Advanced Naval

Aviation Guide
Luke S.

(Works with select aircraft such as the F/A-18E/F Hornet)

Advanced Naval Aviation guide

Table of Contents:

1 - Using your HUD

1-1 - E-Bracket
1-2 - AOA Index
1-3 - Velocity Vector
1-4 - ILS Indicator
1-5 - IFOLS
2 - Understanding The Carrier Crew
2-1 - (White) QA and LSO
2-2 - (Yellow) AHO
2-3 - (Brown) AWPC
2-4 - (Blue) TPH
2-5 - (Red) OH
2-6 - (Purple) AFH
2-7 - (Green) CAGC
3 - CV and CVN Terminology
3-1 - Bolter
3-2 - Freqs
3-3 - Case I
3-5 - Case II
3-5 - Case III
3-6 - Deck Map
4 - Aircraft Operation
4-1 - Briefing
4-2 - Arming
4-3 - Recovery

1 - Using your HUD

Your HUD (Heads Up Display) Is an instrument in your cockpit Used to give important
information such as : Speed, Heading, Altitude, and other crucial information. Directly where you
are looking, Forwards!. The primary reason being, if you are looking down at your MFD’s, how
can you see what's in front of you? You can't.

1-1 - E-Bracket
The E-Bracket in your HUD Is your primary way of knowing if you are on speed,
which is crucial when on approach for an Aircraft Carrier. As you might have guessed, the E-
Bracket is an “E” shaped bracket, that is used to help aid with your approach speed by lining up
with the path vector. The picture below gives an example of what the E-Bracket looks like when
on speed and off.

Above Speed On Speed

1-2 - AOA Index

Your AOA (Angle Of Attack) Is a crucial part in making sure your Tail hook catches
an arresting cable safely and efficiently, To monitor your angle of attack, alongside with speed is
the AOA Index, usually mounted on the left side of your HUD, the AOA index consists of three
colored symbols, a Green “V”, An Orange/Yellow “O” or Doughnut, And a Red, inverted“V”. The
picture below is a visual representation of what the AOA index looks like.
1-3 - Velocity Vector
The path vector in your aircraft is an indicator similar to the E-Bracket, however its
purpose, instead of showing if you are on speed, is to show a visual representation of where
your aircraft will end up in a given amount of time. For instance, in the example photos below, I
will show what it would look like when on approach for a Carrier, opposed to mid flight.

Velocity Vector aligned with E-Bracket and ILS on final for Carrier
(AOA Index shown to left of HUD)

1-4 - ILS Indicator

The ILS indicator (Instrument Landing System) on your aircraft is essentially a
glideslope to help aid in Carrier or Land landings when weather conditions are poor, this may be
necessary when landing in thick fog or rain, where visibility is strictly limited. When using the ILS
Indicator, as seen in the picture above, Your goal is to align all indicators in your HUD and
contact your Carrier to confirm you have a ball.
1-5 - IFOLS
The IFOLS (Improved Fresnel Lens Optical Landing System) Is an instrument used on
an aircraft carrier to optically guide the aircraft on approach into the carrier deck safely, using a
series of lights. The system works directly alongside the ILS and is used when visibility is clear.
Here is a picture to show you visually what one looks like. The goal of the pilot, is to have the
orange dot, as shown, directly in the center of the Datum Lights.

2 - Understanding The Carrier Crew

The Crew on your Aircraft Carrier each serve a purpose, With that, all crew should be treated
with respect. Deck Crew on any carrier is a dangerous job for a variety of reasons including :
Handling explosives, Fuel, Aircraft, and dangerous amounts of Jet blast from moving planes.

2-1 - (White) QA and LSO

Quality Assurance (QA)
 ● Squadron plane inspector
● Landing signal officer (LSO)
● Air transfer officer (ATO)
● Liquid oxygen (LOX) crew
● Safety observer
● Medical personnel (white with Red Cross emblem)

2-2 - (Yellow) AHO

Aircraft Handling Officer (AHO)
● Catapult and arresting gear officer
● Plane director – responsible for all movement of all aircraft on the flight/hangar deck

2-3 - (Brown) AWPC

Air Wing Plane Captain (AWPC) – squadron personnel who prepare aircraft for flight
● Air wing line leading petty officer
2-4 - (Blue) TPH
Trainee Plane Handler (TPH)
● Chocks and chains – entry-level flight-deck workers under the yellow shirts
● Aircraft elevator operator
● Tractor driver
● Messengers and phone talker

2-5 - (Red) OH
Ordnance Handler (OH)
● Crash and salvage crew
● Firefighter and Damage Control Party
2-6 - (Purple) AFH
Aviation Fuel Handler (AFH)
● Fuels Aircraft

2-7 - (Green) CAGC

Catapult and arresting gear crew
● Visual Landing Aid electrician
● Air wing maintenance personnel
● Air wing quality control personnel
● Cargo-handling personnel
● Photographer's mate
● Helicopter landing signal enlisted personnel (LSE)
 3 - CV and CVN Terminology
Knowing Basic terminology for your CV or CVN is crucial when trying to land, takeoff, or even
navigate on the deck. To do this you must know the general terms and signals used by the crew
to help guide you from the elevators to the cats, or the wires to your parking spot.

3-1 - Bolter
Bolter is a simple term used by : Naval Aviators, LSO’s, and ATC.
The general purpose of the term “Bolter”, is to tell the Naval Aviator the landing will be unsafe or
in case the Naval Aviator lands and misses a wire, to tell Him/Her to go around.

3-2 - Freqs
Like any controlled airspace, CV and CVN's have airspace that have dedicated
frequencies. This is to both help tell if a hostile aircraft has entered airspace, or for transferring
military aircraft coming to and from either other Carriers or AFB’s (Air Force Bases). [Ex. 117.8]
3-3 - Case I
Case I refers to a specific approach to the CV or CVN that you are trying to land on. Not
much can be said about this, soI will post a picture of both Case I approaches, as well as Case
II and III.

3-4 - Case II
Case II Approaches don't differ from Case I approaches, other than they are performed
using IFR (Instrument Flight Rule) under poor weather conditions.

3-5 - Case III

Case III Approaches Differ from the other two approaches drastically, the main difference
being, the approach consists of no more than one aircraft, and is typically used for emergency
situations or when weather is below Case II Conditions.

3-6 - Deck Map

This unit only consists of a map of the different portions of the deck, and the different
terminology used for each portion. (CVN-68 Nimitz Map) All carriers differ.
 4 - Aircraft Operation
The operation of fixed wing aircraft is crucial from COD (Carrier On-Board Delivery) to CAP
(Close Air Proximity), to keep airspace secure and the fleet of Naval vessels safe at all times.
To do this, both Naval Aviators and Deck crew work together to create a smooth, safe, and
reliable workflow.

4-1 - Briefing
Flight briefing is a part of the most important part of Naval aviation. Knowing what you
need and what you are doing is just what brifeing does. This is done through a dedicated
briefing room used by commanders or deck crew to start and end the day.

4-2 - Arming
Depending on the tasking you get during briefing, Arming could be a required task.
W.I.P