Modern aircraft carriers are impressive warships
that play a key role in global military operations. Although they are not particularly well-suited
for combat on their own, they are invaluable assets because they serve as mobile airbases
that can be deployed just about anywhere around the globe. There are approximately 50 aircraft carriers
currently in service around the world, and they are owned by 14 individual countries. Incredibly, the United States Navy owns 24
of them, which is nearly half of the global total. 11 of the American aircraft carriers also
belong to a special class of supercarriers, each with a price tag of more than 10 billion
US dollars accounting for inflation. These nuclear-powered supercarriers exceed
330 m in length and 75 m in width, and they tower more than 20 storeys above the ocean
surface. Each ship can carry more than 75 aircraft
between the flight deck and interior hangar, and the total weight of each ship exceeds
90,000 metric tons when fully loaded. Despite their astonishing size, even the of
largest supercarriers do not have flight decks that are long enough for planes to take off
and land under their own power alone. This has been a fundamental problem since
the very first aircraft carriers were commissioned in the early 1900’s, and it led to the development
of assisted takeoff and arrested recovery systems. Prior to World War II, the United States and
other countries experimented with a number of systems that utilized technologies such
as gunpowder, flywheels, gravity, and hydraulics. Up until the end of World War II, the hydraulic
systems were most common on aircraft carriers, but this changed in the 1950’s when the
Royal Navy introduced the first steam-powered aircraft catapults. Steam catapults quickly became the method
of choice for assisted takeoffs, while hydraulic systems remained in use for arrested landings,
and these systems are still widely used today. The 10 Nimitz-class supercarriers of the United
States Navy are all equipped with these systems, although the Navy does have plans to replace
this fleet with a new class of carriers that will use electromagnetic catapults. The first ship of this class is the Gerald
R. Ford, which was commissioned in 2017 following heavy criticism of the new electromagnetic
system, which has been reported to have a probability of critical failure that is 9
times greater than the traditional steam-powered system. The United States and other countries have
also adopted alternatives to assisted takeoff and arrested recovery such as ski jumps and
short takeoff and vertical landing aircraft like the Harrier jet. Nonetheless, this particular video is going
to focus on the engineering behind the steam catapults and hydraulic arresting systems
that are used on the American Nimitz-class aircraft carriers. The flight deck on each of these ships is
equipped with four 100 m long catapults. 2 are located at the front, or bow, of the
ship, and 2 are located on the left, or port, side of the ship. The 2 catapults on the port side cross an
angled landing runway, which spans from the back, or stern, of the ship all the way to
the front of the port side. The runway is angled like this so that pilots
can abort a landing and take off again without running the risk of crashing into planes and
personnel at the front of the ship. Each catapult is powered by steam generated
by the two nuclear reactors that power the carrier. Prior to a launch, the steam is collected
under high pressure in a large accumulator tank that is located underneath the catapult. The pressure inside the accumulator is monitored
by the catapult officer as it is filled, and a flow control valve is closed once the desired
pressure is reached. The catapult officer is commonly referred
to as a shooter, and they operate the catapults from a small control pod that protrudes above
the flight deck. The steam pressure that is required for each
launch depends on the weight of the aircraft, and the maximum operating pressure is around
3.2 MPa or 465 psi. As the accumulator is being pressurized, an
aircraft is positioned at the beginning of the catapult and a jet blast deflector is
raised behind the aircraft by hydraulic actuators to protect equipment and personnel from the
jet blast. A tow bar on the nose gear of the aircraft
is connected to a shuttle that protrudes through a slot in the flight deck, and a metal bar
called a holdback is secured to the back of the nose gear to hold the aircraft in place
until the catapult is fired. The shuttle is attached to 2 spear-shaped
pistons that run inside parallel steel cylinders with open slots in the top. These cylinders are positioned just below
the flight deck in a long trench, and they run the entire length of the catapult. Flexible strips are used to seal the open
slots in the cylinders to prevent steam from escaping, and the shuttle assembly simply
bends the strips out of the way as it travels down the length of the catapult. The shuttle assembly is also fitted with wheels
that run in a track between the cylinders and the underside of the flight deck. Just behind the shuttle, there is a mechanical
device called a grab that travels along the same track. This grab can be moved along the track by
a hydraulic cylinder and a system of cables, and it is used to retrieve the shuttle from
the end of the catapult following a successful launch. After the aircraft is connected to the shuttle,
a hydraulic tensioner is used to push the grab forward slightly, which in turn pushes
the shuttle and moves the aircraft forward in order to eliminate any slack in the system. When the pilot is ready for takeoff, they
throttle their engines to full power, however the holdback initially prevents the aircraft
from moving forward. As soon as the catapult is fired by the shooter,
a launch valve in the accumulator is opened, and the steam surges into the two cylinders. The force from the steam pushes the pistons
forward with enough force to break the holdback, and the shuttle accelerates the aircraft forward
towards the bow of the ship. The catapult is capable of launching a 20
metric ton aircraft from 0 to 265 km/hr in just 2 seconds, while the pilot experiences
nearly 4 g’s. For reference, this is more than twice the
acceleration that you would experience on the world’s fastest roller coaster, Formula
Rossa at Ferrari World. To accomplish this, the catapult needs to
exert around 750 kN, or just under 170,000 lbs of force. At the end of the catapult, the spear-shaped
pistons plunge into a water brake that consists of water-filled cylinders, which brings the
pistons and shuttle assembly to a stop. This also triggers a sensor which closes the
accumulator launch valve and opens an exhaust valve to release the spent steam. The grab is then moved to the end of the catapult
by the hydraulic system, where it latches to the shuttle and pulls it back to the starting
position. This marks the completion of a single launch
cycle, and the next aircraft can be moved into position to start the whole process over
again. At peak operating efficiency, the flight deck
crew can launch two aircraft every 40 seconds using the 4 catapults onboard. Although the mechanical systems of the aircraft
catapults are quite complex, the takeoff procedure is relatively simple from the perspective
of the pilot. Landing a plane back on the flight deck, on
the other hand, is far more difficult and requires a great amount of skill from the
pilot. There are 3 to 4 steel cables called arresting
wires that span the width of the landing runway at the stern of the ship, and the pilot must
catch one of these cables using a tail hook that is deployed from the rear of the aircraft. It is necessary for the aircraft to approach
the runway at a precise angle in order to accomplish this, and so an optical guidance
system is used to help guide the pilots in for landing. The guidance system is comprised of many lights
and lenses that are mounted adjacent to the runway, and the pilot will see different colors
and patterns depending on the angle of their trajectory as they approach the ship. As soon as the aircraft touches down, the
pilot throttles the engines to full power as a precaution in case they were not able
to catch one of the arresting wires. If they miss the cables, then the aircraft
needs to gain enough speed to takeoff again since the landing strip is too short for aircraft
to stop under their own power. If the pilot is successful in catching one
of the cables, then the kinetic energy of the aircraft is absorbed by a hydraulic system
that is located beneath the runway, which brings the plane to a stop. The end of each arresting wire is attached
to a steel cable and pulley system that wraps around a hydraulic cylinder. As the cables are drawn out by the landing
aircraft, the hydraulic cylinders are compressed, which forces hydraulic fluid out of the cylinders
and into two piston accumulators. The pressure inside the accumulators increases
as they are filled, reaching a peak pressure of about 4.5 MPa, or 650 psi, just before
the aircraft is brought to a complete stop. Once the aircraft is detached from the arresting
wire, the hydraulic fluid is released back into the cylinders, which causes them to extend
and retract the wire. This system is capable of stopping an aircraft
travelling at 240 km/h in just 2 seconds over a distance of about 100 m. The aircraft catapults and arresting systems
on modern aircraft carriers employ some impressive engineering to make these giant floating airbases
possible. Without the ability to launch and land planes
on a confined flight deck, warships like the Nimitz-class supercarriers simply wouldn’t
be feasible. These incredible ships are among the largest
and most complex vehicles ever built, and they are sure to remain as some of the greatest
military assets that United States has at their disposal for many years to come. If you enjoyed this video and you have a passion
for learning, then I highly recommend that you check out Skillshare. Skillshare is a community-based learning platform
with more than 27,000 online classes, and as an Art of Engineering viewer, you get your
first month completely free with unlimited access to the entire library. Whether you want to sharpen your photography
skills, learn a new programming language, or find out how to invest in the stock market,
you are guaranteed to find high-quality courses that suit your interests. I have always had a passion for music production,
myself, and I am currently taking several courses to improve my understanding of music
theory so I can create better compositions. Other online learning resources often require
you to purchase individual courses, sometimes for hundreds of dollars each, but with Skillshare
you get unlimited access to thousands of courses for only $8.25 per month. Begin your free 1-month trial today using
the link below, and start learning a new skill with Skillshare. Don’t forget to subscribe if you want to
see more engineering videos from this channel, and please consider supporting me on Patreon
where you can get early access to videos and other content. As always, thanks for watching, and I’ll
see you in the next one.
The main reason the landing runway is angled is so that if an aborted landing ends up with the plane falling overboard, it doesn't get run over by the ship.
The steam used is secondary steam. This video is misleading, because the reactors themselves do not generate steam. They heat up pressurized water (primary coolant) which in turn heats up the secondary water into steam (which is used to power almost everything in the ship, including the propulsion system).
Source: I was stationed aboard the USS Carl Vinson, first as a Nuclear Machinist's Mate, then as part of the catapult support crew.