Life On The Flight Deck
"This book delivers powerful storytelling and a rare, authentic perspective!"
It’s called the most dangerous four and a half acres on earth. A place where jet blast and prop wash threaten to blow you overboard. Spinning props that are almost invisible threaten to make a sailor disappear. Jet intakes that will suck you inside an engine before you can react. Arresting cables the size of a man’s wrist snap across the deck. And aircraft taking off or landing every 45 seconds. Add a 40 mph steady wind coming down a pitching, wet deck, and you have an environment into which only the bravest would dare to venture.
About the book
A book driven to teach what no others have taught.
So much has been written and filmed about the jets, the pilots, and the mission of aircraft carriers. But no one has told the story of the Aviation Boatswains Mates (ABs) and other sailors and airmen that work the deck. The ones that are responsible for not only their own lives, but those around them. All while directing, fueling, arming, repairing, launching and recovering the aircraft stationed aboard. Life on the Flight Deck highlights the critical role these sailors hold.
Key Chapters
Read about the following, and much, much more!
The Most Dangerous Job
The ABs, airmen, and sailors that work the flight deck are putting themselves in harm’s way every single day.
Launching
It’s a complicated dance. And there’s nothing more heart-pumping than starting flight ops with a “four cat go”!
Recovery
Any Navy pilot will tell you that landing on a carrier is one of the most challenging things they’ll ever do.
Then there was night
You almost sense the plane before you see it appear. It's another level of insanity!
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Colors On Deck
The colors aren't just for fun, but what do they mean?
These professionals, clad in color-coded jerseys, represent the epitome of teamwork, grit, and discipline. Whether launching aircraft into the skies or recovering them in tight windows of time and space, their roles demand unwavering focus, physical endurance, and an unbreakable bond of trust. They work in all weather conditions, on surfaces that shift with the ocean’s will, maintaining a tempo that tests even the most seasoned sailors.
Blue
Chocks and chains, tractor drivers… Blue shirts have their hands in every move
Yellow
The most striking color on the deck catches your eye with every movement
Green
Operate and maintain the catapult systems, arresting gear, and visual landing aids.
Purple
Nothing moves without fuel, the lifeblood of carrier flight operations.
Red
Crash and Salvage, and Aviation Ordnancemen
Brown
Airmen sharing the deck. Plane captains, aviation maintenance.
White
Troubleshooters, Final Checkers, Safety Officers, and LSO's
Testimonial
“Life on the Flight Deck” is an amazing look into the heart and soul of the aircraft carrier: the sailors who work on the flight deck. Operating in the most dangerous environment on earth, these men and women often go unnoticed and underappreciated - until now. It shines a long-overdue spotlight on the sailors who make the aircraft carrier a badass warship.
Captain J.J. “Yank” Cummings,
Third Commanding Officer, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78)
A book truly like no other.
This book is dedicated to all the men and women of the United States Navy, but especially to those risking their lives working on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier. You know what it’s like to feel the sting of jet fuel vapors coating your throat. To feel the power of the hot jet blast push you backwards, and to fear the invisibility of a spinning propeller.