What is a carrier break in aviation?

During Case 1 VFR operations the carrier break is the standard and preferred method to expeditiously bring the aircraft back to the ship in a controlled and very timed based procedure. It is time based, because you want an aircraft to land about every 15 seconds.

What is a carrier break?

The term carrier break describes the point at which a different carrier is required. The carrier break offset compensates for the difference in pinion gear diameters between low and high ratio gears (see image).

How do catapults work on aircraft carriers?

On aircraft carriers there is a catapult that slingshots aircraft so that they can gain lift on the short carrier deck. I have a few related questions – the first is what is the force exerted / required by the catapult to sufficiently accelerate the aircraft; and is it adjusted per aircraft type or a uniform value?

How do aircraft take off from a aircraft carrier?

Getting air moving over the deck is important, but the primary takeoff assistance comes from the carrier’s four catapults, which get the planes up to high speeds in a very short distance. Each catapult consists of two pistons that sit inside two parallel cylinders, each about as long as a football field,…

What is the acceleration of a Kitty Hawk catapult?

1 Answer 1. According to Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircraft_catapult an American carrier type Kitty Hawk has a catapult capable of accelerating a mass of 35000 kg to 139 knots (71,51 m/s), and the system’s stroke is 76 m. From the terminal speed and the stroke, a simple calculation gives a mean acceleration of 33,64 m/s/s.

What happens if the pressure is too low on a catapult?

If the pressure is too low, the plane won’t get moving fast enough to take off, and the catapult will throw it into the ocean. If there’s too much pressure, the sudden jerk could break the nose gear right off. When the cylinders are charged to the appropriate pressure level, the pilot blasts the plane’s engines.