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Originally Posted by Gravdigr
Whenever I see one of those type of carrier, the ones with the up-turned nose, it makes me think they need that extra lift at the end because they haven't yet mastered steam.  |
Courtesy of Wikipedia:
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Another British innovation is the ski-jump ramp, which came about as a means of improving take off for the VSTOL BAE Sea Harrier "jump-jet" on the small Invincible class aircraft carriers. From an idea by Lt Cdr D.R. Taylor, RN, in 1973, initial testing was carried out at the RAE Bedford. They are most common on aircraft carriers supporting STOVL aircraft such as the Harrier, but the Russians also used them with conventional MiG-29s and Su-33s.
The ski jump is a ramp which is curved upwards at its forward end. For STOVL aircraft the aircraft starts by making a conventional rolling takeoff with the jet exhausts set to provide maximum forward thrust. As the plane nears the end of the ramp (the ski jump portion) the jet exhausts are rotated to provide upward lift as well as forward thrust. Rolling over the ski ramp launches the plane both upwards and forwards. As the plane leaves the ski jump ramp it continues to accelerate horizontally until the wings can provide the needed lift.
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Ski Jump Ramp
I have a vague memory of Lt Cdr Taylor being awarded £25,000 for his work on this development. Might be wrong, so a bit more research required.
ETA: Just found this article. It's hellishly more complicated than I thought.
Ski Jump Explained.