How do you find the carrier?

[bdk]

What method did the USN, or other countries for that matter, use to find their way back to the carrier? Was it all dead reckoning, or did the carrier transmit a signal of some sort (ADF)?

I'm primarily asking about WW2, but how have the methods changed over time?

[Kyleb]

It isn’t mentioned a lot, but if you read enough stories, you’ll find references to what sounds like a VOR system with a shipboard transmitter and a receiver in the aircraft. They also used ded reckoning based on where the carrier was projected to be when the mission was complete.

Last edited by Kyleb on Tue Dec 14, 2021 7:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[Larry Kraus]

This posting on the Mission4Today forum should answer your question.

F567BDF9-5DEA-4744-AA80-9E653F39F9D3 by tanker622001, on Flickr

Here’s the link to this post

https://www.mission4today.com/index.php ... 704&page=1

[bdk]

This posting on the Mission4Today forum should answer your question.

Sounds like I have some reading to do! Thanks Larry.

[Randy Wilson]

Found this thread on the subject on another forum. FYI. Randy

http://ww2f.com/threads/carrier-aircraft-navigation-how-did-they-do-it.21172/

[bdk]

Great info everyone! Thank you. I've learned a lot.