Howto:Carrier Landing

Landing a Military Jet on a Carrier Tutorial by Example: The Mighty F-14B

The content of this page is meant to guide virtual pilots of military jets on how to land safely and consistently on a carrier. The content of this guide is to a large extent specific to the might F-14B in FlightGear. However many tips and techniques can be used for piloting other 4th generation naval fighters (especially Nato / American like the F-18).

It is Difficult

Landing a jet fighter on a moving carrier again and again is simply difficult and requires many (dozens) of hours of virtual training. Real naval pilots have hundreds of landings on airports and hundreds of hours of training on the aircraft type plus significant simulator training before they are allowed to make an attempt on the real thing.

When you get the hang of it (and you will) and enjoy flying according to procedures, you will find your training time very rewarding. If it gets too easy, just chose bad weather or night and you will get challenged further.

Disclaimer and Credits

• The author is only a hobby virtual pilot.
• Not everything written here is according to real life.
• Keyboard shortcuts and pictures are based on the FlightGear F-14B as of summer 2018.