Face to Face with the 8-Day Clock [& Wet Compass] 23 Apr 2011 Neptunus Lex
“...I chose an off-duty runway for my straight in approach, and lowered the arresting hook to engage the approach end arresting gear. The wheel brakes would still have worked just fine, but without wing spoilers the Scooter could be a little tricky to handle on deck at high speed.
I had by that time a few hundred arrested landings, most of them in the FA-18. In the Hornet you were supposed to lock the restraint harness that kept you strapped securely in the ejection seat before landing - it was part of the landing checklist - but it was not big deal if you didn't: There was an inertial reel incorporated within the seats of all carrier aircraft that would sense sudden decelerations and apply the brakes. The Scooter had one too.
Only that inertial reel, like my poor, wounded utility hydraulic line, was also 35 years old. I landed safely at about 125kts, took the gear at maybe 115 or so and was thrown violently forward in the cockpit, getting a face-full of the 8-day clock
[& wet compass] mounted on the canopy as the airplane came to a sudden stop, the arresting wire snaking and hissing behind it. It was a sunny day, fortunately, because my helmet visor was down and took the brunt of the collision, cracking in two places, or otherwise I would present an entirely different face to the world to this day. I was momentarily stunned and a little bruised, but none the worse for wear as the aircraft ticked down in the cable and the fire trucks raced up alongside me.
And I wasn't feeling quite so smug about checklists.”
http://www.neptunuslex.com/2011/04/2...e-8-day-clock/
OR:
https://thelexicans.wordpress.com/20...-neptunus-lex/