What it's Like to Switch From the Tomcat to the Super Hornet
Vložit
- čas přidán 20. 06. 2024
- Captain Steve "Wang" Djunaedi, the Commanding Officer of Naval Air Station Oceana, offers details about what it was like to transition from the backseat of the F-14 Tomcat to that of the F/A-18 Super Hornet.
Subscribe to THE MOOCH REPORT (this channel's free weekly behind-the-scenes update) here: eepurl.com/hDfbsj
Support this channel by using the SUPER THANKS (heart icon above) or by becoming a Patron at / wardcarroll
Buy one or all three of the books in the PUNK'S TRILOGY, Ward's popular first three novels about life a Tomcat squadron, at www.usni.org/punks-trilogy-re.... Use the PUNKYT discount code at checkout for 25% off to CZcams channel subscribers.
Also available in KINDLE format here: www.amazon.com/dp/B09R1MX8SY
And as an audiobook here:
PUNK'S WAR: www.audible.com/pd/Punks-War-...
PUNK'S WING: www.amazon.com/Punks-Wing-Pun...
PUNK'S FIGHT: www.amazon.com/Punks-Fight-Pu...
Get official channel gear at my-store-b7f9c9.creator-sprin... - Zábava
Imagine how smooth someone's brain must be to file a noise complaint because they bought property next to an established and active airbase.
When I was living in Reston VA 1988-1995 (stationed at Washington Navy Yard) - our condo was under the some of the landing patterns for Dulles. After living in the BOQ in Pensacola, it was comparitively quiet...
I would love the jet noise. Music to my ears.
Dumb ahh people do this all the time, even with schools and things (complaining about traffic in the morning and afternoon)
Bro I had a lady complaining about noise because she bought a house near the back gate of camp Lejeune near the impact zone. I told her don't complain about the sound of freedom
They built condos next to a drag strip by me. The people living in the condos brought a lawsuit against the drag strip for noise!!
Upon orientation in 1980, our command master chief said first year at Lemoore is difficult, however this place will grow on you. He was right. One measured the seasons with winter rye / wheat and cotton crop. And it became the hub and spoke for Pismo Beach, Sierra Mountains (Yosemite), and Monterey.
I'm an Australian RAAF family man (non-forces-member myself but sons, daughters & uncles are) but am an aeronautics tragic. I absolutely love these interviews Ward!
When I was at NAS Moffett, we got noise complaints about the P-3"s.. We asked them is they noticed the air field before moving in... (you can see the dirigible hangers from the I-680 freeway...
2:27 He's speaking the truth. I have a buddy that was a Marine corps f-18 driver. He was stationed at Miramar on 9/11. They sent him up to fly CAP over San Fran that day. He said it was one of the most messed up things he ever had to do.
It makes me so happy to see this man be so happy
At the end of the video talking about the tightness of the squadron/wing pilots, we had that in the Marine Corps at the Marine Air Stations which were isolated from the ground Divisions, Regiments, and battalions and even with the companies.
But I had the opportunity to serve in the 1st Marine Brigade at Kaneohe Marine Air Station, Hawaii. It was the only base in the Marine Corps where aviation and ground forces were stationed together. When I first arrived, there was a kind of separation between the air and ground on the same base and our commanding general recognized that it needed to be much closer.
So our commanding general decided it needed to be much closer. So he published a policy where a few ground company commanders would fly the back seat of the F-4 in the RIO seat and a few pilots would take command of a rifle company.
I was selected to take the back seat (RIO) on a practice mission to deliver live ordinance on a live fire range and a pilot was selected to become the company commander of my infantry company.
So how did that all turn out?
First, I had to go through all of the pilot stuff such as the pressure chamber, ejection seat simulator, and landing in the water with a parachute.
But the pilot had already been through The Basic School for new Marine officers and was qualified to be a platoon commander. That is no longer the case but back then it was.
While we were taxing the canopy was open and it was hot but bearable. But when the canopy closed before we took off, it was like a convection oven and I was sweating like a pig.
The takeoff was like being launched by a rocket and once we reached 20,000 feet, it finally felt cool.
As we approached the target area, the pilot dropped down to several hundred feet above the ocean. As we approached the target island, the pilot did a high G pullup that felt like I weighed 500 pound or more. Then he started jinking to simulate avoiding anti-aircraft fire and my flight helmet was bouncing off the canopy like a BB in a jar.
The pilot released his live bombs and then did a high G maneuver to exit the area at which time I was feeling sick and had started to us my vomit bag but the G's were so severe that my head got plastered between my knees and I couldn't do anything but try to vomit in the bag which was only patricianly successful.
When we landed and taxied to the squadron area, the entire squadron was there to meet us. I held up my vomit bag and they all cheered.
What I didn't know at the time was my pilot's call sign was "Puke". He was well known for making whoever was in the back seat to puke.
It was all in good fun. He made me puke. The squadron got a good laugh. And I had just had the ride of my life that couldn't be compared to anything else.
But what about the pilot that had command of my company all this time?
He told me that it was more challenging than flying.
My experience was more challenging than flying. Until then, I had always joked about pilots being paid too much compared to combat ground commanders.
But after my experience, I never again joked about pilots earning combat pay and living well in combat.
And while in the officer's club, there were never any other allegations that ground commanders had it easier than air crews.
The truth in the Marine Corps is that while pilots and ground commanders rib each other at social events, we know that the ground units can't make progress without the pilots and pilots know that we can't make progress without them. It's a symbiotic relationship that no other service has.
That story is absolutely bullshit and never happened.
Besides the absurdity of it all, you’re forgetting one crucial thing about the marine corps.
Pilots already act as forward air controllers and have for decades. Yes, even during “your time”.
I love how tight the Naval aviation community is.
Great stories! One of our Deputy City Managers is a former CO of NAS Oceana. I was the CMC of one of the Oceana squadrons during his base CO tour. Really great guy!
I was a Marine Corps infantry platoon commander in the Vietnam War from December 1968 to December 1969. I don't know what the doctrine is today, but in Vietnam every battalion had a Marine pilot as a Forward Air Controller (FAC). However, platoons in my area of operation rarely operated in more than a platoon. I did have several operations as a company and only two operations as a battalion.
So calling in close air support in a firefight will trying to lead 3 squads and attached weapons was pretty much overwhelming because I didn't have UHF radios and my one VHR radio was dedicated to being in contact with my company commander. Early in my tour, there was only one radio in the platoon and it was mostly dedicated to communicating with my company commander. Later, we had a few more radios that were used for Squad patrols to report check points and to provide radio checks on their patrols.
But there weren't enough radios to have each squad to have a radio.
Both calling in artillery and close air support were difficult while trying to control my three squads in a firefight, calling in close air support was much more difficult and so I relied more on artillery because I only needed them to know my location and the estimated coordinates of the enemy.
In calling in artillery, I could always ask for an initial smoke round to verify where it hit. But when calling in a close air support mission I could have the pilot do a first pass to verify he knew where the target was and then execute a live pass to deliver ordinance. That takes a lot of time in a firefight.
Wang! So great to see you at the show, brother! Wang is a great American and one of the kindest, most humble naval aviators you'll ever meet. He was a nugget in the Checkmates when I was a "salty" second-cruise RIO, and it did not take longer before he surpassed me on that deployment in every level of RIO-ing. So it's great to see that people like that are still given important commands in the Navy.
I'm in the Air National Guard working in Ops with 28 years of service. As I wind my career down, I will miss our F-15C models, but we'll get the EXs to pass on to the next generation. God bless the aviators...
I was a design engineer on AWG-9, APG-73 and APG-79. Also, going way back, I was at NAS Lemoore.
So great that you are able to do these interviews. History in the making.❤
Ward thanks for interpreting all the ackronyms for this non military person.😊
Wang, I was a Shooter on the Stennis '01-'03...I have to believe I've launched and trapped you a few dozen times 😁 That was a LONG cruise and my first time on the boat.
Thanks Mooch, Great interview. Wonderful to see a young CO explain the more sophisticated aviation backseats.
Outstanding interview! Former C-130 E&H2 Navigator here.
Noise is a given near a Naval Air Station. When I was with VA-42 from 4/20/1972 to 8/15/1975 I lived within a1/4 mile of the base property & every time a phantom or Intruder would light up for takeoff our windows in the duplex we rented would rattle & hum. We lived at 1838 Ego Dr. for about 3 years and 3 months.The duplex was about 2 years old when we first moved in so windows weren’t old.
Sorry I wasn't able make it to Oceana. I ended up on Shore drive test driving a "newer" vehicle. I was surprised not to see or hear any jets. I guess because of the noise issues the jets were not flown where I was. Thanks for the inside info for non Naval personnel such as myself. I work RCOH and have enjoyed hearing stories from those who have lived on my work.
I'm a pilot in the Daytona Beach area, and I have to laugh and shake my head at the people who buy houses near the airport (airport's been here since 1940) and then complain about the noise. Amazing.
Some people don't understand the cost of freedom. I used to live near Langley AFB and we heard it a lot there. I don't live as close now, so I only here the training exercises. Sometimes we get the Navy ones where I'm at now.
Going from RIO to WSO is like going from CEO to Drive Thru Night Manager.
btw, Ward, that ^ was funny !!!
Hahahahahaha yes
Former VFA-131 Wildcat Plane Captain F/A18C 2003 -2006.
Awesome. Thanks for your efforts.
@@WardCarroll and Thank you for keeping the community informed and knowledgeable in all things across different aircraft platforms and more. Love all your interviews.
Finally we get to see Mrs. Mooch! 👏🇺🇸⚓️
Nice interview, great for us to pick up some of the flavor of the O club, good info on the transition to Supper Hornet
I love this channel. And I especially enjoy you guys using terms of art and challenging the audience to learn more about your profession. So great.
I totally agree, very interesting to listen to two professionals of the field but explanations for some of the terminology would be helpful, especially for non-native speakers.
@@toastermon2272 Subtitles inserted for that reason, but admittedly there are a number of terms we left out. We're throwing you in the deep end here!
Terms d'art. Love that.
@@WardCarroll You're totally right, I must've overlooked some of them, when they first appeared, much appreciated! ❤
@@WardCarroll I surely must've overlooked the FAC-A subtitle, but I run also the CZcams generated subs to help me with the language (non-native English speaker here).
When the YT subs interpreted the "FAC-A mission" as a "f@t g@y mission", I almost spurted my drink all over the keyboard!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Took me back to our time in Va Beach. 😊
Great days! ❤
The talk about Oceana and noise brings back ancient memories of our honeymoon in ‘71 near Oceana. Cheap motel we could afford. I think the rides then were F-4s. Real noisy.
Loving the "Mooch-on-location" vibe we've been being treated to since 'hook23
Brooklyn Tech! Outstanding CAPT Djunaedi! I was a student there from 71-74.
Love all the content on the Hornet and Tomcat... Defiantly my most favorite aircrafts
Love the interviews. Keep’m coming, you’ve got my clicks.
Thanks!
I was in VS-33 from 1979 to 1982. Made a Med Cruise/Indian Ocean in 1981. The reason I mention that is because in this video, right over your left shoulder is a sticker/patch from the World Famous Screwbird homeported at NAS North Island. Love your videos.
I was stationed at Dam Neck virtually across the street from Oceans 80-82. Virginia Beach wanted to develop a high building near the landing flight path of one of Oceana's runways. It was fortunately nixed. There was also a historical map of Navy airplane crashes. They built a shopping mall where a Navy airplane crash years prior. Went to many Air Shows at Oceans. Keep the CZcams videos coming Ward
Shapiro, was it by any chance Lynnhaven Mall?
@@donaldtireman yep I believe that's it
@@625shapiro I was in the NORVA area 1980 to 1997 except for visits to Memphis 84-85 and JAX 93-96, with a stopoff at Dam Neck 85-89.
One of the similarities between US Naval aviation and the RAF is how USN RIOs/WSOs and RAF navigators can achieve operational command positions. That was rarely the case in the USAF. Great to see.
Shame WSO is becoming a smaller and smaller branch without family model fast jets these days. Only RJ’s and Poseidons these days…
Like an episode on the differences in Pilot & WSO between an F-18F and EF-18
"EF-18"(sic)
EA-18G EWO
If I said it once, I've said it a thousand times. You wake up and talk to more interesting people in one day than I could in six months. GREAT INTERVIEW!
Nostalgia....Tomcats! Stickers! There's my boat and home for 9 freaking years, the Chuckie V in the background the whole time! Fallon in the 90's as a ships company AO3 on det....No Fly Zone deployments...9-11....To much to list...Thank You! I was at Oceana for the final flight!
Thanks for everything, Tyler!
Cool to count at least 4 RCAF stickers on the mirror behind Mooch. Great interview.
I believe a lot of memorabilia from NAS Miramar “O” club made it to oceana. Before anyone says otherwise the Black Lions VF-213 has the finest emblem ever to grace the walls of history of both clubs over many years. Here’s to all those
Hello Ward, Could you relay a hello to Captain Steve "Wang" Djunaedi from a fellow Brooklyn Tech graduate. I was so surprised when Capt. Djunardi mentioned that he had attended Brooklyn Tech. I graduated Class 0f 1971, from the aeronautics program and then went onto Brooklyn Polytech for my BS in aeronautical engineering. I so enjoy your videos and thank you for your service.
Ward, hoping to hear some thoughts from you on the F-35 being MIA in South Carolina. Any hope of a "first thoughts"?
Waiting for a little more info about the events surrounding the mishap, but will do a livestream soon.
Great Interview! Loved the Tomcat to Super Hornet perspective. I'll fess up... I was listening to you talk and kept looking at the "tag board mirrors" behind you. I saw VA-35 Black Panthers (an old A-6 squadron) that was embarked on USS NIMITZ w/ CAW 8 (my ship) when I joined her and also VS-33 World Famous Screwbirds, who were with CAW 9 when we took the ship to the Pacific! Absolutely Awesome! Stay safe and Check 6!
I noticed the VA-35 sticker as well. I was in VA-35 from '82-'85 and did two Med cruises on the Nimitz.
@kevink3ktb581 I was ship's company, A-gang, EA01, aircraft elevators. Was on board 1985-1990.
Thanks Mooch !!! Excellent episode !!!!!
Super interesting video. It explains a lot of stuff that us Tomcat and Super Hornet buffs have been wondering and it was done in a most cogent and relatable manner.
Omg were you at the NAS Air Show? If so I’m soooo upset I didn’t get a chance to see you.
Fallon, NV only real plane captains knows about the Fallon Shuffle..
Keep your eye on the "community" tab going forward for announcements about where the tour will take us, etc.
And "Pigs in Space".
Was doing the shuffle way back in 1982!
Great conversation between 2 insiders.
Mooch great video. I am from LI NY)
Thank you so much, Mr. Carroll and Capt. Djunaedi - thank you so much. As an old carrier (blackshoe) sailor (I was aboard Connie when F-14s were just replacing our F4s, etc .... I always wondered what or if there was a difference between a Wizzo and a RIO .... not having any fellow aviation pros around here to ask (I've been retired a while), I just chocked it up to the same job, just a change in abbreviations to make it sound less like a Duran Duran album. :) PS - I would STILL love to see the F-14 swing-wing, two-tailed airframe resurrected today - but with F22 avionics - or at least the radar and computer - with the engines and vectored thrust. I'm not an engineer and don't play one on TV, but in my opinion, no adversary on this planet could touch it.
Really enjoy these interviews and the stories that come with them. Thank you
Such a true pleasure hearing from both of you. Thank you for your service, experience, and professional insights. I'm joining you in a beer right now!
Love this series from Oceana airshow, great work as usual Mooch.
Thank you for giving us this loved my Navy days in the 60’s
Enjoying all the latest content Mooch. Prayers for a quick and full recovery for Mrs. Mooch. ❤🇺🇸
Lived at the 90 on the West side of the the 12000’ runway at Cecil Field. Hundreds of all types A/c at all hours. My kids and wife absolutely loved it. Swimming in our pool was sometimes a little loud , but Cecil Field was the finest NAS and was the Biggest mistake by Navy Air Ever! The days of the FID, and Sara at Mayport can never be repeated.
Always great to listen and experience in a very small way these discussions. Thanks Ward and U S Navy in general.
Love your interviews, Ward! 👍😃
Warms my heart to see the comaradery of the service members who defend our nation; I am jealous at the same time despite having served 6 years in the Air Force where we had the same thing but at a much lower level, being enlisted and merely supporting the glamour jobs...
Would love to see the rest of the O Club.
I remember living on base and being on the phone with someone standing on the deck have to be like”hold on” ROAAARRRR “ok what was that”? Lol
Very interesting! Thanks Ward
If the Navy ever pulled out of the Norfolk/VAB area there would be tumbleweeds blowing down the streets.
My first squadron, VF-154 Miramar '79
Looking forward to the follow-up; WSO to CCADO (Collaborative combat aircraft direction officer aka loyal wingman) haha
It seems like the RIO in the Tomcat was a necessity where the WSO in the Hornet is a luxury. I wonder how that compares to Phantoms and Strike Eagles.
Having worked fire control radar in both F-4 and F-15 there is a world of difference, the F-15 has a lot of automation with controls just on the throttles or stick grip (HOTAS) where the F-4 had a contol panel with several knobs and every parameter had to be manually selected. F-15 E has one knob for the radar to turn the system on, all other contols are with HOTAS and a few push-buttons on the display. Both the F-15 and F/A-18 have a lot in common since McAIR/Boeing make the aircraft and Hughes/Raytheon make the radar systems for both.
I remember "Snodgrass" signature on the flight schedules and in the ADB (aircraft discrepancy books) many times back in VF-101. I was there 1975 to 1979 as a AE2 (aviarion everything)
5:09 As a RIO he flew both the Tomcat and the Hornet in the same day. Does he recall pilots ever getting similar taskings? Great interview thus far.
Great interview partner. Must be a hell of an operator.
Thanks, Ward.
Wow! Captain Steve is high energy just sitting in a (quite special) bar!
Ward your channel coverage kicks a$$. I believe the comms term is Sierra Hotel. Even though I am an Air Force veteran...Fly Navy.
My respect just keeps on growing for what you did in those F-14’s Ward. (BTW they were built on Long Island where I’m from, our community was very proud of that fact and the Airmen who made the F-14 famous
Love the VMFA-251 sticker right behind you. Everybody loves the T-bolts!
It would be cool to do a quick video with some stories/history on the unit patch stickers stuck on the mirrors there. I see an RCAF roundel there, wonder how long it has been there. Great stuff as always Mooch.
Maybe the club staff know some interesting trivia there
I have plenty of memories of the Oceana O club!!!... and i remember the headaches the next morning!!😂😂😂
Great interview
Ward. Thanks again for a great interview wish I was there to buy you a beer.
Nice thx for the video👍
Legends come from my humble town of Pensacola FL 🍻👍🏻
Sir I enjoyed every minute of this interview.
Glad to know the difference between WSO and RIO. I had just naively assumed it was just a jargon shift, same job, different title. I flew with B/Ns in the A-6, and WSOs in the RF-4. I always thought the backseaters in the RF-4 should be called RSOs (reconnaissance systems operators) as Navy RA-5C backseaters were known, but it was a big Air Force and I was just a little Marine cog in their large wheel, so nobody listened to me. Maybe our chain thought having WSOs vice RSOs would make it easier to finally get AIM-9s on our airplanes. It almost worked! We got tankers instead. ☹️🐻🇺🇲
Great to see some backseater love!
I’m not going to lie… the acronyms thrown out here completely melted my brain
Very insightful! Thanks!
Interesting stuff. Love the channel.
Damn , listening to the two of You , talkin shop , all the lingo , yeah , proud to Be American . Regarding the noise complaints , bring it , that is the sound of Freedom!
Cool location! Get well Carrie!
Could you imagine how capable the 2 seater A-10 could’ve been?!
I enjoyed this video. I'm a fan of both the F-14 & the F-18/Super Hornet.
Love the sound of freedom 😊
Ahhh the jet noise , sounds like VICTORY Fly over my house anytime. 👍🇺🇸
Great video! Last time I was there was 1993 for Chief Joe Tubbs Ensign ceremony.
My brother is a bubblehead, mostly out of Groton, but he was stationed in Norfolk for a couple years aboard USS Washington, and he lived in Chesepeak under that low flying pattern. There were Super Hornets low over his house every few minutes constantly. My dad and I loved it. It wouldn't have bothered me and would have never stopped being cool. It drove my brother's wife and 3 daughters crazy. The girls were pretty young and didn't really know what was happening and we afraid of the jets. He's back up in Conneticut again now and his family is a lot happier. His wife's family lives in the area, and my family is in Maine, so it's a lot closer. My parents go visit a few times a year, and he will come up here once or twice a year. Everyone is happier when Kenton is in Groton.
I remember we did Vampire strikes off the Kennedy with you guys covering days off the Stennis
Hey ward who filmed this great video.
Hozer Miller
God Bless America. Thank you guys. Be safe
I caught the meaning of about two thirds of abbreviated in-house “jargon-speak” during the conversation, but nevertheless it was an fascinating conversation, thank you…. (I’m USN vet so I totally get how folks fall into speaking the shop-talk jargon language so that wasn’t a complaint).
Commander, these episodes are your money maker. Not too long!
I lived in the Norfolk/Va Beach area for the last 10 years of my career in the Navy and it was the last 5 years when that whole complaining thing started to happen about the noise. I was in the surface navy and we talked about that and were all surprised it even happened.
That area is brought to you by the US Military. It would be nothing without it. Part of the problem is that money started moving into the VA Beach area and it became a resort or vacation destination area and of course the large homes of the business owners and the feeling of the world revolves around them. I mean the attacks were CRAZY. Some of this I attribute to areas being developed that probably shouldn't have been because they were too close to flight paths for planes doing exercises/training.
I retired 2000
Then there was 9-11
I moved away in 2002. After 9-11 though the complaining started to die down, and bumper stickers were showing up more and more showing fighters and the caption "The Sound of Freedom"
Having never gone back there I don't know what it's like. I'm sure there were a lot of political discussions about it. If I also remember correctly it was all this complaining that led to a shift in where the Super Hornet could get based out of. The US Navy felt the Virginia Beach area wasn't working with them on what their needs were to have these new aircraft stationed there. I think at one time there was the consideration to completely move away from Oceana down to Cherry Point, and even before 9-11 the people around Cherry Point were working hard to get the planes there. I see that most squadrons stayed at Oceana.
BTHS 1989 🙌🏾 The 89 Prom was in the west tower too!
I have lived in VA Beach right in the flight path and multiple places in Chesapeake all in Hampton roads. I would take the sound of freedom any day over the sound of a train at 2am.