Navy Aviation Boatswain’s Mate – Launch/Recovery – ABE

An Aviation Boatswain’s Mate – Launch/Recovery describes the two main groups within the rating — catapult crewmen and arresting gear crewmen — and the work of launching aircraft off a carrier flight deck.

The sailor, part of the catapult group, describes the launch as the craziest combining of mechanical craziness, and separately describes the below-decks technical work: observing gauges and lights, coordinating with officers and shooters, and maintaining equipment such as jet blast deflectors. The transcript also covers recovery, with a single wire stopping an entire aircraft, and notes the ship can put 70 of the world’s most lethal aircraft in an adversary’s airspace.

Sources: America's Navy (YouTube)