San Diego - USS Midway

On our third day in San Diego, it was dad's turn to be a kid in a candy shop. A giant, 64,000 tonne candy shop where the candy is actually bomber planes and heavy artillery. Hoorah!

But first, there was something mission critical to attend to: breakfast. We went to the famed Richard Walker Pancake House. LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THESE PANCAKES!!!

LOOK AT IT!!

Stuffed to the brim, we waddled off to tour the USS Midway, a massive aircraft carrier turned naval history museum. Commissioned a week after the end of World War II, Midway was the largest ship in the world until 1955. It served for 47 years, was decommissioned in 1992 and converted into a museum and major tourist attraction around 2003.

Here's a super cool video of the Midway's Christening and launch.



There are four levels open to the public and we visited everything! The audio tour was fantastic and there were a number of vets on board that brought life aboard an aircraft carrier to life through their stories and demonstrations.

There are 29 different aircraft on board between the top and middle decks.

Some piloted by super cool people.

Some looking all X-files

Some more faschinating than others...

After checking out the planes, we learned a little about how aircraft are launched. Check out this steam catapult launch video.



Here's a detailed How Stuff Works article on Steam Catapults, but the gist of it is as follows:

1) Crazy people decide that boats are great places to launch and land planes loaded with bombs during wars.

Note the bombs

2) Crazy pilots zoom at said boat at like a bascrilliondy miles per hour, trying desparately to level off appropriately and come in at the correct angle.

Note the terrifyingly short length of the runway

3) Crazy flight deck crew workers (in about 8 different roles, indicated by different coloured vests) basically go all adrenaline junky and do things like try to catch the wheels of the landing aircraft on a big slingshot style string while not getting run over or sucked into a jet engine.

Note my pretty picture of flight control

4) These same crazies launch planes off of the crazy boat by using steam catapults. Yes, those midevil war devices you built out of sticks and rocks when you were kids playing I Capture the Castle, but like shiny and metal and fancy with steam and stuff and used for flinging multi-million dollar aircraft into the great blue beyond (hopefully the sky and not water portion).

Note the water part, where you would die

After deciding that our jobs were neither cool nor catastrphic enough, we ascended winding staircases through the tactical, communications, and captain's rooms to the flight control centre.  Because we were qualified to totally run things by now.

It was a little crowded...

 

Erin (begrudginly) took the helm! I prepared to abandon ship.

After touring the lower levels including the mess hall, surgery, laundry, and kitchen. Erin was restored to a more appropriate role. Workin' the stand mixer!

We found my appropriate role shortly after.

Of course, no aircarft carrier tour is complete without a little trip on the Highway to the Danger Zone.

We ended the day the same way we started it: eating excessively! Before heading out for dinner, we enjoyed a flight of California wines on tap.

  Then down the boardwalk to an ocean side restuarant for a bite.