Fifty years ago when I was a F2H-3 Banshee pilot at NAS Moffett, we were training for nuclear weapons delivery. By necessity, if it came to war, the method of delivery would be from a very low altitude from the ship (USS WASP) to the target.

As a consequence, we were encouraged to practice navigation "on the deck." In other words, flat-hatting was not only permitted, it was encouraged. There was no speed limit of 250 Kt below 10,000' in those days. The Banshee could fly at low altitudes (a few feet off the surface) on a single engine, after getting up to speed, and get the necessary range. When approaching initial point, we'd light off the other engine, and proceed at high speed, and execute a loft maneuver to deliver the weapon on the target.

The bulk of the practice bomb drops were conducted from NAS Fallon, and we'd deploy for a few weeks at a time, and it was a ball. I can't remember the exact details, but it seeems to me we were flying about 5' off the deck at 400 knots or so to the IP, or directly over the bulls eye target and execute the loft maneuver and finish it iff with a Half Cuban 8 down to 5' over the sagebrush in the escape phase.

God be with the days![8D]