Another Kuznetsov loss ?
 

Russian Su-33 crashed in the Mediterranean while attempting to land on Kuznetsov aircraft carrier

https://theaviationist.com/2016/12/0...craft-carrier/

Perhaps they are copying the Chinese and are slowly building a new island in the Med.

Russian Navy jet crashes into the Mediterranean after bombing raid in Syria | Daily Mail Online

JTO!
You owe me a keyboard!

As usual, they do not bother until stepping in the same pile of **** two times in a row. Wish they give up with air carriers and concentrate on the "regular" aviation.

Two observations.
(1) Not the first time an arresting cable ever snapped. Not the first time a jet was lost due to that happening.
(2) Good job on knowing his procedures, he executed the Silk One departure and the SAR crew picked him up.
So the Russians are "learning by doing" when it comes to carrier ops. Welcome to the club, it's not for the faint of heart.

As to the Journalistic coverage ... Terminology wise, that's not a runway, it's a flight deck. (I suppose it serves the same purpose as a runway ...) :8

My friend, who did a bit with the FAA, recounts a history of a Scimitar squadron who went on a cruise and returned with none of the original airframes.

...plus ca change

Telephone rings and is answered at Russian Defence Ministry....

"Drastvetya"

(In a mid-Atlantic accent):
"Drastvetya Comrade. You appear to be having some problems with your carrier landings."

"Errrr... Da, you could say that."

"Comrade, we have some shiny new STOVL strike aircraft coming off the production line very soon. As a new customer, we can give you some very early production slots, would you be interested?"

"Spaseba, but we need something now."

"This is your lucky day. We also have access to some seventy two low mileage, one careful owner, previous generation V/STOL fighter bombers which an owner with financial difficulties was forced to relinquish. For a whole squadron, I can do you a very good price. How many shall I pencil you in for?"

"I will check and get back to you."

"Nyet problyema. Dosvedanya".

'Wetstart Dryrun' said:
Yep olden days were tough on airframes....

I believe that in those days they relied on accidents to keep the spares coming.

Thank you, Spaz. ....all heroes!

STOVL took the sport out of it.

I hate boats.

Wetstart, how do you feel about landing on ships? :)

/Naval terminology pedantry mode off

Perhaps Wetstart was referring to this:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...ine_HMS_M2.jpg

or even this: ;)

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...99f4101758.jpg

Mr Lone,

Thank you for your kind inquiry. I have done a few ski jumps into the ether with no untoward issues - very nice way to get airborne.

I have not landed on a boat. I guess the closest to a flight deck is a creeping vertical landing on a 30ft wide tin strip. I found the fore/aft positioning on a VL, the trickiest since a puffer duct off the edge of a pad was a messy business, and a 70ft pad did not have a big margin for error- a deck has to be better.

I did not join the Fleet Air Arm

I prefer my tent in the swamp to a hammock on the cold wet salty sloppy stuff

I salute those who operated Tombs and Buccs off the RN Escort Carriers.

Oops, this is getting expensive!

It might be an idea to get some stronger cables..

I was once advised that "a ship can carry a boat, but a boat can't carry a ship" as a way to remember the distinction. I once worked with a USAF F-15E back-seater who did an exchange tour on a USN carrier. All said and done, he's glad he did it but prefers to land "feet dry" as a rule. :cool: To each his own.

Let's hope the forthcoming British carrier born aircraft don't suffer a similar fate.

Where did that sketch come from Basil?
Cripes - a few shock loaded engines in that clip Spaz posted...

EDIT: Ah - I see - an image on Google.
Interesting to read about DARPA's Project Hydra

I'm pretty sure broken arrestor wires won't be a problem on the QE2 class.

Sounds like Fish-head pedantry to me, rather then universal naval pedantry.

"Call it a boat. It annoys the Fish-heads", was the advice I was given. And if the term "boat" was good enough for aviating naval colleagues from both sides of the Atlantic, one of whom got a medal for not crashing a Sea Fury very much, then it seems at least to be worthy of consideration.