Carrier

A few weeks ago I had the great honor of going aboard the aircraft carrier the USS Enterprise.  It was an incredible, once in a lifetime experience.  Flying on and off the ship and experiencing the massive G force was a feeling not easy to describe.  No matter that you are strapped in tighter than a baby in a car seat, you are whiplashed around by the massive force.  It was such a shock that upon takeoff and landing I screamed and grabbed my seat mate.  Luckily he didn't really notice as he was completely incoherent himself, and no one could hear me given the intense noise of the engines and our helmets and ear protection. Of course after it was over, everyone felt like "let's do it again!"  The entire ship was a hive of activity, in every corner crew members were working hard to support the mission - in the midst of that they took time to welcome us and show us their beautiful ship.  I hope you enjoy the photos and short video below.

The flight deck

On the bridge with the crew members responsible for changing the ship's speed and direction

Hanging out with the crew

Planes with the fire crew at the ready

Getting ready for takeoff!

Posing with a Marine Corps fighter pilot

"The Garage" where the planes are maintained

Pilots just before take-off.

Just about to launch

The yellow controller gives the final OK to launch

Bringing the planes back to the carrier

Run, don't walk across the flight deck!

Coming in for landing - note tailhook that will "catch" the plane

The control tower and bridge -- look familiar? You saw it in Top Gun.

Commander of the Strike Group -- in charge of all the ships, not just the carrier.

"The Handler" and his team in charge of flight deck operations.

Below is a video with footage I took during my visit and produced by my "in-house" director, who has beautifully captured the amazing things going on everyday on the Enterprise.  Press the little 4-corner button on the bottom right of the video to view it in full screen mode.  You will here some of my "ooh!  aah!" commentary as well as information from the Captain who explained to us what was happening on the flight deck.  And, well, forgive the soundtrack, but it was just so perfect!