Printable View
Okay,
The question is weird but I think it is something us enthusiasts have all thought about at one point. Could General Aviation aircraft be launched from a boat. A civilian aircraft carrier. The military was done this for decades. A floating airport where people (who are specially equipped) could land and refuel an then continue on their journey. Obviously, the costs would be out of this world and prohibitive. Anyone think though that this could be a good idea.
Many uber-rich people with large yachts have helipads in the rear!!
I think there's a video floating around of an ultralight-type landing and taking off from the deck of a containership in high winds. Not the safest thing I've seen.
I assume you're talking about a scenario where a ship or barge is placed out in the ocean so, for example, someone could hop from ship to ship and fly a Cessna to Hawaii. While theoretically it would work, given the right equipment, training, and budget, I don't think it would be a realistic solution. First, the cost for the ships would be prohibitive. More importantly, getting the average general aviation pilot qualified and keeping him or her current enough with shipboard landings to be safe would be the problem. I'm not saying a GA pilot couldn't do it (I came up through general aviation myself), but getting the opportunity to do it often enough to maintain the required level of currency just would not happen. The problem is not landing on the deck in nice, flat, calm water--the problem is when the deck is pitching and rolling and/or the weather is lousy. Or night time. I would be interested to see the opinions of any Navy guys who have landed on a carrier...Quote:
Originally Posted by Simpilot17
BTW--small general aviation planes crossing oceans in not uncommon. A couple of years ago I was flying from Honolulu to San Francisco and talked on the radio with a lady who was ferrying a Cirrus from California to Singapore. It was just her and a ferry tank with 160 gallons of avgas in the cabin. Not a job for a chain-smoker... I got her N number and looked her up on Flight Aware; it took her 15 hours to get from Santa Maria, CA to Hilo, Hawaii.