Best Job On The Flight Deck - Catapult Safety Observer (Pt. 2)
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- Опубліковано 10 лис 2017
- - PLEASE WATCH PART 1! • Is this the best job o... -
Of all the jobs on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier, Catapult Safety is arguably the best, and it's definitely the most fun. The star of the show, the Catapult Safety Observer is the flight deck supervisor for all launches off of his catapult. Their job is to ensure all personnel are safely and expeditiously made ready for flight operations, to ensure all personnel run their watch stations efficiently, ensure a clear deck forward, and get the final signal from the pilot that they are ready for launch (the salute). Though this job was previously performed by Officers (and still is when the catapults are operating in "Deckedge Mode" instead of "ICCS Mode"), this job is more commonly performed by an enlisted ABE, fully qualed in all flight deck qualifications.
Of all of the quals to be had on the flight deck, this one will always have been my favorite. I could talk about this one forever!
I used a little bit of editing in this video to fastforward to the good parts. Hope that's okay! This starts not long after Pt. 1 ends.
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#FlightDeckLife - Наука та технологія
It's gotta feel freaking badass kneeling down, checking to see if everything is clear and then giving the hand gesture for the cat shot and watching a freaking fighter jet shoot off the deck into the sky at your command. You're basically giving the go ahead to launch a missile...except its multiple missiles...on essentially a very large, human-operated missile.
I don't even understand what I'm seeing. But, I'm extremely fascinated.
exactly my thoughts lol
me also
The thumbs up mean go 👍
Muy cierto, es fascinante.
I feel the same way
Thank you for this. I was a plane captain for a VFA squadron in the 1990s. I'm there with you, although of course, this wasn't my perspective. Vivid memories of sights, sounds, smell of the flight deck are brought back to life watching these videos...even the feeling of the shaking of the legs as these aircraft along with the F-14s as they go up to military power.
Dam those hand gestures are on fire
Owen Van Cleef *Damn*
One of the most eloquent (unofficial) hand gestures, which isn't shown any of these videos, consists of wrapping one hand over the fist of the other, high over your head, then jerking the fist out quickly. It means "Get your head out of your butt and pay attention." Used when a pilot is fiddling with something in the cockpit and not watching the yellow shirt. In later years I used it as a police officer when directing traffic at a busy intersection, or accident scene and some motorist is staring blankly and ignoring my signals to move. Strangely enough, they always realized what it meant and glared at me as they drove away.
Thank's for the memory's! I was a Fly 2 blue shirt 1976-77,last cruise of the "Rosie" USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CV 42).
God Bless those young men and women for during such an outstanding job!!
It's really amazing all of the training and coordination (on deck, below deck, and above deck) that is done to launch an aircraft.
Thank you for the videos! You allow me to see things I'll never get to see in my lifetime!
Man, sure brings back memories. Goosebumps!!! Thanx for the video. Fully enjoy it.
Awesome video and respect to all on that deck. Can only imagine doing that at night in bad weather!
Oh man the memories, I can smell this video. My favorite Jobs In exact order where Safety Observer, Topside PO and Deckedge operator. Thank you for the memories @flightdecklife!!!
I had the pleasure of serving on board the Ike. This was my last qual before I got out. Safety Observer and Topside PO are fun positions. V-2 was hard work and long hours. But working the deck was worth it all. Thanks for the video shippy!
CVN-69, V-2, BOW CATAPULTS, 1993-1997.
You’re correct. Extremely hard work. But, extremely hard on your body.
I was a gear rat on the USS Forrestal 1990-1992 then on to AD School. Great Video
I could watch this all day!
Thank you for your service!
May the force be with you! Always! 💕💕💕💕💕💕
Dude, I love all of your videos! Please keep them coming!
Although I served aboard a submarine, I could watch this stuff all day! Too cool!
I can only imagine how awesome it must feel to be so close to these jets as they take off!
J'adore cette vidéo, i love them!!!!
You can make a musical out of this. You already have the performers right there...
When they name a ship the USS Hamilton the whole flight deck event will be set to music.
In the next life i hope i born in USA to the work on air carrier. Like this man, green jacket.
Very nice video. That best job in the world!
Superb stuff!
Very nice video! I like this job lol
Synchronized perfectly!
Pretty darn busy on that deck, just when you think you can nip off for a cup of tea another two Hornets line up. First world problems :-) Respect to ALL NATO personnel serving and retired, from a British Veteran.
Very nice
Loved it and the first time I've seen it from this perspective. Love the salute from the pilot right to camera and that's when I knew this video is different from the others. Best catapult video yet and I've seen tons of them.
Thank you! Check out all my other ones - they're all pretty terrific :)
I am so fascinated! .....This is so much better than watching baseball.
Someday I would like to see these men LIVE in action, but I think they do not allow visitors....... but this would be a once in a lifetime cool experience ever!!!!!!!
Some ships allow folks onboard when they’re in port, or used to. Went onboard the Forrestal YEARS ago!
I'm English living in the UK and 53 yrs old, I'm going to America going to become a citizen and lie about my age, sign up for the Navy and live on the edge like these guys. God Bless America.
i could watch this all day...........LOL
אחלה של סרטון!
Holy cow there's a couple of Prowlers on deck!! I thought they were done!! Maybe I'll still get to see one fly one last time!
jpatt1000 Prowlers have long since been retired from the Navy. This was filmed prior to their retirement.
Ya need some flare fella! I used to work on the Abe and one of the safety shooters had flare and style, it was a show to watch him, everyone loved it👍🏻
The best job on the Flight Deck is that of a Pilot. I flew from Carriers for 26 years of my 30 year Navy Career. The Best Job on a Carrier. Naval Aviator.
Sorry, Mr Pilot, but the best job "on the flight deck" didn't include the pilots... as much respect and envy for your job as we had, you were NOT deck crew, you were the "guests" on our catapults and "visitors" in our wires. You didn't man the crash trucks and haul hoses, You didn't feed the catapults hot steam hours before launch time, and calibrate the steam gauge panels. Did you ever re-reave hundreds of feet of arresting wire, pull and set up the barricades to hopefully rescue an aircrew in trouble? You did not maintain the cats, train on them, operate them, service them, spend endless cold nights manning them, sweat long streaming hours of repairing and replacing them, and you never crawled into the greasy water brakes tank to retrieve a wrench! By golly you were the heroes in the planes but if you thought you would get your little brown pilot shoes dirty you would never visit us in our engine rooms and work spaces to find out what we do around the clock for you. Some pilots did. They were impressed, and very kind, and realized they were nothing but without actual deck hands (ABHs ABEs ABFs, etc etc). So keep your "hero" stories to what you did in the aircraft after we sent you successfully into the sky, and don't be stealing thunder that doesn't belong to you. It belongs to those kids that ran your flight deck. You should have learned that somewhere in those 26 years. As you were.
Muito legal o vídeo nossa sem palavras,essa câmera na cabeça da uma imagem legal ,faz um vídeo noturno para nois fá dos porta aviões,valeu video sucesso...
Impressive, but a little explanation of those signals would help
Google is your friend.
Finally, i know now the name of the job.
Ok I see you weight board one hand confident lol
they USN do this at night and in bad weather Thanks for protecting us .
Very good from Brazil
Interesting..
Can anybody explain all the handsings please?
Gosh us engineers don’t get the cool stuff or glory. Props.
Great stuff. You should get a hero 5 to help stabilize the video a bit. I think it would look amazing!
3:30 > What are these rods used for? They come to the landing gear before take-off, but remain in place during take-off.
Holdback bars! Check out any of our videos about the Topside Petty Officer for information!
There is a lot of trust there between the pilot inching forward and the guy that is standing right there. Never want to hear the word "oops" from the pilot. LOL.
Bada$$!
Why are there 2 people doing the same job and even the same hand gestures with a couple of the launches? Training?
Yes, training.
FlightDeckLife could it be classed as double checking the man in front as well?
The military in general has always had a redundancy policy. It will always be there or only become more redundant. @@The_Wildfish_
@@Breatheable This is not redundancy. Those are crew in training.
Besides training, it's Two Person Integrity (TPI) used in many areas within the U.S. military services to ensure safety, security, compliance, interoperability, and success!
I SEE YOU HAVE THE BLAST DEFLECTOR,,,TAKE SOME TANK TRACKS AND A PNEUMATIC (AIR/STEAM) PAIR OF ACTUATORS AND AN AIR BLADE AND A DIFFUSER AIR STONE FLAT PLATE AND RIDE THE THERMALS LIKE A BIRD OF PREY, RUN IT AT AERODYNAMICS R&D
You should make a video explaining all that. For example, you say "Deckedge Mode" instead of "ICCS Mode"!. OK... but what the heck is that? I think a vast majority of the people here are not flight deck staff. So we're all lost. Also, what are the difference between the colours? meaning who's doing what? What are the hand signals? And so on. I'm sure this would be your most viewed video! In the mean time, thanks for sharing :)
If you ever get the opportunity, take a tour on a Carrier. I think that most of your questions will be answered. But, most of the things that you’ve got questions about, are the things that you need to experience yourself.
If you have never been aboard a carrier during air operations; when a plane is launched, Newton's 3rd law creates a recoil which can be felt throughout the ship.
did 'shooters' change from yellow shirts to green shirts?
at 3:31 i caught a glimpse of a jet with a refueling arm, and its time to upgrade to a Growler.
Prowler has since been replaced by the EA-18G Growler.
Who keeps track of the no. of launches done on each Holdback bar? What's the limit on each bar?
Hold back bar operator the cat office maintenance control QA panel operator also console recorder depending on which ship I assume there's paperwork also binders and even occurrences where you gotta down the bar etc the shots count wouldn't even be a le to pretend to remember lol
Great video! Thanks for your service 🙏. Curious, Is it true that the Navy is looking to replace the steam catapult with electromagnetic catapults in the near future?
I think it would seem unlikely they made a switch to electromagnetic, as it adds complexity
Actually, the electromagnetic cat is easier to operate and is supposed to cut down on wear and tear on the aircraft. I believe they are also easier to maintain than steam cats. Having said that, there have been teething problems, but software updates have helped with that. The new Ford Class of carrier has the electromagnetic cat and arresting gear installed.
The budget for Electromagnetic cats has been pretty extensive. Given the reduction in personnel, it seems like this would be the future of “Naval” operations. But too many set-backs and cost in government funding, might make this a “one and only” Carrier. I could be wrong, but we’ll see what plays out in the upcoming years.
Question- some shooters crouch down with their leg extended behind them and their arm pointed down the deck. Others are kneeling down with their arm outstretched giving a thumbs up. What’s the difference?
The actual Shooter is an Officer who in most cases is on the deck and gives the Ok to launch (kneels and points), the other is a Catapult Safety Observer who is an Enlisted person with EXTREME training and qualifications who takes that job on right up until the moment of readiness, at which time he/she passes the control to the actual Shooter (either in the bubble or at deck edge) by giving a thumbs up (standing). But the job requires the same observation and vigilance.
To each his/her own but, the best job on the Flight Deck (from ABE perspective), isn’t the Safety Observer. It’s the ICCS Operator. And trust me, if you have ever performed all Topside duties during your work-ups or deployments, you want to be qualified as a “Bubble Operator”. Especially if you’re operating in the Gulf @ 110 degree heat, the ICCS has A/C. Or if you’re freezing your ass off, just off the coast in the Atlantic in January, the ICCS has heat. Best qualification and position to have.
It's a pity that the "Classic" Hornet is retiring in the US Navy same as ours in the Royal Australian Air Force both being replaced by the F-35.
f 18s are getting old.
That's ok.....we here in Canada will still fly them for a while.....even some ex-Aussie ones. No one is happy about it, but what do ya do? 😂
Where is the difference between the yellow jackets and the green ones?
The green ones have a little bit of blue in them. Yellow and blue make green, just check any color wheel. Often times a yellow shirt and a blue shirt will be running opposite ways on the flight deck and if they collide hard enough they get one green shirt.
Has the “Shooter” and his traditional signals/ gestures gone away?
Seen some video with the shooter pointing down the deck and using the "finger gun" gesture to indicate the launch. Damn liberals probably thought this to be "politically incorrect" and made the Navy change to the "thumbs up".
@@rikety46 Really? You had to make this political? Can't even enjoy a video of people doing a great job. If you're bitter, go muck up some political video. Other than that, stop turning this into something it's not.
@@rikety46 There's this thing called time and change. Things change over time. I have a very close friend that works on a carrier and was curious about why I've seen videos of different shooters like in this video use different hand gestures and he said that it's simply whatever your brain tells your hands to do first. He's seen multiple people use the thumbs up, finger gun, and even just pointing their finger. It varies from person to person and is personal preference just as long as every understands what you are signaling so that it doesn't cause confusion. I don't see why everything has to be blamed on one political party or the other when it comes to some people disagreeing about shit.
No shooter in sight he or she is in the bubble that's the waist safety
Richard Gadd damn trump supports am I right?
Please say more about Deckedge Mode/ICCS Mode, what's the difference?
Hey thanks for explaining this! I’m an old Connie TPO from the early 80’s and was puzzled about your position, doing what Shooters used to do, the Centerdeck bubble integrated stations, that catwalk bubble and the modes you referenced. We of course had the the simple Centerdeck hatch and the catwalk launch panel. It’s very cool that ABE PO’s now shoot too! Does the Shooter just supervise and signal the pilot? Were you signaling the water brake operator to stay down? It’s been a few years but most is very familiar. I miss the Tomcats and Corsairs though :)
Kevin Laughlin -oh yeah, duh!...makes sense now. Do the AA’s still pull on the rubber bands?
What is the difference between the Catapult Safety Observer and a Shooter?
The Shooter is an officer and they will either work on deck, or from the bubble. You can catch glimpses of iron the edge of the deck. So there is a Shooter working this evolution, just not visibl on deck. The guy on deck just signals the Shooter that the jet is ready to launch.
Could someone point me to a website/document where I could get an understanding of the various gestures used on a carrier deck?
Something like this? www.public.navy.mil/NAVSAFECEN/Documents/media/posters/posterfiles/avn/Hand_signals-Chart3.pdf
Jeroen Yes thanks :)
Kid574 njmn
K574; You might enjoy this video of flight deck ops (launching a C-2 Greyhound) with shooters hand signals explained, and with time-stamps (look down to his response to my request)...he even captured a somewhat unusual temporary cat suspend (due to high winds) in his video: ua-cam.com/video/csQs1eyDMZM/v-deo.html Thanks for posting FDL, and thanks for your service!
Thanks a lot Ron =)
There are so many hand signals being passed back and forth, does the pilot focus his attention on only ONE person? And which is that? Also, what do the super clean white shirts do?
Oceanic 84 the yellow shirt, called the director. That’s the one relaying everyone’s info to the pilot. The white shirt guy could be a deck safety person.
The pilot focuses on ONE yellow shirt at a time, and when that person has taken the aircraft to its next step he/she hands it off to the next qualified yellow shirt, and the pilot only watches them and moves at their direction ONLY. All the others scurrying about under and around the plane are of no interest to the pilot unless they are meant to interact with him/her directly (such as the plane captains or the weight board operator). But they step in at precise moments, make their connection, then back to the yellow shirt, and eventually the pilot is is handed off to the shooter.
The guy in the yellow vest twisting his body, what is that for?
It's a signal to the pilot that the catapult is being put into tension. Think of it as cocking a gun before you pull the trigger
Great video, but confused. Expected a Yellow Shirt not Green. Then I see a Bubble cat launch, there’s no Shooter touching the deck.
If we're shooting in ICCS Mode, the Shooter (who is in Yellow) is in the ICCS/Bubble. Which is when an Enlisted shooter in green is on deck.
Are you using a GoPro to record this? Which one?
Hero 2.
Thanks
Sure is a lot of people over toward the island standing around watching. Are off duty personnel allowed on deck?
Half are Plane Captains waiting to make sure their bird launches.
Plus medical staff, fire fighters, just to name a couple.
What? better than being a pilot?
Amazing
I mean you're literally giving the all clear to shoot a freaking F/A-18 from a catapult. It's like giving the launch clearance to launch a big, man-operated missile that has regular sized missiles attached to it.
Is this the same job as "Shooter", the one that touches the deck and signals the plane to launch?
This is the 'shooter' yes
@@mauritzgrandelis - No, he asked if the catapult safety observer is the same job as "Shooter"? They are two different jobs and they wear two different color shirts.
@@mauritzgrandelis The Shooter was working in the deck edge bubble during this evolution.
I forget, what’s the purpose of the screen behind the plane that’s taking off?
Deflects jet blast
It is called a Jet Blast Deflector (JBD) It is a set of panels with seawater plumbing running through it (like a radiator) that deflects the blast of the jet engines from the aircraft on the catapult up and over the planes and personnel behind it. You still feel the heat but it isn't a direct blast furnace. Even a tiny stone or piece of debris becomes a deadly or damaging missile if it is picked up in the jet blast! The cold seawater means it cools quickly enough that the following jet won't melt its tires when it rolls over it, and the deck crew's boots as well.
Thank All You Sailors & Aircrew Men & Ladies & U.S. NAVY AVIATORS in the U.S. NAVY For Your Service to Our Country Men & Ladies & GOD BLESS You All in the Name Of Our LORD JESUS!!!
me and the boys throwing gang signs
Are the guys in the green shirts with yellow vest are abe or abh
Green shirt w/ yellow vest are ABE's
FlightDeckLife awesome ! I just got that rate I ship out July 22
Just before the Observer gives the thumbs up to the pilot to go he checks with the guy kneeling down in a yellow jacket at the rear of the plane. What is that guys job?
Those are Plane Checkers. They have either “White or Brown” jerseys & Float Coats.
No more shooters? Green shirts shooting looks strange. Shit must have changed since I was on the deck. 2005-2015, ABH.
Nah, it's a well trained ABE who hands it off to the shooter who is hiding in the bubble so as not to get his khaki pants dirty... The ABE give a thumbs up to the Shooter, and he presses the button, giggles like a school girl, then acts like he is the whole reason the carrier exists. : )
🫡It’s absolutely incredible, how precise and determined such a high number of professionals can function „as one“ 👍🏼; in this location, in these conditions and under this pressure, it really is a miracle how they make it work! They have my deepest respect! 🙏🏼
In the video..why is he wearing green instead of the shooter yellow? Just asking..
Green is for Safety Observer. Yellow is the shooter/deck controler, Red is ordinance and purple is fueler.
Safety Observers have a Green jersey, but wear a Yellow vest. That separates from Topside Operations and ICCS OPS.
3:32 What are those colored things like he’s carrying on his shoulder?
bereantrb it is part of the catapult launch mechanism. In making sure that the aircraft doesn’t launch prematurely.
Repeatable Release Holdback Bars!
In later 80- s USSR did built 2 nuclear air carriers with 80 000 tonns dimensions. Also builted 2 air carries 50 000 not nuclear systems.
Unfortually USSR collapsed and this program was cancelled. I am really sad.
Fucking bad ass.
At the end you want me do this job.
What?
Jesus….
That's a shooter a safety observer is in white and is towards the back of the aircraft
Catapult Safety Observers wear green w/ yellow floatcoat.
@@FlightDeckLife sorry did not know that CSO are the same as shooters
I would not like to be the guy crouching behind the right wing!!
How is he recording
gopro strapped on to the helmet
Was GoPro not a thing 3 years ago?
Tax dollars at work at its finest ! God bless you ladies and gentlemen on that aircraft carrier !
i am curios...how much do these people earn? (shooters)
Officers are typically Lieutenants or Lieutenant Commanders, so O-3 or O-4's. Plus special pay flight deck pay and sea pay.
$10 a shot, $12 on weekends, and $15 per shot on Holidays or Overtime. Everyone else works for room and board plus free gym membership. It's in the small print in the contract you signed.
Don’t forget to include the “Bowling” league that you pay into that’s conducted every Sunday on the 7th deck.
If hes a shooter why is he in green
He's not a shooter, he's a Catapult Safety Observer.
@@FlightDeckLife ok it looked like he shot off the f18
@@FlightDeckLife Love the videos. Quick Question. I notice in some videos the "yellow shirt shooters" kneel and touch the deck to give the okay for the aircraft to be shot, while in others, a green shirt safety officer kneels and gives a thumbs up to shoot the aircraft. Did the procedure change? Why the difference?
Confusion... have watched a lot of these vids recently and this seems to be a GREEN dude doing what's usually a YELLOW job. Could somebody clear me up on this cos I'm assuming I'm missing something?
The green "dude" is the Catapult Observer whereas the yellow "dude" is the Shooter.
When the actual launch control (pressing the button) takes place in the center deck bubble that is where the Yellow Shooter is located (instead of on the flight deck). The "Green dude" is a highly qualified ABE who runs the launch show right up to the button pushing point, then when he/she is confident all safety parameters are met (just as the Shooter would) gives the Shooter in the bubble the thumbs up, and the button is pushed.
@@chrismaggio7879 @Chris Maggio Got it. Thanks for that reply too. I remember I watched many, many videos of these crews last year and being a total noob to it, I was learning what the different people's roles were per jacket colours, their checks and signals, and until then I think everyone doing this particular part was wearing yellow. I just watched this one again and I'm reminded I'm very grateful to this guy for making these first person videos. If he ever sees this, thank you for letting us see all these precise procedures from your POV!
@@ElJohnerino Yes, the guy making these videos is awesome! He has let a lot of people see how difficult and exciting this special place is.
القوات الحربية الجنود الأوروبية المشاركات في الحرب يتكلمون مع بعض البعض علي ان هذهي أرض نبي الله موسى عليه السلام وسوف ناخذه بقوه التحالف الأوروبية المشاركات وغارات هرقليز النشاطات والعمل
Could watch aircraft carrier operations all day. This video is tough to watch though, too much camera movement.
It's a fast paced job!
...it really wasn't that difficult to watch.
Lol wow remember you're probably seating down while we're here working running around tryng not to die or get hurt mostly hungry and sleepy its busy you can't possibly do this and not look around also you gotta make sure others are good etc
It’s better filmed independently, not good show with go pro
Yeah but you can't get underneath the jet
@@FlightDeckLife it’s still not better than the independently shot vids, watch them
@@maidinulster Hey, Roberta, haul your saggy a ss to the recruiter station and sign the papers, go through bootcamp, study and train hard, earn your way onto the flight deck, and then you can bitch about the quality of the production. Fact is, the motion aspect give you whiners a real perspective of the action... when you are in a cranial and goggles there is a sense of motion and confusion because of limited peripheral vision. How about, instead of being a douche you simply say "Thank you" to the brave men and women who are humping all day and night to make this work safely and efficiently. And to the cameraman who took the effort to make this vid available to you while you eat your Cheetos and Diet Coke and complain about nor getting Spielberg-ian quality videos from the flight deck. Former Greenshirt, Out!
This is better than Viagra.