Take a look at these remarkable scenes of 1930s aircraft carrier operations aboard the USS Ranger, CV-4. U.S. carrier aviation did not just appear in time for World War II; it was a deliberately fostered methodology of the U.S. Navy since the 1920s.
USS Ranger was the first purpose-built U.S. Navy aircraft carrier. Previous American carriers were converted from other types of hulls. Ranger was in commission from 1934 to 1946. The craggy officer in some of the scenes is John S. McCain, Sr. In 1935, he became a naval aviator at age 52, one of the oldest men to achieve that status. McCain commanded USS Ranger from 1937 to 1939, providing a window of time for these undated films.
The main aircraft on the deck of Ranger are Vought SBU scout bomber biplanes, the first scout bomber to beat 200 miles per hour. One of the opening scenes shows a practice unknown to us landlubbers -- hosing off the anchor of the USS Ranger as it is hoisted from the sea bed. And watch for a pre-war high-wheeled tractor tug vehicle used to test arresting cables on deck. Sailors raise a signal flag from a flag repository on the Ranger. A caption sheet with the film says the vertical planks ahead of the parked aircraft are crash barriers. When engines are started on the SBUs, it is with the use of hand cranks and inertia starters. The film is a fascinating textbook of pre-war carrier operations. The early service of carriers like Ranger provided experience to evolve the fleet to meet the needs of World War II in the following decade.
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24 окт 2024