Watch: Pilot Pulls Epic Maneuver After Cable Snaps on Aircraft Carrier

When a landing cable broke on an aircraft carrier, a Navy pilot had to pull an epic maneuver — and it was all caught on camera.

According to the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot, the incident happened back in March of 2016, when the USS Eisenhower was involved in exercises off the coast of Virginia.

The pilots were landing a Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeye — a rather large twin-turboprop plane by carrier standards, with a bulky radome for electronic airborne early warning detection on top. That made what happened next all the more amazing.

For those of you not familiar with how aircraft carriers work, landing carrier planes are stopped by a cable or series of cables which are caught by a hook on the bottom of the aircraft. This helps massive fighter jets and turboprops like the E-2C stop in such short distances.

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When the Hawkeye hit the deck of the Eisenhower, everything seemed to be going as planned. Then, as it neared the end of the deck, you can see the cable snapped.

The plane dipped below the deck, and you can see sailors on the deck of the carrier scrambling all about. Then, just as you were expecting to see a horrifying splash, the E-2C climbed above the deck again and back into the air.

According to the Virginian-Pilot, the Navy found that “maintenance personnel missed at least one and possibly two ‘critical steps’ while working on an engine that helps operate the carrier flight deck’s cables, which are called cross deck pendants, after a previous landing.

“As a result, the engine failed to slow the aircraft, instead causing the pendant to break ‘at or near’ the Hawkeye’s tailhook.”

Eight sailors were injured in the incident. However, it could have been a lot worse were it not for the epic move this pilot made. Our hats are off to you, whoever you are.

H/T The Aviationist

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