 When first deployed , the AJ @-@ 1 was too large and heavy to be used by any American aircraft carrier except for the Midway class . The modernized Essex class carriers with reinforced decks and the very large Forrestal class could also handle the Savage . The aircraft was not popular aboard ship as " it was so big and cumbersome that it complicated any other flight operations the ship was required to conduct . " One problem was that the wings had to be folded one at a time by a crewman on top of the fuselage with a portable hydraulic pump , a time @-@ consuming process , so that the bomber could be moved out of the way to allow other aircraft to land or take off . One pilot reported that the AJ @-@ 1 was " a dream to fly and handled like a fighter " , when everything was working properly . The aircraft , however , was not very reliable , possibly because it was rushed into production before all the bugs could be worked out . 
