Expeditionary Airfield (EAF) Landing Systems teams from the Aircraft Launch and Recovery (ALRE) Program Office (PMA-251) are testing solutions that will make Marines’ expeditionary landings easier and faster. 

ALRE’s EAF team spent two years searching for a reliable replacement for AM2 Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) matting, which has been in service since the 1960s. While AM2 remains a viable solution, it’s heavy, time-consuming to install, and challenging to deliver to austere environments.  

Sailors supporting launch and recovery operations aboard USS Gerald R Ford (CVN 78) celebrated a major training milestone this week.

Ten trainees were the first to graduate the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) Carrier Aviation Boatswain Mate Equipment (ABE) C-school using the Multipurpose Reconfigurable Training System (MRTS 3D) at Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training (CNATT) Unit Norfolk, Sept. 21, 2021.

When facing emergency landing conditions, aviators and aircrew have long relied on time-tested training, procedures, and equipment to make perilous moments as safe as possible. 

As the Navy adapts to the CMV-22B Osprey as its carrier onboard delivery (COD) platform, many new procedures need to be created and approved from the ground up. Unlike previous V‑22 variants, there were no standardized crash equipment available on a carrier to protect the CMV-22B during emergency landings. 

Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) and Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) achieved 8,000 aircraft recoveries and launches aboard USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) on April 19, during the final independent steaming event of her 18-month Post Delivery Test & Trials (PDT&T) period.

Capt. Kenneth Sterbenz, Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment (ALRE) program manager (PMA-251) for EMALS and AAG, said ALRE finished PDT&T strong, and they are ready for the next step, as Ford prepares for Full Ship Shock Trials, which is scheduled to begin summer 2021.

Expeditionary Airfield (EAF) Landing Systems teams from the Aircraft Launch and Recovery (ALRE) Program Office (PMA-251) had two action-packed weeks last month improving EAF landing systems at Marine Corps Auxiliary Landing Field Bogue, North Carolina, and the Airfield and EAF ALRE School in Pensacola, Florida.

USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) logged its 4,000th aircraft launch and recovery  on Sept. 10, showcasing the performance capabilities of the ship’s Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) and Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG), as part of the aircraft carrier’s 18-month Post Delivery Test & Trials (PDT&T) period.

Capt. Kenneth Sterbenz, Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment (ALRE) program manager (PMA-251) for EMALS and AAG, noted the milestone is a significant achievement for both the ALRE program and the Ford crew.

Jonathan Myers goes to work every day and tries to break stuff.

Deck lights, pulley systems and network switch racks are all items that have seen his wrath. On this particular day, it’s a deck edge light for USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) that is getting the business – it’s being heated to 104 degrees Fahrenheit and submerged in a tank of 55-degree water, a stress test designed to see if it can withstand the realities of life on a ship.

The Navy’s newest aircraft recovery system, Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG), successfully completed the system’s most demanding test event to date with 22 aircraft arrestments in just over 26 minutes at the Runway Arrested Landing Site (RALS) in Lakehurst, New Jersey.

The two-day series of testing Oct. 23-24 evaluated the AAG thermal management system’s ability to remove excess heat generated during fast-paced flight operations as experienced aboard the aircraft carrier to validate the system’s capability to meet USS Gerald R. Ford’s (CVN 78) operational requirements.

The T-45C Goshawk began Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) performance testing at the Runway Arrested Landing Site (RALS) located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, Aug. 13. This series of testing ensures the new recovery system can support the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) air wing. In April, the trainer aircraft completed 60 arrestments at RALS during a five-day, risk-reduction test period utilized to evaluate AAG system integrated performance.

The Navy’s newest aircraft carrier Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) system received the green light to recover “props and jets” aircraft, according to the Aircraft Recovery Bulletin (ARB) released Aug. 2.

The ARBs enable propeller aircraft: C-2A Greyhound, E-2C Hawkeye and E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, and jet aircraft: F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and E/A-18G Growler to perform flight operations aboard USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78).