AIAA LA-LV 2018 February Dinner Meeting

Carrier Suitability Testing

by

CDR Robert A. Johnson

USN (Retired)

The Topic

Carrier Suitability Testing

From 1969-1972, a small cadre of test pilots, engineers, and support personnel conducted ALL US Navy carrier suitability testing (CV Suit) of aircraft, aircraft systems and carrier catapults, arresting gear, optical and electronic landing aids. This was during the transition from bridle and pendant launches to nose tow, the introduction of Approach Power Compensation (auto throttle) and Automatic Carrier Landing Systems (ACLS).
 
Please join us to learn more about this important and game-changing transition.

• Learn from one with amazing records & experiences in this important transition
• Learn more about the testing, which included the EA-6B Initial Sea Trials, A-4M and AV-8B testing
• Learn more about the time during the Viet Nam war when testing to meet the needs of the fleet was at an all time high
• Appreciate the CV Suit pilots, all flying up to 50 hours per month in up to seven different types of aircraft and testing aircraft and carriers on opposite coasts every other month
• Understand more about the structural demonstrations ("Shake, Rattle and Roll") at the local catapult and arresting gear site in all operational fleet aircraft on a daily basis
• Listen to the real-life stories behind the testing and transition
• Network with the speaker, aerospace professionals, educators, enthusiasts, business professionals, and other attendees

The Speaker

CDR Robert A. Johnson

USN-Retired 

Commander Robert A. Johnson (USN, Retired) attended the University of Wisconsin on an NROTC Scholarship in 1952. In 1957 he graduated with a BS in Civil Engineering, a BS in Naval Science and a Commission in the US Navy. He went to Pensacola, Florida for flight training and received his wings at Beeville, Texas in 1958. He made two Cold War cruises to the Western Pacific flying the A-3D Skywarrior nuclear bomber, the largest aircraft to ever operate from an aircraft carrier. He received an MS in Aeronautical Engineering from the US Naval Post Graduate School in 1965. He next made two combat cruises flying the RA-5C Vigilante reconnaissance aircraft over North Viet Nam. After attending the US Naval Test Pilot School, Class 53, he was assigned to Carrier Suitability Branch as a test pilot and later became Branch Head.
 
As a carrier suitability test pilot he flew experimental test flights in seven different types of aircraft from aircraft carriers including making a record 50 arrested landings in a C-2A in one day on the USS Kitty Hawk. He also participated in carrier certification trials following yard rework. Tests included catapults, arresting gear, visual landing systems and Automatic Carrier Landing Systems (ACLS). Next he became the Commanding Officer of RVAH-7 again flying the RA-5C Vigilante and made a cruise to the Indian Ocean. In 1975 he became the 18th Director of the US Naval Test Pilot School, a junior Commander in a senior Captain’s billet, the most junior ever up to that time. He retired in August 1977 and became Head of International Marketing for the new F/A-18 Hornet for McDonnell Aircraft in Saint Louis, Missouri. In 1979 he joined Northrop Corporation and became Head of Marketing for the B-2 Bomber when they won that contract. Bob retired from Northrop in 1989 and started a General Contracting company in Palos Verdes Estates, California. He is a Member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and the Golden Eagles.