Hoser's tips on deckspotting
Passed directly to me by Hoser for posting:
DECK SPOTTERS! Flying F-8s off 27 Charlies, when you passed the ramp, you are in the wires. Not so on a big boat....After bagging the Golden Tail Hook 2 combat cruises in a row on the Intrepid, D-Hose is a bit cocky transitioning to the Vigi: never had a clue that he was a deck spotter until the first day VFR trap aboard the Saratoga on his initial Vigi CQ.
Holygwackaskmoly,,,,rolling into the groove....Damn! That looks like a Air Farce floating runway....Never seen such a giant deck! Well, passing the ramp, it looks very high and a bolter is forthwith??..so figuring the ball ain't even close, D-Hose opts to "Go for it",,,egh! D-Hose settles into a taxi to a one wire with a blown mainmount and big time egg on chops as well as copious amount of s--t on boots having to shut down in the wires and get a tow to a spot to tie down. Major el spankoe!
Well, obviously, D-Hose feels like hammered Gerbil Poop and is replaying the screw up in his squash...Bottom line, when ya pass the round down on a big boat, ya have a hell of a lot of flying left to the wires. Seems liek an eternity, still flying the ball to touchdown after the ramp,,,Think "Boom" Powell saw this flagrant demo of deckspotting and reinforced "ya gotta fly the ball all the way to touchdown".
Guess some guys go their entire life not knowing they are a "Deck Spotter!" Once, when a shot up A-4 took out the LSO platform and MOVLAS station, 9 of us made it back aboard the Fighting "I" with no lens and zero LSOs,,,but that's a whole 'nother story.
VR= D-Hose
PS: Don't believe I ever spotted the deck again!! Well, at least not 'til getting into the Turkey!