I'm looking for shipmates of my father ,he was Hanger Deck Chief on the 1970-71 WesPac cruise.
I'm his son and I'm currently building a model of the Hawk and I'm looking for anyone who can tell me about him and the ship.
I'm also looking for an old salt Green shirt the can tell me how an RA5C was hooked up to the bridle and hold back including how the cable was on the deck to keep the bridle from flying off the catapult. I'm also building a detailed model of a Vigilante being launched off the Hawk.
Thank you all for your help
David W. Smith

Hi David,
If your father was hangar deck chief he also was probably an Aviation Boatswain's Mate. I'll try to answer your questions about launching RA5Cs. The method was similar to A-1, A-3, A-4,F-4 and others, the difference being the size and style of bridles and holdbacks. The bridle for the Vigilante was quite long and had swaged fittings with eyes on both ends that attached to hooks that were recessed on the fuselage of the A/C. The bight of the bridle went around the catapult shuttle. The holdback assembly was almost identical to the F-4 and consisted of several pieces of flat steel joined by fittings that allowed for folding and handling. It was probably about 15 feet in length with a cleat on one end that was inserted into the holdback track (the anchor in the whole process).The AC end of the holdback assembly had a fitting that accepted the tension bar. The AC had an almost identical fitting that accepted the other end of the tension bar. The tension bar was designed to break at launch (FIRE) at a predetermined tension pressure, basically a precision 'weak link'. I believe the RA5C tension bar was black in color and broke at 50,000 psi.
Your other question, "how the cable was on the deck to keep the bridle from flying off the catapult?", I think refers to the bridle arrester system. Attached to the bridle on both sides of the cat shuttle were nylon braided lanyards that each attached to bridle arrester sliders within the bridle arrester tracks. Longer lanyards trailed off the bridle at the AC attachment points, one to the secondary trailing slider and one to the bridle arrester shuttle (primary). This four point arrangement plus the bridle provided a degree of symmetry and retention of the bridle. The bridle arrester shuttle was connected to a flat metal strap, attached to a below deck engine. The engine was a disc brake system with 3 stage braking (secondary-low pressure; primary-medium pressure and variable depending on type of AC being launched;and 3rd brake which was high pressure and used mostly as an emergency brake). As the AC shuttle braked at the end of the launch,the bridle was "arrested" within a target of 15-21 feet and was immediately ready for retract to the launch (battery) position, followed by the catapult shuttle about 10 seconds later. Bridles lasted about 100 shots if they passed inspection criteria. If the bridle arrester was inoperable, it was possible to launch without using it, however it was an expensive proposition as the bridle ended up in the ocean after each shot.
During my time on the 'Hawk', the Vigilante was a pain in the butt, basically an aircraft looking for a mission. The Navy designed it to deliver 'silver bullets' and since there was no one to nuke, it was kind of useless as a weapons platform but later it found a purpose in life as a photo recon bird in Vietnam.
Hope this answers your questions.

Hi Richard,
Thanks for the reply,yes my Dad was an ABH but he unfortunately passed away 6yrs ago from complications from cancer and diabetes.
I know what you mean about the Vigilante, my Dad always said it was an aircraft that was a pain to launch and recover,and always looking for a mission, especially with the goofy bomb bay it had(blow the tail fairing,nose up and hope they fall out the back).
I have another question or 2 ,I know where the bridle hooks are on the aircraft and how the lanyards are attach to it by the shuttle it's the hold back attachment, is the hold back attached just in front of the arrestor hook, is there a T slot on the aircraft for it ,I do understand about the breakaway link (I have a bunch of Green ones from F14's),
are the long lanyards attached to the bridle close to the loop ends where they attach to the aircraft.
When the bridle is attached and ready for launch the lines attached to the lanyards are then retracted and tightened up,is that correct?The line the lanyards are attached too do they run on top of the deck or in a slot under it?
Thank you sir for your BIG help
David

Hi David,
I'll try to answer your questions about launching an RA5C Vigilante but the phrase, "a picture is worth a 1000 words" comes to mind but I'll do my best. I don't consider myself an expert as the RA5C was not in our Air Wing inventory during my time onboard however we did launch and recover a few during that time.
Q...Is the holdback attached just in front of the tailhook?
A....Yes.
Q.....Is there a T slot on the aircraft for it?
A.....No, not a T slot. My recollection is that the AC holdback fitting was inside a spring loaded door but since its been 50+ years ago, I could be mistaken, especially since we didn't launch that many.
Q.....Are the long lanyards attached to the bridle close to the loop ends where they attach to the aircraft?
A.....The lanyards are 7/8" nylon rope that the cat crew spliced eye loops in the ends. The lanyards were positioned (attached)to the swaged fittings of the bridle close to the eye of the swaged fitting that attached to the AC cat hook. The spliced eye was looped around the bridle swaged fitting and the other end of the lanyard was threaded thru the eye and cinched tight. (After the first shot this cinched connection was very tight.)
There are no lines attached to the lanyards.The lanyards themselves are part of the bridle arrester system, two short nose lanyards attached to the bridle near the cat shuttle and bridle arrester sliders; one long secondary lanyard attached to the bridle near the AC hook-up point which connects to a slider in the bridle arrester track; and the long primary lanyard connected to the bridle arrester shuttle/strap/engine. There are two parallel raised sets of bridle arrester tracks on either side of the cat track that continue above deck about 50 ft forward of the cat(the bridle braking area).
After the AC is tensioned on the cat, the bridle arrester is retracted to put tension on the primary lanyard.
Your statement about having a bunch of green tension bars from F-14s is incorrect.The F-14 used a Repeatable Release Holdback Bar (RRHB) that eliminated the need for tension bars of any kind. The green ones in your possession were probably used for A-4 Skyhawks which broke at somewhere in the mid-20,000 pound range and were painted green. If you look at the end, the tensile strength should be metal stamped, possibly 24,000 psi, if my memory is correct. IF,IF,IF the F-14 HAD used a tension bar, it would be in the range of 50,000 lb. breaking point.
Hope this helps. If my posts get any longer, they might toss me off this website.

Hi Richard ,
I found this movie of a launch of an RA5C from the Connie Here is the link the launch starts at 1:28 thru 1:41 I see them tension the bridle then tension the lanyards attached to the bridle they look like the are attached to a small turtle that slides back along the cat rail.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfgDoTIkErI
This is the link to the video it's the best I've seen on the internet.
I have found on my model of the Vigilante both brible hook doors and now (because of your info)the holdback door also .I'm cutting them out as I'm writing to you LOL as I now understand how everything hooks to the aircraft I also know that what the bridle hooks to on the catapult is shaped like a turtle so aircraft roll over it when lining up for launch .
The hold back links I have is I shaped and was hooked to the hold back behind the nose wheel on either F14 or an F18 I had a buddy that was a Green shirt on the Stenis back in the 80's.I looked thru my box of the there are grn,blk,and blue ones all marked with different weights .
Thank you VERY MUCH for all the information ,
David

I have a post card of the Hawk that I bought in 1972. You may find it useful because it shows how the planes were spotted on the flight deck. I will email a copy if you wish.

Hi Jim,
Yes that would be great.I don't have many pic's of her with most of the CAG on deck.
Thank you very much,
David
bemmer78@yahoo.com