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Launch only Recovery only The "Flex Deck" "Alert Five" only The "Locked Deck" End of page

The arrangement of Planes on the Flight Deck

(compiled with the help of Jacek Zemlo)

To ensure safe and quick flight deck operations there are some rules of parking particular types of aircraft in particular places on the flight deck during different phases of flight operations.
Anyway, those rules are not strictly defined and may be broken very easily and but it is possible to distinguish between at least five different arrangements:


Launch only:

Used in case of operations with many planes involved, e.g. the so-called "Alpha Strike". When a large number of aircraft has to be launched within a short period of time, a maximum launching rate is demanded and all the landings may be postponed, then the landing area and a large part of the stern are packed with aircraft which are awaiting their turn to launch, but both rows and the street have to be "clean". Launches may be conducted from all four catapults.

More often used is an arrangement during which launches are conducted from only two or three catapults.




Recovery only:

Used for example when the air ops end or after an "Alpha Strike" when no planes have to be launched but a large number of them has to be recovered in a short period of time. Then the bow is packed with aircraft that have just landed, but the stern and the port side of the waist have to be "clean".




The "Flex Deck":

Used when launching and landings are conducted at the same time. The waist and the stern of the ship are used for landing, whereas one of the bow cats (#1 or #2) is used for launching. Aircraft may also be launched from the waist cats during intervals in landings.




"Alert Five" only:

Used if the carrier is passive rather than active in combat. The whole bow and some other parts of the deck are packed with aircraft. "Alert Five" fighters, E-2Cs, tankers and choppers can be launched from the waist, landings are also possible.




The "Locked Deck":

Used during port visits for example. The aircraft are parked all over the deck, the radio masts of the ship are in their "up" position (only during port visits). There is only some free space for one or two choppers. During port visits the planes are often parked on "traditional" places: The F-14s at the stern (creating the so-called "Fighter City"), the F/A-18s on the bow and the S-3s and E-2s somewhere close to the island. The positions of the EA-6B planes vary but are rarely in the bow area.

The "locked deck" just means that the carrier is not able to quickly launch or recover any aircraft since the catapults and the landing area are blocked. For example, that's the case during underway replenishments or sometimes during breaks in flight operations.






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