This recent thread has a lot of information about the catapult, arrest & deck size comparison along with a graph for A4G Weight, Optimum Angle of Attack for Approach KIAS starting from here and scroll down the pages, particularly on page three (2nd URL):
Cat stroke 100 feet with a lateral acceleration of 5-6G depending upon circumstances. Day deck landings were OK within weather/sea limits whilst night deck landings were (as noted by all naval aviators) .....
Not perhaps well known: it seems because of previous Sea Venom pilot deck landing experience (requiring a short curved approach because for the Venom Pilot seeing the mirror must have been difficult over that bulbous nose obscuring the view) the early A4G circuits were carried out at 400 feet AMSL, rather than NATOPS height of 600 feet. 400 was my preference because the mirror could be picked up at least half way around a
level base turn and flown for a short straightaway (less chance for error perhaps). The 600 footer required a 'descending' base turn which to me was not as precise, but mandated by the USN trained LSOs, during the latter part of the cruise. The higher downwind allowed a better look at the carrier but I still preferred the 400 footer.
Night landings were always from a CCA to one mile with perhaps the controller continuing to talk till about the half mile then - oh the horror.
http://www.pprune.org/military-aviat...ml#post9705103
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http://www.pprune.org/military-aviat...ml#post9710043