Official US Navy LSO Landing Safety Officer School Patch — Landing Signal Officer Embroidered Patch
Paddles — the Landing Signal Officer, the voice in the headset that brings every Navy pilot safely back aboard the carrier, one pass at a time.
The Landing Signal Officer (LSO) is one of the most critical positions in carrier aviation. LSOs stand on the LSO platform at the stern of the aircraft carrier, observing and grading every approach and arrested landing, providing real-time voice corrections to pilots on approach, and making the life-or-death decision to wave off an unsafe pass. This patch represents the LSO School — the training program where experienced naval aviators learn the art and science of controlling carrier approaches.
Known by the traditional callsign "Paddles" (a reference to the days when LSOs used handheld paddles to signal approaching aircraft), modern LSOs use the Improved Fresnel Lens Optical Landing System (IFLOLS), radio communications, and their own expert judgment to guide aircraft to safe arrested landings on a pitching flight deck. An LSO must be able to evaluate an approaching aircraft's glideslope, lineup, angle of attack, and rate of descent in seconds and issue corrections that the pilot can execute immediately. In foul weather, at night, or on a pitching deck, the LSO's skill is often the difference between a safe trap and a disaster.
Every carrier-qualified naval aviator depends on the LSO, and every LSO carries the weight of knowing that their calls directly affect the safety of their fellow aviators. The LSO community is one of the most respected in naval aviation.
Perfect For: Landing Signal Officers, carrier-qualified naval aviators, carrier air wing personnel, aircraft carrier crew members, and naval aviation training patch collectors.
Paddles — the LSO — standing at the ramp, guiding every pilot home, one perfect pass at a time.
