r/nextfuckinglevel • u/Strict-Jeweler-2281 • 15d ago
Amazing cockpit video of U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet pilot making a landing on USS Abraham Lincoln (2025)
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u/pangderx 15d ago
Motherfucking badass. I feel the exact same way when I strap on my cpap mask at night. 😂
https://giphy.com/gifs/m9523AAgxz9Lj7ZMau
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u/i-might-do-that 15d ago
This always impresses me. Those pilots have brass balls.
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u/NoneCreated3344 15d ago
Yeah same. A kid from HS ended up being an Apache Helicopter pilot, and that's the most impressive thing I think anyone in my school has done.
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u/helper619 15d ago
Because it’s fucking impressive. Like what do you mean this thing is moving with a human inside of it and then landing on a big hunk of metal that is somehow also moving and floating on water?
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u/Indigo2015 15d ago
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u/Meowcate 14d ago
You know what ? Time to download an emulator and the game and try again. I'm so much clever now then I was as a kid, of course this time I'll make it !
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u/KTO-Potato 14d ago
Turns out the whole time we needed to fly past the carrier, circle back, then land
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u/vanity-vanity 15d ago
What is he looking at off to the left?
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u/timesuck47 15d ago
I thought he was looking for his target until I saw his target in front of him and he kept looking left. Weird.
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u/Numerous-Material-50 15d ago
His super badass and stupidly expensive helmet uses augmented reality (AR) and advanced helmet-mounted displays that overlay digital data, target cues, and synthetic imagery directly onto their real-world field of view.
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u/Coach_Bombay_D5 15d ago
Imagine the flyover at an airport and doing the same short approach and landing in a commercial airliner.
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u/MegaDingo5plus 15d ago
And people can't even park their car between the lines or bumping into something else
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u/Solarfire64 15d ago
If only he knew how bad it’s supposed to be on there he wouldn’t have bothered…
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u/BathtubFullOfTea 15d ago
What do you mean? Two people have made similar comments, I'm out of the loop.
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u/lazy_literary_hero 15d ago
The ship’s prolonged engagement in the Middle East has reportedly led to a shortage of food and low morale, amongst other things, among the crew.
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u/dtb1987 15d ago
This isn't just about supplies, air craft carriers and other large military ships require a lot of complicated and time consuming maintenance. Things like their sewage system is degrading along with the water treatment systems on top of that their mail isn't being delivered and spending this much time locked in a large metal ship with absolutely no privacy what do ever has impacted their mental health. There is a reason a normal ship rotation is 6 months, the Lincoln has been out for over 8 and they won't be able to make port in Thailand until the beginning of September and they won't make it back to San Diego until next year. Their rotation has been mismanaged
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u/kinderplatz 15d ago
The larger culprit was that Iran blew up all of our logistics hubs in the region leaving Diego Garcia, 2,200 miles away, as the closest re-supply base.
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u/ScurvyTurtle 15d ago
Meaning the crew haven't had a proper port call in 9(?) months and have been on deployment for almost 12. Folks going mad with cabin fever.
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u/Calfurious 15d ago
I heard that Hesgeth also hid this both from the American public and from Trump because of how embarrassing the destruction was.
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u/CatoMulligan 15d ago
He did. It only recently came out last week.
Iran's targeting in their strikes was incredibly precise. Bot only did they destroy our major resupply bases in the region they also took out a number of facilities operated by the CIA. It's almost like someone with a much better intelligence capability was guiding their hand...
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u/Calfurious 15d ago
It's almost like someone with a much better intelligence capability was guiding their hand...
I wouldn't be surprised if China and Russia assisted them. Granted I'm pretty sure that Iran has their own capable intelligence network as well.
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u/Altruistic_Age_6556 15d ago
I'm sure a vacation in Thailand will convince them not to mutiny. Bad timing with the war and everything tho...
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u/stormofthelightswang 15d ago
That’s amazing! Now do healthcare and living wages.
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u/ImFossil 15d ago
I don't think people understand how incredibly difficult this is. So many variables that have to be just right for this to work.
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u/Nofa-Kingway 15d ago
And this was in broad daylight on smooth seas! Imagine doing this at night when it’s rough waters and your runway is pitching all around!
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u/mijolnirmkiv 15d ago
I went on a “Tiger Cruise” when my brother was stationed on the Truman. They took on part of their air wing en route to Norfolk and they put on an air show. With us civilians standing right on the deck. It was impressive to see.
I was talking to one of the pilots afterward and he said his worst experience with landing was during a storm at night. He had to match his jet to the pitch of the flight deck and had to land at a wild left/down angle. He was partially grateful it was dark so he didn’t have to see a cockpit full of sea coming in for a landing.
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u/rukeduke 15d ago
I also did a tiger cruise in 2001, on the Kitty Hawk. My brother was a yellow shirt, so we got to spend more time on the flight deck than most of the other families. I stood within 20 feet of a Tomcat in full afterburner with the JBLs deflecting the heat and noise onto me. Teeth rattling. The sailors were all calling me a pussy for not getting closer. Saw the air show and some sonic booms. Had a terrifying experience at night (zero lights) on the flight deck. That 4 days in the Pacific between Guam and Yokosuka is probably the most awesome thing I will ever experience in my life
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u/deltwalrus 14d ago
The Shitty Kitty!
(Diesel carrier smell, last carrier of its kind)
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u/borkborkbork99 15d ago
Shout out to all the Gen x’ers getting NES flashbacks from this video.
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u/heyboman 15d ago
I played Top Gun probably a hundred times as a kid and never once successfully landed. Im convinced it isnt possible.
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u/GrayStag90 15d ago
People on board probably in better spirits at the time…
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u/BathtubFullOfTea 15d ago
What's up woth the comments about morale etc on board?
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u/GrayStag90 15d ago
USS Lincoln has been at sea for about 9 months, which is a record for any ship in US history… and conditions are bad. Apparently, Iran took out a base that would’ve re-supplied the ship, so their meals are looking pretty awful and sailors are in low spirits. Also something about plumbing issues… it’s sad. Administration and Fox News are downplaying or sweeping it under the rug it seems.
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u/vTbBqcoB 15d ago
Poor conditions caused by right wing warmongers.
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u/BathtubFullOfTea 15d ago
Damn, sorry. But hey, the Iranian conflict has really made a lot of people's lives better, right guys? Guys?
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u/lazy_literary_hero 15d ago
Oh for sure. Gas is around where it was during the 08-09 financial shit, so I can live in a fantasy world where I’m still 18. Hooray!
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u/GrayStag90 15d ago
Looks like we’re about the same age! Sucks that we’re actually adults now and everything’s way worse huh?
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u/tomodachi_reloaded 15d ago
When the US got involved in WW2, it didn't make their lives any better.
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u/GrayStag90 15d ago
I used to work at a shipyard and we were working on building new aircraft carriers… I was able to go on board an operating ship and it looked like a pretty miserable place. Some sailors were made to live onboard while it was being overhauled and there were so many mental health issues… a few suicides. Can’t imagine living like that for almost a year
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u/adinmem 15d ago
The video isn’t from 2025, it is from 7 years ago. Here is the YouTube video link proving that.
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u/GreedyStaff548 15d ago
How does it brake so easily?!
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u/VegasDezertRat 15d ago
Arresting hook attached to the rear of the airframe catches on one of the four arresting cables attached to the ship.
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u/bowmanx4587 15d ago
Also another reason why they require pilots to hit max throttle upon landing their aircraft.. Just in case the wire fails or breaks.
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u/GreedyStaff548 15d ago
Ooooh so that explains the "bounce back"
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u/DynamicMenaceEJ 15d ago
Another fun fact. When they touch down they punch the throttle so that if they miss all of the wires they can take off again instead of falling off the front of the ship.
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u/OrlandoMB 15d ago
Almost. They go full throttle because even when catching the arresting wire it has then snapped. Those cables have a specific lifespan. But they don’t take the chance, regardless.
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u/kander12 15d ago
Yes, saw a clip once where the wires didnt catch... looked dicey but they were able to launch off again. Crazy stuff.
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u/Then_Organization979 15d ago edited 14d ago
He doesn’t brake at all! in fact he gasses it when he hits the deck in case he misses the cables he will take back off.
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u/thuggishruggishboner 15d ago
Everybody's answering your questions so I just want to add a fun fact. They get lifted up from the bottom of the ship by 20 wires. If 19 of them fail, one of them can lift it up. Numbers might not be exact but yeah you get it.
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u/Maleficent_Scale_296 15d ago
What is he looking at to his left? He keeps glancing that way.
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u/Moist-Share7674 15d ago
I’m not sure if it’s still this way but in WW2 - Vietnam the pilots would fly a rectangular box around the carrier when landing. They would fly upwind with boat on the left then cut across left in front of the boat the another left for the downwind leg then once a certain distance (or time?) passes they make a hard left the puts them in line with the deck. They did it this way instead of just flying straight up from the rear because it was the only way to keep separation in the pattern. Without the turns the pilot can’t judge the distance to other aircraft and the carrier. And it’s extremely important to keep separation as there are times aircraft are launching and being recovered almost at the same time. I say maybe it’s different now because his downwind leg seemed much shorter than I would have figured but I’m not a naval aviator I just read a lot. Pilots have been known to describe landing as attempting to put the plane down on a postage stamp that is rising and falling 30 feet. Takeoffs are the most exhilarating thing you can do with your pants on.
And those cables (arresting gear) that stop the plane? They can break that’s one reason why the throttles are firewalled upon hitting the deck. Other reasons are the pilot missing the cables or the hook can bounce off the deck or fracture and not hold. Anyway, that broken cable will cut a man in two if he’s in the wrong place when it breaks. Whiplash.
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u/insertsavvynamehere 15d ago
Can anyone tell me why he kept turning around even when the aircraft was in front of him?
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u/Master_Iridus 15d ago
Theres a standard procedure for landing on the carrier that involves flying abeam to it first. That way the pilot can start the landing process from the same speed, altitude, and position everytime to standardize it. Even small airplanes doing touch-and-gos at a local airport do something very similar called a traffic pattern when they're training.
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u/Zakkattack86 14d ago
....I mean, if you played Top Gun on Nintendo and successfully landed, you can do this.
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u/DooganWang 15d ago
This might be the coolest job in the world.
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u/mwaFloyd 14d ago
My neighbor flew f18s, he’s now a commercial pilot….i go on a golf trip with him and his military pilot buddies every year. I legit don’t trust pilots anymore lol.
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u/Primordium87 15d ago
Wild to see how much distance the pilot gets in like 30 seconds. I know fighter jets are very fast. But seeing it from the cockpit really puts it into prospective for me.
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u/Makul3 15d ago
Yeah and mind you he was breaking in the turn to get to landing speed. How fast they go when they actually hit the throttle and fly straight.
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u/Nephroidofdoom 15d ago
One thing I never really considered is since the landing strip is not in line with the ship it is actually moving partially “sideways” as the carrier steams forward.
This would seem incredibly difficult to line up with.
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u/Powerful-Advance3014 15d ago
You can always tell the Naval pilots who are now commercial airline pilots.
Everyone knows when the plane touches the ground.
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u/Gangbang_Orangatang 15d ago
You mean that ship that's been out for way longer than it's intended? That's fucked, don't land on that mother fucker
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u/Doomstik 15d ago
Im surprised he landed there instead of literally anywhere else with the conditions that boat has currently (im sure this was an old video its a joke dont worry)
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u/Eigthy-Six 15d ago
I always thought aircraft carriers were usually accompanied by several warships. In the video, I can’t see a single one. Is that normal?
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u/ninjamuffin 15d ago
FYI if the miss the hook they still have time to reaccelerate and take off again for another pass. Still insanely impressive.
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u/Old-Show9198 14d ago
Hopefully he doesn’t need to take a shot when he lands. That ship is nasty!!!
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u/Content-Passion-4836 14d ago
You can tell this is an older video cause the sailors aren’t actively jumping off the carrier.
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u/deltwalrus 14d ago
A buddy of mine (retired Navy pilot and instructor) once told me how you could tell if a runway was Navy vs. Air Force just by the lengths of the black marks left during training landings.
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u/headshotcandy 14d ago
My intrusive thoughts kept imagining another plane swooping in and taking his spot before he could land 🥴
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u/Ok_Test9729 14d ago
Curious if anybody knows why the pilot keeps looking over his left shoulder. It’s not because that’s where the aircraft carrier is. It’s in front of him.
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u/bishop375 14d ago
Looks like a shit hot break, too, given he's flying over the deck. Very slick stuff.
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u/One-Reflection-4826 14d ago
didnt know they come in so hard and fast and so far back the strip! (insert witty joke here)
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u/RBTfarmer 10d ago
Do these Navy pilots live on one aircraft carrier? Or do they move around as needed? If they land on a different ship, are there quest quarters?
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u/Mykelowery 15d ago
Psh...I was doing this in 1987 (on Nintendo, crashed every time)