How low can you go?

[HooverPilot]

S-3 limit is 200' day and 400' night.

 

[TurnandBurn55]

I can't speak for other communities, but for the most part, stuff like that isn't part of 3710 or NATOPS (as stated), but is delineated in various T/M/S SOPs and training rules for various type of missions/flights. I think Hornets can do 200 ft, and Prowlers can do 500 ft.(used to be able to do 200 until certain USMC hotshots fvcked it away for the rest of us - thanks)

Certainly heard about the 100' demo in the RAG. Unsure of specifics, but I believe lower than 200' in CONUS is authorized for terrain following ops as per AP-1/B (UINavy, feel free to jump in anytime...) I'll double-check that tommorrows...

 

[skidkid]

Flight schedule notes read either 10' or 50' depending on the crews and range etc. We usually set our own hard decks between 50 and 100. The ground has a P sub k of 1.

 

[SteveG75]

Intruders day - 200'
Intruders night SRTC (Search Radar Terrain Clearance, manual only, not terrain following) - 650' through the Cascades with no googles on some dark nights I now look back and think WTF.
Intruders night with NVD's - 200' on the VR1355

Lowest I have ever seen was an Omani Hawk converting low to high on my wingman. We were at 200' (yeah, that's it 200') and he was coming up out of the dirt. Lowest pic I saw was in their ready room. Picture of four Hawker Hunters lined up for takeoff, except that dash 4 had his gear up and was doing a fly-by.:icon_smil

 

[TurnandBurn55]

The ground has a P sub k of 1.

Stop stealing my taglines!!

 

[codtanker]

More like 30' AWL don't you think. Lowest I heard in the COD and I've seen pictures was a formation flight that after dropping SEALS for training did a flyby of the Commercial Boneyard near Tucson below the top of the 747 tails lined up there.

Needless to say, the JOs kissed the ground after they landed.