The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) hosted 24 student pilots, from Commander, Naval Air Training Det., for their first landings on an aircraft carrier.

The qualification required pilots to successfully complete 10 arrested landings and four touch-and-goes on Abraham Lincolns 1,092-feet long flight deck.

"The first landing wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be," said Marine Corps Capt. Nick Deluca, a student pilot from the "Eagles" of Training Squadron 7. "The ship looked really small, but I was running so well that [the Abraham Lincoln Sailors] made it easy on me."

Prior to landing aboard Abraham Lincoln, student pilots practiced 13 different events at a designated airfield ashore.

"This is one of the last things that they do before they are winged," said Deluca. "After they get their wings, they will be ready to go out into the fleet."

The pilots were not the only ones who worked hard to conduct these qualifications. Air department Sailors were responsible for ensuring the safe launch and recovery of the jets. Several other departments were involved with flight operations, including engineering, operations, reactor, navigation, deck, and combat systems. All led to the successful completion of the week-long evolution.

"We're happy to be back in training mode and requalify with the T-45 aircraft after being in Refueling Complex and Overhaul for four years," said Air Traffic Controller 2nd Class Marshall Crawford, the air operations branch chief aboard Abraham Lincoln.

Despite the inherent dangers of flight operations, carrier qualifications proved Abraham Lincoln's ability to work together as a team.

"Our Sailors have been making sure flight operations run smoothly and getting their qualifications and experience needed to be able to work with the aircraft," said Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Equipment) 1st Class Victor Ayala, a leading petty officer of air department's V-2 division.

In total, Abraham Lincoln completed more than 500 hours of flight operation maintenance, performed 619 launches and recoveries, and qualified 46 personnel in flight deck familiarization while underway, Oct. 17.

For more information, visit http://www.navy.mil, http://www.facebook.com/usnavy, or http://www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), visit http://www.navy.mil/.