Suspended cable runway for airplane takeoff and landing - GIFs and video

[Jon]

Suspended cable "runway" for airplane takeoff and landing. This is an L-4 Grasshopper (military version of the Piper J-3 Cub).

Takeoff:




Landing (minus the "land" part, of course):



23:04 video from the US National Archives:

Previously:

Operation Credible Sport: C-130s modified with rockets for hostage rescue
airplane short takeoff/landing records
Microburst causes planes to takeoff by themselves - video
bird strike through windshield of Cessna 210
Helicopter lands on ship in rough seas
Tiger Moth biplane hits cow on landing
Tree-assisted plane landing - GIF
1963 video of USS Enterprise, the first nuclear aircraft carrier
Parallel parking a fighter jet on an aircraft carrier - GIF
Harrier jump jet lands on a stool - GIF and video
Perfect belly landing in 1966 Piper PA30 - GIF
C-5 Galaxy landing gear - video

[ranald]

Wow! With such ingenuity & trial and fixing errors, it is not surprising how the US army, these days, can set up a whole base, complete with toiletry, bathing& operational kitchens in a couple of days: all done in virgin bushland. The thought, design & construction is so thorough. It doesn't show the clearing of tracks for the running of cables so I guess they used cane knives=a job in itself.
I had wondered how the setup prevented the prop from fouling the cables but it was worth watchingthe whole film to see how it was done: a forerunner of aircraft carrier tech I presume.

Cheers

[PJs]

That OSS training/sales pitch video was off the Chart Jon. The idea of plywood tube posts on the earlier proto...wow! Good thing that J-3 has enough lift and low stall speed!

Thanks Much!