What’s Better Than “Driving” An Aircraft Carrier? Flying Off One!

I saluted the shooter (Catapult Officer), got the final ready, then full throttle!

With just 300 feet of runway, the catapult launched me to 165 mph in 2 seconds! Wow!

Yup, that’s me launching a T-45 Goshawk off an aircraft carrier, in a simulator at Naval Air Station Kingsville!

If you thought “driving” an aircraft carrier was cool, try taking off from one!

I was so impressed with flight operations on the John C. Stennis (CVN-74) Tiger Cruise last May, that I hit the road to learn more.

I headed to CNATRA (NAS Corpus Christi) & NAS Kingsville to see why our Navy & Marine pilots are the best in the world.

At NAS-CC, ENSIGNS Brett & Joseph from the VT-27 Boomers walked me around the flight line. They’d finished basic training & were delighted to show off the aircraft.

Joseph wanted to fly helicopters, while Brett wanted the P-8 sub hunter. We had lots of fun, but what impressed me most was their focus. They knew exactly what they wanted to do.

And I thought, that’s exactly what they’ll need to succeed in their mission!