[Poohbah]

Doesn't the hook catch all the cables it can as it passes?

Nope. Ideally, it catches the three-wire. The cable then absorbs the kinetic energy of the aircraft (it reels out from under the deck) and brings it to a stop.

[TomB]

OK guys, how many times have you had to correct people on this topic in the past 24 hours?

You know, it really is a simple concept. I find it hard to believe people can't understand it. The plane approaches the deck on which there are 4 arrestor cables. Obvioulsly, the FIRST cable it reaches would be cable number one. The SECOND cable it reaches would be number two. And on to number four.

It really makes watching the news almost impossible when you know more than the reporters, and they aren't ashamed to demonstrated how much they don't know.

Anyway, thanks for continuing to correct the record.