I know this is an old thread, but I just found it and thought I might add a little to it, as I was the pilot.
Actually was the second day of CQ on Lady Lex. If my memory is correct, I had six day and two night traps the day before. This was my first of the day.
After touchdown, all seemed normal for a "bug/bug" crew. Good decel in the wires....then we started to go again. Yes, the power was already at mil and the boards were in.
LSOs were calling for power, then eject. The Boss called eject....on the 5MC...so now the entire flight deck knew something was amiss.
B/N pulled his handle as I was saying "get out of here". I pulled mine after watching the flight deck rise above me and the cockpit filled with condensation fog as Al's seat went through the canopy.
Both watched the carrier pass by as we swam from our chutes. LSO's waved to us, hoping the sharks they had seen earlier off the platform were not still lurking about. Helo put aircrewman in the water to effect our hoist out of the drink.
On deck, the hook runner chased the broken hook point down the deck, tackled it and brought it to FDC. Warminster's EI showed a flawed weld and all stingers of that lot were removed from service.
Al was flying in a week, too me about four weeks to get med up. I still had a death grip on the stick when I pulled the lower handle with my left hand which caused me to be a bit out of position when my seat fired through the canopy. CQ'd at the next boat, FORRESTAL and went on to VA-176.
The plane flew away as it was trimmed up, boards in, at MRT, weight loss, CG shift, and good ole ground effect. It crashed off the stbd side, after a hammerhead stall over the bow, full nose down still at mil.
Hope this rounds out the story for you all.
Cheers, Rocket