European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 18, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                On Board the Forrestal cats traps i be never had any experience that comes close to a night trap on a  it. Max Qualland other challenges by j. King Cruger Mediterranean Bureau no Moon. No stars. No horizon. Nothing but a dimly lighted aircraft Carrier rocking and rolling on the Black Ocean. Carrier pilots Call them varsity nights. They hate and fear them. Landing a Jet in Broad Daylight at 150 to 160 knots on a rolling and pitching deck makes the old ticker go quicker but doing it on a varsity night in wind and rain touches on terror. A a in be never had any experience that comes close to a night trap on a Carrier. At night you just want to get aboard safely and not scare yourself and anybody watching you Quot says it. Jim a Max Quot Qualls an f-14 Pilot from Lavonia Mich. A there is no better feeling than Landing and feeling the tug of the wire stopping  naval aviators count their careers in cats and traps. Cats Are catapult assisted takeoffs. Traps Are Carrier landings. Quot the worst thing is to come Back at night with no Moon no horizon no depth perception Quot says it. Chris Greene another tomcat Pilot. Quot you can to reference where your wings Are. It s very difficult to keep your wings level because you have no visual  the f-14, big heavy and with poor initial engine response is said to be one of the most difficult aircraft to land aboard a Carrier. Pilots routinely Fly one or two missions per Day. Qualls 29, and Greene 26, each have 100 traps with roughly 40 each at night. Both Are members of fighter so 31 aboard the Carrier Forrestal. It. Cmdr. Tom Reitmeyer 38, is one of their Squadron s Graybeard. Reitmeyer a radar intercept officer flies in the Back seat of the $40 million tomcat. The Pittsburgh Sailor has had 600 traps 200 of them at night. Quot it s not like on land where there Are Street lights and things to give you visual clues Quot Reitmeyer says. Quot there is just that Black Ocean and Black  Quot the Challenge is for your concentration to overcome your anxiety Quot says Greene who comes from Cincinnati. A a it a always pretty frightening. If the Moon is out it is not so bad. After you have landed taxied and shut Down on a pitch Black night you can feel your stomach really stir and your legs  Quot you get used to doing it but you never take it for granted. It is never the same. It is never routine Quot Qualls adds. Quot even the old Guys with hundreds and hundreds of traps Don t like going out on varsity nights Quot Greene concludes. The three live on the Forrestal with almost 5,000 men and More than 80 aircraft. The Forrestal now on a six month Mediterranean deployment was commissioned in 1955 As America s first super Carrier. The 1,039-foot Carrier was the first built with an angled flight deck which allows simultaneous takeoffs and landings. The Cost of building a new Carrier is More than $3 4 billion not counting the Cost of its air Wing. Quot it s really amazing when you consider that we take an asset really a National asset something the size continued on Page 14 sunday March 18, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 13