Navy Pilots Ace Carrier Landings on USS IKE

ATLANTIC OCEAN – The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, hosted student naval aviators from Training Air Wing (TW) 1 and TW-2 for carrier qualification (CQ) training on Sep. 24, off the coast of Florida.

For the VT students, this CQ represents a crucial milestone in their training as it marks their first opportunity to land on an operational aircraft carrier.

During this training period, students completed 256 recoveries aboard IKE using T-45C Goshawk training aircraft. This evolution concludes the advanced phase of strike pilot training, and successful students will earn their wings of gold, designating them as naval aviators ready to fill operational commands across the fleet.

Safety and emergency preparedness were paramount to both the student aviators and IKE personnel, especially those working on the flight deck.

“In preparing for this CQ process, we have done numerous briefs and simulations of the T-45 models,” said Lt. j.g. Terrance Wever, IKE’s flight deck officer. “We planned for 20 aircraft but ended up with 14, so we knew how to manage the flight deck and the real estate available to us. Ultimately, it’s on all of us to make sure we stop anything that is unsafe. We are preventative and not reactive.”

In the air, a network of IKE personnel and VT instructors closely monitor the students’ performance.

“If they’re having difficulty, we’ll talk to them in plain English,” said Lt. Cory “Venus” Morgan, a VT-7 landing signal officer. “Otherwise, it’s usually pretty silent; we’re letting them get reps and sets because they don’t know what to expect until after the first couple of recoveries. Then, they start to loosen up and think ‘I can do this.’”

Despite the progress, nerves remain a common factor even among the most experienced pilots.

“The first few passes from behind the ship, I barely remember,” said Cmdr. Tyler “McGruber” McQuiggan, IKE’s air department head, also known as “Air Boss.” “Your nerves start to cool over time but I don’t think you ever really get comfortable as a student out there.”

Instructors also play a key role in helping students manage their nerves during the evolution.

“I think everyone is nervous going to the boat, especially if they haven’t done it in a while,” said Morgan. “It’s a healthy nervousness but we meter their nerves by emphasizing their training will set them up properly for landing on the boat.”

With CQs now completed, IKE will return to Naval Station Norfolk and prepare for a scheduled maintenance period.