WATCH: Harrier Jet Lands on Aircraft Carrier Without Front Landing Gear

Now here’s something you don’t see everyday.

In June 2014, U.S. Marine Corps Captain William Mahoney found that the front landing gear on his $30 million AV-8B Harrier jet had malfunctioned upon take off from the USS Bataan.

With the nose gear up, Capt. Mahoney was forced make a vertical landing while gently (and blindly) placing the aircraft’s nose onto a small, white plastic stool, specifically built for this very task. Here’s Capt. Mahoney explaining the nerve-racking maneuver:

Begs the question though, what if it was the rear landing gear that malfunctioned?

Correction: The USS Bataan is not an aircraft carrier, it’s an amphibious assault ship. 

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