The explanation that I saw of the fly-by was supposedly written by the pilot Captain Dale Snodgrass. He explains that the maneuver started as a simple fly-by for a demo and that he rolled to the 85 degree position to pull hard and cross the carrier's bow. The plane appears close to the ship due to the foreshortning created by the telephoto lens used, but in actuality he was at an adequate distance for safety.

Here is a quote I found in a search:

"It's not risky at all with practice. It was my opening pass to a Tomcat tactical demonstration at sea. I started from the starboard rear quarter of the ship, at or slightly below flight deck level. Airspeed was at about 250 knots with the wings swept forward. I selected afterburner at about 1/2 mile behind and the aircraft accelerated to about 325-330 knots.

As I approached the ship, I rolled into an 85 degree angle of bank and did a 2-3 g turn, finishing about 10- 20 degrees off of the ship's axis. It was a very dramatic and, in my opinion, a very cool way to start a carrier demo.

The photo was taken by an Aviation Boson's Mate who worked the flight deck on the USS America. Just as an aside...the individual with his arms behind his back is Admiral Jay Johnson, the immediate past Chief of Naval Operations for the Navy."

As an aside I believe that Snodgrass is Patty Wagstaff's husband/boyfriend/significant other.

Antony