Wasp (CV 18) - Naval Cruise Book

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f We i -W ffffff ffffinf f f Jef ff 'Muna W A 4 W3 f ff 'Xfffff OW Wfyf ffffffffff f fff K ffyff XXX!!! !fOf X! M! f X X if f4Oeaf7Z96fZfeZ,aWW f X X X eff fffi f 4.40 4 ff 1 I W 'T fp ' ,f,, f i lf, f A f s We iff' lf x 1 its , f'e, 1 , 2 And the end is here. The last strike clouds the horizon, low on the water. The arresting gear gang man their sta- tions along the catwalks and all eyes turn in the direction of the faint hum that will soon encircle the ship. The Mhot papa peers out through the glass in his asbestos suit at the approaching aircraft and prays that he wongt have to go to work. For the last time, the landing circle becomes a merry- go-round. The LSO wields his paddles expertly, and more than his paddles-his shoulders, the slant of his hips, even the corners of his mouth-pulling down a high right wing or a tilted nose, drawing the pilot into the groove, then giving him the cut. Every second, from the time the plane settles in over the wake till the moment it jerks to a halt- hook and cable taut-is tough and tight and almost sick- eningly tense. But it works, nearly all the time it works quite beautifully, and from the hanging helicopter the husiness of stopping seven-and-a-.half tons of streamlined steel hurtling in at one hundred and ten knots on that speck in the sea seems rather easy. It,s hard for death to seem so easy. ' 2 ff ft-if, Q55 ' Sze 1 iff? 'V 'v'v'Q! X3 X X X X ,gf -ag 5 .

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In a few moments tbe sky is empty. Tbe LSO leaves bis tiny platform and tbe pilots collapse into tbe ready rooms. But tbe bugler will not blow secure for a wbile yet. Planes bave to be taken below or spotted above and tbe tractors and elevators are very mnela in business. Tbe dayas last job of tying down the planes bas to be completed. Urgent repair jobs cannot be ignored eitber. Reveille tbat morning was at 0330, but wbo can even remember tbat far back now. In a little wbile tbe war really ends when tbe longed for bzzgle notes bring Fligbt Quarters to a close. A card game springs up. In Hangar Bay 1 the working division rigs for movies. Tbe crowd assembles swiftly, a crowd tired but not unbappy, a crowd bopeful but not too optimistic about tbe quality of Hollyw0od's oyfering. Elsewbere tbe talkers and readers enjoy tbemselves and tbe very tired find tbeir banks as sweet as tbey were sure tbey would be. s Q -. N ki l S R f .. - h . I N X' X if-JFS. -rs: s- wa 1:-Ye? if gi 'Q SI .X