{"id":36835,"date":"2017-08-03T19:41:35","date_gmt":"2017-08-03T19:41:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2017\/08\/03\/the-carrier-fords-first-flight-ops\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:32:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:32:12","slug":"the-carrier-fords-first-flight-ops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/2017\/08\/03\/the-carrier-fords-first-flight-ops\/","title":{"rendered":"The carrier Ford&#8217;s first flight ops"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The wait is over and it\u2019s now official: The Gerald R. Ford is now officially an aircraft carrier, having recovered and launched aircraft four different times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not only were Monday\u2019s flight operations a milestone for the newly commissioned ship, but it ushered in a new, high-tech era for flight deck technology. Yet it could still be a few more years before the Navy sees whether the new Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, known as EMALS, will meet all of its promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s really at the beginning of the life cycle, we\u2019re trying to assess the capability of the new system,\u201d Capt. Richard McCormack, Ford\u2019s commanding officer, told reporters Aug. 2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen you\u2019re doing test analysis, you have to crawl, walk run. So what we\u2019re trying to find now is a configuration that allows them to go ahead and &#8230; determine [whether] the [EMALS] is working as it should.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So far, McCormack said, both the EMALS and the Advanced Arresting Gear recovery systems are working just fine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The flight deck crews, fresh from the success of four successful recoveries and launches on July 28 are itching to get another go at flight ops in the near future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe had absolutely zero faults on the Advanced Arresting Gear on these arrestments. It worked like a champ,\u201d said Cmdr. Thomas Lott, the Ford\u2019s \u201cAir Boss\u201d in charge of flight operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAnd EMALS worked like a champ,\u201d he added.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/2017\/07\/29\/emals-works-carrier-ford-completes-first-flight-operations\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"191\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">EMALS works! Carrier Ford completes first flight operations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Off the coast of Norfolk Friday, the Navy&#039;s newest aircraft carrier, the Gerald R. Ford, conducted the first-ever at-sea test of the ship&#039;s two new electromagnetic flight deck systems.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the system isn\u2019t expected to be fully capable for another couple of years. In 2014, it was discovered in testing at Lakehurst, New Jersey, that fully loaded aircraft carrying fuel were experiencing unacceptable load levels on their wings during launches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fix is a software upgrade for the EMALS what won\u2019t be installed until 2019, during the ship\u2019s post-shakedown availability. Until then, launching aircraft is not restricted, but not any with heavy fuel or bomb loads.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Getting the nod to fly into the history books was Lt. Cmdr. Jamie Struck, whose callsign is \u201cCoach,\u201d as he\u2019s a bit older than his peers after doing a couple of hitches as an enlisted helicopter mechanic before getting a commission and naval aviator\u2019s wings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now as a test pilot with Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23, his job is to ensure new equipment is compatible with the Navy\u2019s aircraft to safely conduct flight operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No stranger to the new technology, Struck&nbsp;made land-based catapult shots and arrested landings. Monday\u2019s operations, though, were the first&nbsp;time the testing moved shipboard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWith all the nerves going, I probably didn\u2019t sleep the best last night,\u201d Struck told reporters on Ford\u2019s flight deck, just a few feet from where his aircraft hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe ship is beautiful, it definitely looks different from overhead and from during the approach, it looked a bit different,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s wider and the island is a little different and there\u2019s a lot more real estate and that helps the deck crew and helps us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"4784\" height=\"3038\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-70345\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg 4784w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg?resize=300,191 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg?resize=768,488 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,650 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,975 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/170728-N-UZ648-014.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1301 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 4784px) 100vw, 4784px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">JULY 28, 2017 &#8212; An  F\/A-18F Pilot LCDR Jamie R. Struck callsign &#8220;COACH&#8221; makes first carrier arrested landing using new AAG system aboard USN newest carrier CVN78 Gerald R. Ford off the Virginia coast.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His aircraft was assisted in its glide slope through another new technology known as the \u201cmagic carpet,\u201d but he said that both the arrested landing and his catapult shots felt different from the legacy systems on Nimitz-class carriers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe arresting gear, yes it felt different,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s electrically controlled and it\u2019s designed to alleviate the landing load on the aircraft, so that wire is always going to run out to a certain distance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s got a catch phase and trap phase \u2014 the catchphrase it grabs you, it feels just like the legacy gear. &nbsp;But it kinds of lets go a bit and then, toward the end of the run out, it grabs you again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shot off the deck felt different, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWith the old steam catapults, there\u2019s all that steam, that energy built up and as soon as that hold-back lets go, it can be kind of violent, a lot of bouncing before you get off the deck,\u201d Struck said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEMALS was different, it\u2019s electromagnetic. And the hold-back release was less abrupt than what I\u2019m used to, which is good. And the acceleration all the way to the end of the strip, the stroke was smoother but the performance was awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Struck called the four landings and catapult shots the \u201chighlight of my career so far.\u201d But he admitted that he felt the pressure as it was happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cTo be coming down onto the boat and have so many eyes on you \u2014 the pressure,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On and below deck, the enlisted crews who have trained for as many as four years for that moment said there was a feeling of confidence as they prepared for their first flight operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere was so much energy in the air that when the aircraft first arrested, it was almost like a scene from \u2018Top Gun\u2019 at the end where everybody was pumping their hands \u2015&nbsp;they\u2019re getting really excited,\u201d said Aviation Boatswain\u2019s Mate (Equipment) (AW\/SW) Jeremy Stoecklein.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With the landing done, all eyes turned to catapult one on the starboard side of the ship\u2019s bow for the first launch. Slowly and methodically, the crews did their checks, taking longer than they would normally to ensure everything was right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once Struck\u2019s aircraft was airborne, any anxiety turned to joy and the deck crews and sailors below decks controlling the gear \u201chugged and shook hands and were yelling with excitement.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAfter that, it was just, \u2019Let\u2019s do it again. Let\u2019s do it again.\u201d Stoecklein said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pilot of historic first says it &#8220;felt different.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":70339,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":12,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3087],"class_list":["post-36835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":{"subheadline":"Pilot of historic first says it \u201dfelt different\u2019","legacy_arc_id":"F567NK55XNE23GXBGPCHPTBCTE","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/2017\/08\/03\/the-carrier-fords-first-flight-ops\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The carrier Ford&#039;s first flight ops - Navy Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Pilot of historic first says it &quot;felt different.&quot;\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/2017\/08\/03\/the-carrier-fords-first-flight-ops\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The carrier Ford&#039;s first flight ops\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Pilot of historic first says it &quot;felt different.&quot;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/2017\/08\/03\/the-carrier-fords-first-flight-ops\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Navy Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-08-03T19:41:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T19:32:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mark D. 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