How To Take A Fighter Jet Cable | Thunderbird Reacts

About this video

Max, a former F-15E Strike Eagle pilot and F-16 Thunderbirds demonstration pilot, explains how to catch an arresting cable in fighter jets and carrier operations. He clarifies that he has never landed on a carrier himself but consulted Navy pilot friends for carrier insights, while drawing on his own experience catching cables on land during emergencies. Max reviews carrier launch and recovery footage, discusses the mechanics of arresting gear, and shares his own video catching a cable at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan in a fully loaded F-15E.

Key takeaways

• Max explains that catching a cable requires preparation: locking shoulder harnesses tight, putting the nose down immediately upon touchdown to avoid the nose gear slamming down, and keeping the aircraft centered on the cable to prevent it from pulling the jet off the runway.
• Max describes that carrier arresting systems use massive hydraulic pistons below deck to absorb the energy of a 50,000-pound jet traveling at 150 mph, and newer cables use poly-core material stronger than steel.
• Max recounts his own emergency cable engagement in a 75,000-pound F-15E at Bagram, where he had to modulate throttle after catching the cable to prevent the chains from pulling the aircraft backward and causing it to roll or flip.

Episode details: published June 28, 2022 · 5K views · 15:45 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. The analysis and commentary described are Max Afterburner’s, attributed to him — his channel includes hypothetical-scenario and news-react content, which is presented as his analysis, not established fact.

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