Joe said, "Alright, lets go home. You army men take care of that missile now. Don't let it get away. There should be a self destruct control at the base. Raptor Squdron, return to base."
The planes returned to the carrier. After the rest of the planes landed, Joe requested clearence.
The controller said, "Raptor 7, begin landing checks. You are cleared to land."
Joe lowered his landing gear, tail hook, and flaps. The plane's wings slid into their strait out possition. The F-14 had wings that could vary their angle depending on the jet's speed and climb angle. THe flight deck of the Freedom was lit up with white lights and outlined with blue lights. The plane approached the deck. The sky was getting lighter to the east as dawn approached. Joe turned on the landing lights and touched down with a thud. The tail hook cought on the arrester cable s and jerked to a stop. THe cables helped to stop the speeding jet. Otherwise it would never be able to stop before going off the deck in time. Even though the ship was 1500 feet long, it was way to short for a plane to stop by itself.
Joe taxied his Tomcat to an elevator and was lowered to the hanger deck. He took off his helmet, lowered the ladder, and climbed out of the cockpit after shutting down all the systems.
