Inside the Fat Albert RATO take-off

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This is hilarious, one couldn't have picked a better pair of 'dudes' to experience a RATO take-off.

Action starts at 04:17, this should start the video at the correct point

https://youtu.be/w0Io07EAX1s?t=257

[ww2ni]

It would have been even better if we got a longer view of the Loadmaster in the Air.
Good clip.

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Found another transport that used a RATO; Caribair CV-340 in early 1960s. 

Also apparently early 727s, DC-9s and Sewaringen Metros had RATO attachment hardpoints!

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[Sneaky_Nikon]

The DC-9 was considered as a COD aircraft at one point.

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The DC-9 was considered as a COD aircraft at one point.

That was interesting!  A bunch of stuff about the F28 and DC-9 COD proposals here:
http://www.airlinereporter.com/2014/05/airliners-landing-aircraft-carrier-oh-yes/

Which led me to this, N904AX.  A former USAF C-9 with the faired-over RATO fairings visible at the trailing edge fillet

From: http://www.myabx.com/flightweb/abx%20air%20history/abx_air/fleet_status_sheet.htm

Also Overseas National Airways had four DC-9s fitted with the same RATO mountings straight from the factory.

The 1960s must have been very exciting!

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Yet another civvie with RATO / JATO provision, at least some models of the Beech Twin Bonanza were certificated with a pair of clip-on 250lb-thrust Aerojet-General rocket bottles which mounted on the engine nacelles.

"JATO firing switch is located at extreme right of firing quadrant"

Fun-switch!

Allegedly one variant of the BN-2A-III Trislander was planned with RATO but doesn't seem to have been certificated.

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