I was just wondering what the heck the arresting hooks on Air Force aircraft are used for? ( F-16's , F-15's ) Could they "trap" aboard a carrier if they had to in an emergency just to salvage the aircraft?

"Tailhooks on USAF aircraft do NOT indicate a carrier-landing capability!

The purpose of these tailhooks is to help stop the aircraft in the event of brake failure, or some similar accident leading to a runway overrun. Just past the end of many military runways, you'll find an arrester cable strung across the field. The cable (unlike those on aircraft carriers) isn't attached to anything firm; instead, each end is linked to a long chain, which just drags on the ground. The idea is to slow the aircraft down in a reasonable distance; the tailhooks on Air Force fighters are smaller and weaker than the superficially similar hooks on Navy planes.

The inevitable next question, "Does this mean Air Force planes could land on a carrier in an emergency?", has been discussed at great length. It has been conclusively established that, no, an Air Force fighter could never land on a carrier because, first, its landing gear is likely to break in the much heavier touchdown required for carrier landings; second, even if it could get on the deck in one piece, the weaker Air Force tailhook would break when it caught the Navy arrester cable; and third, even if the aircraft was physically capable of it, Air Force pilots aren't trained in the highly specialised and difficult art of carrier landings.

It has been pointed out that, if the USAF thought there was even the slightest chance of ever being able to save one of its planes by landing it on a carrier, it would have been tested on the mock carrier deck at Patuxent River; the fact that this has never been tried is pretty solid evidence that the Air Force engineers (who would presumably know) are certain it can't be done."

Was that true of the F4 Phantom II? Did the USAF Phantoms have a lesser landing gear and other support structure than the USN ones?

The first Phantoms (F-4C's) assigned to the Air Force were part of the production run for the Navy and had "real" arresting hooks.

Thank you! I was always curious about that. I've seen the cables you mentioned on the end of the runway on Kadena, Okinawa and now it makes perfect sense.

I also remember reading that the landing gears them selves are sometimes too weak to withstand the forces of a carrier landing. I think I read that is the reason the Marines went with the F-18 and not the F-16. Might have to research that though.
-Dan

The air force phantoms had the same gear and arresting hook but no launch hooks. They also had beefier brakes.
Jim

It is quite the site to see, when they have to use that system. All outgoing traffic is stopped short of the runway and all inbound traffic goes into the holding pattern. Crash crew come out and wait on the taxiways near the end of the runway, but clear of it. The a/c approaches with hook down(as in a carrier landing). After a safe landing the crew exits the a/c, it is then towed to the ramp. I was lucky enough(?) to see it a couple of times.

The F.6 (only) Lightning had a tailhook, too. It was there in case the braking parachute failed, when the a/c was carrying the overwing ferry tanks. Because of the thin wheels, there was not enough meat, on the brake shoes, to stop the a/c, before the brakes failed.
Edgar

I have heard that the arrester hooks are also to be used in the case highways have to be used as runways. Fx. if the airports/runwys have been bombed.

I read about a system that can place arrester cables across a highway and limit the airplanes landing distance. However, it is not as powerfull as the system used on aircraft carriers.

Whether this system has been used in operation and still exist I do not know. Anybody heard about that and can bring me up to date?

What your refering to is called the E-28 arresting gear engine. You can see these things at the ends of runways of all naval air stations, and I think air force bases have it too. It replaced the sections of anchor chain connected to an arrestor wire(crude but effective).

While I don't know if such a system exists for highway use(in may will exists), highways in most European countries were designed to be used as runways in time of war(Sweden, Swizterland, Gremany, etc.). I would not be suprised if our interstate system also incorperated that design. You must rememeber that the spec's for them was issued by the Federal Government. and large portions, especially in the midwest, west and southwest have long, striaght unobscurected sections and could be used as runways, also all major airports in the US can also be used.

I worked on F-106's and F-4's in the USAF in the '80's....they both had arresting hooks. The F-4, I suppose because it began life as a USN project had the more substantial tail hook set up. A lot of the current inventory in the US [auto-censored]nal have tail hooks...we understand the USN part of the deal but the USAF reasoning I think comes down to trying to salvage as much out of a bad situation as they can.
My second and last 4 year hitch in Uncle Sam's Air Farce was spent in the control tower telling pilots where to go and how to get there, and I saw my share of F-15's catching the cable. Interestingly enough none of the traps where under adverse conditions but rather periodic checks on the arresting equipment at the airport.
I currently work as an FAA controller at a joint use civilian/military airport and we have a standing policy to raise the retractable cable for fighter ops, both for departures and landings....just in case something goes amiss.
Hoss

....also forgot to chime in concerning arresting gear off airport. Know for a fact at least one USAFE base had equipment set up just outside the base on a highway for use in case airfield was attacked and runway cratered. I am sure in the event we in the US of A had need for such a scenario there is portable equipment available to set up along those long straightaways along our national interstate system.
Hoss

The tail hooks also come in handy for a place to hook up a hold back cable for engine maintenance and high power runs.