Carrier Operations

Recovery (Case III)

• Case III: Aircraft are directed to a marshal stack on a radial 180° relative to the expected landing bearing. The marshal stack begins 21 miles behind the carrier at an altitude of 6,000 feet and proceeds up 1,000 feet and back 1nm for each additional aircraft in the stack. The holding pattern is a left-hand, 6-minute racetrack pattern where the inbound leg passes over the holding fix. Aircraft depart the marshal stack at assigned times and approach the carrier one at a time.

As you return to the carrier at the end of your mission, use the support comms menu (SHF+TAB) to inform the tower that you are inbound. When you reach the 50nm distance from the ship, the strike controller will direct you to “switch marshal;” in the real aircraft this would require a radio frequency switch. Use the support comms menu to request a landing. The radio sequence that follows is rapid but contains a great deal of useful information. Here is a representative marshal radio communication:

Player pilot: Mercury five one, inbound mother’s three two three, fourty-eight miles, angels fifteen, state six point two.

Marshal controller: Mercury five one, marshal. Mother’s weather: ceiling unlimited, visibility twenty-five miles. Case three recoveries. Marshal on the one five zero radial, twenty-five miles, angels ten. Expected approach time four two; time now, two seven.

Let’s go through these two transmissions bit by bit.

• Mercury five one: identification (callsign) of the inbound aircraft.
• inbound mother’s three two three: This means that the aircraft is approaching on the carrier’s 323 radial, a line starting from the carrier and extending out at a compass heading of 323 degrees.
• fourty-eight miles: This is the aircraft’s distance from the carrier. A radial bearing and a distance from a given point is all the information needed in order to determine a location.
• angels fifteen: An “angel” is one thousand feet. Angles fifteen means that the inbound aircraft is at an altitude of 15,000 feet, +/- 500 feet.
• state six point two: This is aircraft fuel state in thousands of pounds. Here the inbound aircraft has 6.2 thousand pounds of fuel, or 6,200 pounds.
• mother’s weather: ceiling unlimited, visibility twenty-five miles: These are the current weather conditions for the carrier operating area.
• case three recoveries: this indicates that recoveries will take place using Case III procedures.
• marshal on the one five zero radial: The “marshal stack” is being built on a line extending away from the carrier at a compass heading of 150 degrees.
• twenty-five miles, angels ten: Remember, the marshal stack begins 21 miles behind the carrier at an altitude of 6,000 feet and proceeds up 1,000 feet and back 1nm for each additional aircraft in the stack. In this case you are the fifth aircraft, for an additional 4nm and an additional 4,000 feet in the marshal stack.
• expected approach time four two: The approach to the carrier is planned to be at 42 minutes past the hour. Time can be displayed in the HUD by boxing the TIME option on the HSI DDI.
• Time now two seven: It is currently 27 minutes past the hour. You have 15 minutes to approach the carrier and arrange yourself safely in the marshal stack.