Wow! Hummers are so reliable you normally have to shoot one down to make it fall from the sky!
Agreed…In my entire time in the Navy, I only heard of a few going down and that was due to extreme inclement weather or some other very extreme mishap. Glad to see most of the crew bailed out. Things have changed I suppose. I remember there used to be crew of five not 4. Interesting.
They used to have 2 pilots, 1 Radar controller 1 ESM, all officers and 1 Enlisted In Flight Tech/ESM. I was getting quick and dirty training to be a replacement IFT/ESM by one of their Officer ESMs when I was on the USS Ranger with VQ-1 (I was an ESM OP on our EA-3Bs) because all their IFT/ESM had become sick. But before I flew for them 1 of their IFTs became flight ready and I wasn’t needed. They prolly dropped the IFT/ESM with all the automated ESM stuff.
VQ-1 no way…how cool I worked with the sister squadron VQ-2 out of Rota. They always sent a det out to the Nimitz and the “Toga” . I loved the whales, a bitch to manuever on Deck but a sight to see. I was on and working the night Ranger 012 when in the water and lost all seven crewmen. i seen the entire spectacle. funny they did away with the whales on Carriers after that. Gave the job to the converted S-3s.
We knew the A-3 affectionately as the F------ Whale.
Ya that too!! 