Turbex Aero

In 1963, the U.S. Navy wanted to find out if a standard Marine Corps KC-130F Hercules, a massive 40-ton cargo plane, could land on a moving aircraft carrier to deliver heavy supplies over long distances. The ship was the USS Forrestal. And the pilot was Lieutenant James H. Flatley III, who had actually never flown a four-engine aircraft before getting this assignment. The Hercules had absolutely no tailhook, meaning it couldn't use the ship's arresting wires to stop. To land, the carrier had to steam at max speed directly into the wind, generating a massive 40-to-50-knot headwind down the deck. And the moment the tires touched down, Flatley had to slam all four engines into full reverse thrust bringing the giant plane to a complete halt in just 267 feet. Its massive 132-foot wingspan cleared the ship's control tower island by less than 15 feet. But taking off was an even crazier physics problem as the C-130 was way too big to hook up to the ship's steam catapults and therefore had to launch entirely under its own power. The crew thus had to back the aircraft up to the absolute rear edge of the flight deck. Flatley locked the brakes down completely and revved all four turboprop engines to 100% maximum power. When he released the brakes, 20,000 horsepower launched the plane forward. While Flatley focused on nose-wheel steering to keep the plane straight, his co-pilot held the control wheel to keep the massive wings level. Combined with the heavy headwind, the C-130 generated so much lift that it soared off the deck in only 745 feet. Over three days, they completed 29 touch-and-goes, 21 full-stop landings, and 21 unassisted takeoffs. Even though it worked, the Navy ultimately scrapped the idea as the C-130 was so huge it couldn't fit down the carrier's elevators, and the crew had to clear the entire deck just to land it; completely paralyzing the ship’s combat mission.

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