Forrestal Class Carrier

[gray eagle]

I'm against any static aircraft. CAG composition differed from cruise to cruise and I don't want to have the deck littered with Bugs and Turkeys if I'm about to have USS Zippo lurk around in the Gulf of Tonkin.

Well, I disagree. It didn't stop Team SDB from adding Cag A/C to the Enterprise now did it??? And people bought into it. I did for one.
Why all the negative attitude (Bah Humbug) towards CAG aircraft. It adds some ambiance and a realism effect to it all.

FYI, I was there in July 1967 and witnessed USS Zippo burn, her "bugs and turkeys" burned too. I was on the USS Bon Homme Richard when we had just loaded/launched the last sortie to North Viet-Nam to conclude our nine month cruise. Suddenly, we start chugging full steam toward the FID to assist here. She was to be our relief but "Big Navy" had to find another carrier to relieve us so we could go home to the USA to be with our families. Ironically, The USS Zippo was the last ship (Sea duty) I was assigned to.

 

[DaveB]

Not that it matters much but SDB's Enterprise comes in two time periods and with either clear deck or parked aircraft in both

ATB
DaveB

 

[gray eagle]

Not that it matters much but SDB's Enterprise comes in two time periods and with either clear deck or parked aircraft in both

ATB
DaveB

And the Nimitz and IKE the same. I guess they offer a choice that will cover all situations.
As a comparison, some land base sceneries offer the company of other aircraft or none at all to just AI's coming and going.
A stark flight deck void of airplanes er... "bugs and turkeys" as someone curtly described, only portrays half of the real purpose of
an aircraft carrier. I can go either way however, sooner or later a pilot landing on a carrier will have company (Bugs and Turkeys on board).
It happens during carquals (Carrier qualifications) or on a deployment. That is just the way it rolls in the real world.

 

[DaveB]

Yup.. it's certainly nice to have the option. Much depends on the deck models though. The Flying Stations Ark Royal IV (for example) only has a parked deck option in FSX (it had both in FS9). Sadly.. the poor girl shows her age now but would look less dated if the parked aircraft were gone. This goes for land based statics too. Models without ground shadows look so naff these days but folk still shove them out. Looking at screenies of SDB's latest release (Whiteman AFB), there are a lot of these in evidence. It just doesn't work for me

Anyhoo.. yup.. having a choice is desirable but if the only choice is with parked models.. having none at all is often better

ATB
DaveB

 

[WombRaider78]

Perhaps Gary could modify my package, or allow me to "borrow" his statics from his awesome Midway carrier.

 

[ejoiner]

Perhaps Gary could modify my package, or allow me to "borrow" his statics from his awesome Midway carrier.

THat would be cool. regardless of period, it is more realistic to have some aircraft on deck than NO aircraft on deck, so I would love to see some statics. My pref would be late 60's or early 70's either late vietnam or just post vietnam.

 

[gray eagle]

THat would be cool. regardless of period, it is more realistic to have some aircraft on deck than NO aircraft on deck, so I would love to see some statics. My pref would be late 60's or early 70's either late vietnam or just post vietnam.

My idea of post vietnam would be late 70's to early 80's

CVW 17 (81 Cruise)

Embarked squadrons:

Tail code AA
VMFA-115 (F-4J)
VF-74 (F-4J)
VA-83 (A-7E)
VA-81 (A-7E)
VA-85 (A-6E and KA-6D)
VAQ-130 (EA-6B)
VAW-125 (E-2C)
VS-30 (S-3A)
HS-3 (SH-3H)

Here is a link to all deployments schedules and all embarked squadrons for USS Forrestal.

http://navysite.de/cvn/cv59deploy.htm

 

[ejoiner]

My idea of post vietnam would be late 70's to early 80's

CVW 17 (81 Cruise)

Embarked squadrons:

Tail code AA
VMFA-115 (F-4J)
VF-74 (F-4J)
VA-83 (A-7E)
VA-81 (A-7E)
VA-85 (A-6E and KA-6D)
VAQ-130 (EA-6B)
VAW-125 (E-2C)
VS-30 (S-3A)
HS-3 (SH-3H)

Here is a link to all deployments schedules and all embarked squadrons for USS Forrestal.

http://navysite.de/cvn/cv59deploy.htm

I'd be cool with that. MY only missing want would be A-4's but thats earlier period.

 

[Navy Chief]

Have to echo the sentiments of preferring a static aircraft-filled deck vs an empty one. After all, it is simulation, and the mere presence of those birds on deck really adds to the whole experience. I too, really like the deck configuration with 70s era aircraft. So awesome!

With the right settings, i.e. dark room, sound, EZDok, TrackIR, etc.... it's easy to imagine being back on the flight deck again. NC

 

[expat]

I'd be cool with that. MY only missing want would be A-4's but thats earlier period.

This is the problem with statics on deck. Everyone likes slightly different configs. AND, if you are like me with a short attention span, I like to change aircraft and periods frequently, and then for example you have A-7's mixed with A-4's (not realistic) or F3H Demon's with Phantoms, etc. I don't mind an empty deck for moving AI carriers as I am happy/relieved to do good traps - crash detection is always on - and then cat off again for more traps. I can suspend my imagination that there are parked a/c on deck.

On the other hand, I also have static carriers (AS Big E ported) including some bgl scenery I made with ADE using the Oriskany and Midway positioned on Yankee Station which you can then set up with AI parked and doing TNG's that are correct for the time period and boat assignments, etc. Between this and the other moving cv's on carrier tracks the whole environment offers good immersion.

 

[Bjoern]

Why all the negative attitude (Bah Humbug) towards CAG aircraft. It adds some ambiance and a realism effect to it all.

Because it's much more work for the modeler and opens yet another can of worms. ("That CAG composition is incorrect!" "I want a configuration from cruise xy!" "Why no separate landing and takeoff configurations?", etc blah blah...)

FYI, I was there in July 1967 and witnessed USS Zippo burn, her "bugs and turkeys" burned too. I was on the USS Bon Homme Richard when we had just loaded/launched the last sortie to North Viet-Nam to conclude our nine month cruise. Suddenly, we start chugging full steam toward the FID to assist here. She was to be our relief but "Big Navy" had to find another carrier to relieve us so we could go home to the USA to be with our families. Ironically, The USS Zippo was the last ship (Sea duty) I was assigned to.

Must've been a sight to behold. How much longer did you have to stay on station to make up for the unavailable carrier?

No Bugs and Turkeys on deck at that time. Probably mostly Rhinos, Scooters and Whales. (With the odd whatevertheRA-5wascalled thrown in.)

 

[ejoiner]

Because it's much more work for the modeler and opens yet another can of worms. ("That CAG composition is incorrect!" "I want a configuration from cruise xy!" "Why no separate landing and takeoff configurations?", etc blah blah...)



Must've been a sight to behold. How much longer did you have to stay on station to make up for the unavailable carrier?

No Bugs and Turkeys on deck at that time. Probably mostly Rhinos, Scooters and Whales. (With the odd whatevertheRA-5wascalled thrown in.)

Since I was unfamiliar with the terms "USS Zippo" and "FID" i did a wiki search on the Forrestal. The wikipedia entry for CV-59 is very interesting reading. its too bad this carrier wasnt preserved as a museum or at least, like Oriskany, made into a reef, though I see both were considered or attempted unsuccessfully.

 

[WombRaider78]

I would like to do some deck configurations on each ship. If anything, just generic period-era aircraft. Finding low poly models to use would be my only hurdle. Again, perhaps Gary can let me have access to his statics. Modeling a ship was a pain in the ass enough. I cannot fathom the work it takes to model a plane.

I am glad that folks are enjoying my work.

 

[gray eagle]

Since I was unfamiliar with the terms "USS Zippo" and "FID" i did a wiki search on the Forrestal. The wikipedia entry for CV-59 is very interesting reading. its too bad this carrier wasnt preserved as a museum or at least, like Oriskany, made into a reef, though I see both were considered or attempted unsuccessfully.

The ship was affectionately called "The FID", because James Forrestal was the first ever Secretary of Defense, FID standing for "First In Defense". This is also the slogan on the ship's insignia and patch. She was also informally known in the fleet as the "USS Zippo" and "Forest Fire" or "Firestal" because of a number of highly publicized fires on board, most notably a 1967 incident in which 134 sailors died and an additional 161 were injured.

The term FID used for the Forrestal was also coined to mean First in Drugs; I remember there being a serious drug issue when I was there.
The ships security teams (Master at Arms) used drug sniffing dogs thru out the ship, especially in the berthing compartments.
When the ship was anchored at various ports of call, I remember taking a returning liberty boat and would have to climb ladders rigged from the fantail section.
There at the base of the ladder well were trash cans (last chance) for those to dispose of illegal drugs. That idea proved to be worthless as it did not stop
the drug issue. FYI, all the ladders on the ship were inclined at 68 degrees.

 

[gray eagle]

I would like to do some deck configurations on each ship. If anything, just generic period-era aircraft. Finding low poly models to use would be my only hurdle. Again, perhaps Gary can let me have access to his statics. Modeling a ship was a pain in the ass enough. I cannot fathom the work it takes to model a plane.

I am glad that folks are enjoying my work.

I know I am, and really appreciate what you do.

What ever period aircraft you decide to use will be appreciated. Naturally, I hope you decide to put a few aircraft from the 79-81 era.

I can always "Borrow" the helo (SH-3) that is used with the Big E (Plane guard) and marry that up with the FID.

 

[gray eagle]

Plane guard on the FID

At last, a little "Company" on the FID.

 

[WombRaider78]

At last, a little "Company" on the FID.

Nice shots.

 

[Bjoern]

I would like to do some deck configurations on each ship. If anything, just generic period-era aircraft. Finding low poly models to use would be my only hurdle. Again, perhaps Gary can let me have access to his statics. Modeling a ship was a pain in the ass enough. I cannot fathom the work it takes to model a plane.

Search on Flightsim for "Guy Diotte". I've found a SLUF (A-7), Hump Scooter (Late A-4), Hoover (S-3B), Sterile Arrow (EA-6) and a Rhino (F-4). Put those you want in a .bgl library and attach them to the deck like you did with the default vehicles.
Might need a bit of paint to reflect the proper operator, but you can leave that to those who want their deck crowded.

The term FID used for the Forrestal was also coined to mean First in Drugs; I remember there being a serious drug issue when I was there.
The ships security teams (Master at Arms) used drug sniffing dogs thru out the ship, especially in the berthing compartments.
When the ship was anchored at various ports of call, I remember taking a returning liberty boat and would have to climb ladders rigged from the fantail section.
There at the base of the ladder well were trash cans (last chance) for those to dispose of illegal drugs. That idea proved to be worthless as it did not stop
the drug issue. FYI, all the ladders on the ship were inclined at 68 degrees.

So what was the drug of the day back then? Opium and MJ?

 

[gp183601]

Perhaps Gary could modify my package, or allow me to "borrow" his statics from his awesome Midway carrier.

Catching up on some of the threads here and noticed this request. I'm working on an RN vessel at the moment (posting pics on flying stations), and a revamped Essex class so I probably don't have time to modify your carrier....besides you're doing a cracking job.

Providing statics however...no problem. Happy to package up my Tilly crane and flight deck tractors for you to use. Can also pass you the F-4 and A-7. Tried to optimise the aircraft as best as I can but they are frame rate heavy when added in large numbers so I would advise experimenting with deck configurations.

I'm currently working away from home at the moment so I haven't got access to the files. Drop me a PM to let me know where you want the statics sent and if you're okay with the wait I'll send them this weekend.

Do you want the statics in .skp format so you can add them to the build?

All the Best
Gary

 

[WombRaider78]

Catching up on some of the threads here and noticed this request. I'm working on an RN vessel at the moment (posting pics on flying stations), and a revamped Essex class so I probably don't have time to modify your carrier....besides you're doing a cracking job.

Providing statics however...no problem. Happy to package up my Tilly crane and flight deck tractors for you to use. Can also pass you the F-4 and A-7. Tried to optimise the aircraft as best as I can but they are frame rate heavy when added in large numbers so I would advise experimenting with deck configurations.

I'm currently working away from home at the moment so I haven't got access to the files. Drop me a PM to let me know where you want the statics sent and if you're okay with the wait I'll send them this weekend.

Do you want the statics in .skp format so you can add them to the build?

All the Best
Gary

That would be awesome Gary. I can take the .skp for the statics. I will PM you this weekend.

Thanks
Raider