Harrier Dude said:I'm sure that you do. But for us wet-behind-the-ears SNAs on their first few traps, I thought it was better to be safe than sorry, both as a practical matter (trickling off the boat) and an academic matter (getting a down or "unwanted attention" from Paddles).
I think my first trap the air boss had to tell me to throttle back. "We've gotcha 188...." Followed there after by "Rotate" going off the cat. "Holy shit I'm flying again."
A4's, you're right on about the habit pattern. There were times I'd be getting parked and not even remember if I had done everything right on the trap. It just becomes muscle memory. You even start to develop a feel for where you touched down. Having the three stripped is always fun because you get that taxi 4 if you're just wee bit high. I actually shouted into my mask thinking I had boltered just as I grabbed the 4 one night.