I told the Captain that after the G-awareness maneuver, we would do a quick inverted check to verify cockpit security. Looking back, I should have recognized his anxiety when he mocked me and said, “Just a quick inverted check?” then laughed. I didn’t realize hanging upside down with nothing but glass and 11,000 feet of air separating you from the desert floor might not be the most comfortable situation in the world for a surface-warfare officer.
[. . .]
After we completed the checks, I asked him, “Are you ready for the inverted check? Do you have everything stowed?”“All set” was the last thing I heard him say.
I wonder if “Can we do that again?” came up in later conversation.
Jargon help:
Black shoe – “Terrestrial” Navy
Brown shoe – Naval Air
NVG – Night Vision Goggles
h/t to RTS
Oh, and another ejection story