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