Why would they Take away the Ejection Seats?

Описание: Landing on a carrier at night is hard enough on a nimble fighter, and Lieutenant Alan A. Levine was bringing something far bigger to the deck of USS Nimitz.

The aircraft is an aberration. 76 feet of steel with a swollen bomb bay slung beneath high-mounted wings, all built for long-range nuclear war.

Levine eases it down, fighting control systems older than he is. In an A-7 Corsair or an F-14 Tomcat, he would hit the deck and stop almost instantly. But even after five failed approaches, this animal refuses to settle. Now the fuel is too low to reach land.

Sailors stretch the emergency steel net across Nimitz’s deck, a last resort meant to catch aircraft that can’t stop themselves.

Levine hopes it will hold, but the Whale has already claimed many before him. And with no ejection seats, he is out of options.

---

Join Dark Skies as we explore the world of aviation with cinematic short documentaries featuring the biggest and fastest airplanes ever built, top-secret military projects, and classified missions with hidden untold true stories. Including US, German, and Soviet warplanes, along with aircraft developments that took place during World War I, World War 2, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and special operations mission in between.

As images and footage of actual events are not always available, Dark Skies sometimes utilizes similar historical images and footage for dramatic effect and soundtracks for emotional impact. We do our best to keep it as visually accurate as possible.

All content on Dark Skies is researched, produced, and presented in historical context for educational purposes. We are history enthusiasts and are not always experts in some areas, so please don't hesitate to reach out to us with corrections, additional information, or new ideas.