were very exciting. Didn't one of her crew say they were on their way down to Australia? Great 'rites of passage' for the pilots!

Here's an interesting site showing the picture in the southern Indian Ocean at present: https://www.surf-forecast.com/weather_maps/Indian-Ocean

[CharlieOneSix]

A size comparison of the Nimitz and Ark Royal R09. Ark was around 54,000 tons displacement.

HMS_Ark_Royal_USS_Nimitz.jpg (151.76 KiB) Viewed 4149 times

.
and Ark during a storm in the Indian Ocean in 1966...

Ark Royal Indian Ocean storm.jpg (21.36 KiB) Viewed 4149 times

[Boac]

Amazing pic, C16. Where were the two boats in the pic?

[FD2]

A few of their boats here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Station_Norfolk

[Ex-Ascot]

There is the question of should they have launched those jets in that sea state. They do no seem to have seen much action so why take the risk?

[Boac]

Well, ex-A - in the Air Force I was in if you were tasked you went.

[CharlieOneSix]

Amazing pic, C16. Where were the two boats in the pic?

It was at Norfolk Naval Station, Virginia.

[Boac]

Thanks - I guessed so. Hope Ark didn't have any inferiority complexes.