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I mean, I know that Tuna was in the Navy and all, I remember Lex's posts about port visits in Australia, but to make it a sport?
What? It's not what I think?
Oh, this is actually a "thing" in Australia, based on fishermen returning to land and throwing their catch ashore?
I had no ideer.
(Actually Peter over at Bayou Renaissance Man had it first. Got a chuckle out of it I did.)
The Daily Mail has it's own amusing take on this fishy contest (hey, they started it, and that's a different video than Peter posted previously, sigh, I know...).
After doing a bit more research, seems to me that there were certain American aircraft carriers who participated in this rather bizarre pastime. Remember our own Tuna was a Naval Flight Officer crewing the Mighty War Hoover (S-3 Viking). So yeah, carriers toss Tuna too. (Alliteration is not always awesome...)
This video includes a Tuna's eye view of a tuna toss, er, I mean cat shot, in a War Hoover. Lots of S-3 love in this video. (No, it wasn't shot with a fisheye lens. What a bizarre question... Oh, now I get it.)
So Tuna, care to comment?
😁
I don't mind the tossing as it's quite fun. It's the landing that can get hairy. Great video. Sad that there will never be another"new" crop of them.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's a very useful platform.
DeleteLockheed was talking about converting all the old S-3s into C-3 cargo/tanker versions in 2014, but I haven't heard anything more about that.
DeleteFriend of mine who now flys drones was a Hoover driver. Mellowest guy I ever met. He has an ejection chair set up in front of a really sweet gaming setup with 3 screens and a nice stick controller that he practices flying on, at home.
That gaming set-up...
DeleteWant. Need.
Navair decided to go with the osprey for COD and the UCAV for tank.
DeleteHhmm, the Osprey should be okay. But a UCAV for passing gas? Hhmm, very interesting...
DeleteYeah, the Osprey. Hmmm. Why can't we just have an uncomplicated flying box like the hoover vs some super fidgety flying mixmaster.
DeleteWhen will our imperial masters realize that cheap and easy is a way to go?
As to that gaming setup? Well, yeah, me too! Love to have that chair, put on a pilot's helmet, add the CPAP mask (Hey, it can do double duty, right?) and do some decent Korean War jet fighter stuff.
F-86.
Delete[Drops microphone. Walks off.]
Pleh. I'd go for that beautiful F-84 myself. Kill Migs, blow up ground targets, kill Migs, blow up ground targets. What more could you want?
DeleteIt's those tip tanks. Everyone loves tip tanks.
DeleteI agree, great video.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the post.
Paul L. Quandt
Thanks Paul.
DeleteSo, what do we have for ASW capability now, with submarine launched weapons (especially carrier killer stuff) having greater ranges? What so we have that can pass gas with any quantity and range?
ReplyDeleteJohn Blackshoe
Aerial ASW assets? From a carrier? Helos, that's it.
DeleteMidair refueling? From a carrier? Think F/A-18s.
Yeah, don't expect any help from the F-35 either...
Sad, innit?
Since Australia was colonized by folks the English deemed as ner-do-wells, maybe some homesick Scot was missing his caber and decided to toss the local fish instead?
DeleteSeriously though, how can ANYone watch that film, or any of the others on You-tube, and NOT feel patriotic as well as be completely convinced that the folks who fly those planes are just basically of a cast iron constitution from a nerve standpoint, and bat-crap crazy to some degree. Bad enough to take off and land in the daylight, but NIGHT time!!! Yikes!!! Off a boat!!! (Ok, a ship...but still!!!) Pretty darn small speck floating on a vast ocean. With a SHORT driveway before you take your plane swimming.
What is wrong with the politicians who don't think that every possible free dollar shouldn't be sent to repair/maintain/train generally SUPPORT these folks who are crazy enough to WANT to do these things with airplanes?!?! Cause that way, there are not films or newspaper pictures out there of bombs landing on downtown Main Street USA, if you know what I mean.
If throwing Tuna accomplishes that, and he is willing!!! Go for it!!
My 0.2 cents.
Deletejust let me see if I can squeeze into my old flight suit.
Good point about the Aussies Suz, I like the homesick Scot idea.
DeleteCompletely agree on the support for the troops. My son-in-law flies off (and back on to) aircraft carriers.
Tuna - Did you keep your old flight suits in the closet? Everyone knows that old uniforms kept in closets shrink over time.
DeleteAt least mine did.
Go toss THIS tuna, why doncha?
ReplyDeleteAnd, um, if you manage to toss it, um, can we forget that high-stakes arm wrestling match I challenged you to?
Now that would be a chore wouldn't it?
DeleteLove this video. In 1990-91, at CU Boulder, I took a NROTC class. Our instructor was Lt McManus, who flew Hoovers off of the JFK. He absolutely loved that air plane, especially when he got to go bombing at the range down by Puerto Rico. I know its not cost effective, but I am still a fan of mission specific air craft. Seems to me, the S-3 was a great combination of the two theories. Great shipborn ASW platform, but easily adaptable to several other missions, without any real compromise. Great airplane.
ReplyDeleteCost effective, I hate that term. Cost effective means one thing to a bean counter, quite another to the troops in the field. But you knew that.
DeleteThe Mighty Viking. What it lacked in speed it made up for in versatility. Multi-Mission capability with long legs. The F-14s couldn't fly without the parts we brought by S-3 from Diego Garcia in the 80s.
ReplyDeleteGreat footage of the Surface Surveillance mission, both day and night. I remember spending 4 hours in the dark at 400' and then climbing to intercept the instrument final to the ship. My Attack buddies joked that their personal minimum at night was 10,000 ft.
Nice pass at the ship, too. OK, (hic) (cdtl).
And even the speed was relative. I could never get any of my Miramar friends to race us from San Diego to Oceana. We could one leg it while they were having their Tinker Burgers.
Viking Scott (VS-31 circa 1979-82)
Great story Scott!
DeleteHere at The Chant we love the Mighty War Hoover.