And Now the Trap by William Phillips

A trio of F6F Hellcats swing over the carrier Hornet, getting squared away to come in and be trapped by the arresting gear. These Grumman fighters have been on a boring patrol - no need to drop belly tanks. By now, the navy has the Pacific sewed up. Japan is spent, the old chant, "Home alive in fifty-five," is now outdated: This is forty-five and the huge trap that Americans have woven around the Japanese Empire is closing. Home looms large in everyone's mind.

Right at this moment, says Phillips, nothing looms before these pilots except the everlasting challenge of landing on a carrier. "This is when blood pressure rises and adrenalin pumps."

  So much to remember; so tense the seconds. The Landing Signal Office takes charge, bringing the fighters in. They clump down, "hit the wire," the arresting gear cables, and are wrenched to a stop in a heartbeat. The trap is sprung.

Plane number 22 in VF-17 (Jolly Rogers) is piloted by LTJG Bob Good.