An aircraft carrier’s flightdeck! In this video we examine some naval technology that has lead to the design and evolution of supercarriers, in particular landing and stopping on the flightdeck.
HMS Ark Royal is the mother of all modern aircraft carriers, her island sits on her starboard side allowing a long clear flightdeck. Her layout set the template for every carrier to come, including the USS Nimitz.
Like the Ark Royal, the Nimitz is a giant floating airport. The island is her control tower, her eyes, ears, and brain. Within this nerve centre on the 1st floor are the officers in charge of the flightdeck, above them are the radar and weather rooms, above these on the 5th floor is the captain’s bridge, he runs the ship form here in overall command of strategy and tactics. But on the top of the island, nestling just below the radar domes sits perhaps the most important place on any carrier - Primary Flight Control (Pri-Fly). Here the air boss and mini boss run the business end of the warship, controlling operation of her strike fighters. They control the busy airspace around the Nimitz, take-offs, and landings. But this is no ordinary runway, the flightdeck has been called the most dangerous workplace on Earth. Here the deck crew must dodge wings, blades, and jets, as they fuel, arm, and park, the multimillion-dollar warplanes.
Clip from the “Big Bigger Biggest” documentary series exploring the engineering breakthroughs that have enabled us to develop some of the largest structures in existence.
Watch the complete documentary here - • Nimitz Class - Rise of...
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