Hayward was promoted to captain again on 19 February 1949. On 7 March, he took off Coral Sea in the Atlantic in a P2V carrying a dummy Little Boy pumpkin bomb, and flew across the United States to make a simulated attack on the Salton Sea test site near El Centro, California. He then flew to Patuxent River, where he landed after a total of 23 hours flying. Hayward had tailhooks fitted to a pair of P2Vs, and made practice landings on a carrier deck painted on the ground at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, He made some touch and go passes at the , but a carrier landing was considered too dangerous for regular crews to attempt.
