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“Viking,” a name that has long been associated with the sea, is now borne by the Navy’s latest carrier- based antisubmarine warfare (ASW) aircraft, the S-3A.1 The plane had its _ beginning in 1968 with the initia
tion of the VSX program to provide a replacement for the Grumman S-2 Tracker, which had then been in fleet service for more than 14 years. In August 1969, Lockheed was awarded a contract to build eight developmental aircraft with the possibility of follow-on contracts for as many as 191 more.2 The subsequent production concept joined Lockheed, as prime contractor, with Vought to provide airframe portions, wing, and landing gear assemblies and Sperry Univac to furnish an on-board general purpose digital computer. The team has now built 187 Vikings, the last (bureau number 160607) being delivered to the Navy in August 1978.
The Viking program showed promise from the beginning as Lockheed met or exceeded the Navy’s specifications for the aircraft. Time schedules were met, and program costs (approximately $10 million per plane) were kept below ceiling in spite of an unpredicted surge in inflation. The first flight was accomplished at Palmdale, California, on 21 January 1972. Since its introduction into the fleet in 1974, the Viking has accumulated an impressive score as a submarine hunter and has one of the finest safety records of any carrier aircraft. After more than 27,000 arrested landings and 175,000 flight hours, the Viking has been involved in only one carrier accident, and that one was not attributable to the aircraft.
Representing a quantum leap over the S-2, the Viking is a formidable aircraft with an impressive array of weapons and capabilities. It incorporates the ASW capabilities of its large, four-engine, land-based big brother, the Lockheed P-3C Orion, in a compact airframe manned by four crew members. Powered by two General Electric TF34-400A high-bypass turbotan
See Rosario Rausa, The S-3A Viking," United States Naval Institute Proceedings, October 1976, pp. 131-134.
2The 199 Vikings originally planned for included 12 squadrons (120 planes), the replacement air group (20), and contingency aircraft (59). A much lower than expected loss rate reduced the number of planes required to 187.
nonacoustics sensor and communications operat^
be
Above, seven S-3A Vikings sit on the manufacturer’s flight line awaiting the start of Bureau of Inspection and Survey (InSurv) trials in late 1973. At right a Viking from VS-21, the first fleet squadron to receive S-3s, escorts an S-2G from VS-37 on the Tracker’s last operational flight in 1973.
engines, each rated at 9,275 pounds thrust, the Viking can launch from a carrier deck at a maximum weight of 52,539 pounds with a variety of torpedoes, rockets, mines, bombs, or special weapons carried in dual weapon bays and on two underwing pylons.
On a typical mission, the ASW warrior climbs to 36,000 feet and proceeds to its operating area at 345 knots. It can spend five hours on station without aerial refueling. The plane’s mission includes searching for targets from high altitude, localizing, tracking, and possibly attacking detected targets. Upon completion of its mission, the Viking can transfer its tactical information if relieved by another ASW aircraft. With a combat range of 500 miles using only internal fuel, the Viking returns to the carrier at an altitude of 40,000 feet and speed of 340 knots. The aircraft’s in-flight refueling capability gives it an extended endurance virtually limited to crew fatigue.
The crew consists of three officers—a pilot, copilot, and tactical coordinator (TACCO)—and one enlisted sensor operator (SENSO). Operating as a member of a closely integrated team, each crewman has well-defined duties. The pilot has the responsibility for safety of flight and aids in the coordination of mission strategy. The copilot is the principal
Although the right-seat position is normally trian by an aviator, a naval flight officer (NFO) rna^na assigned to this seat. The TACCO reviews A analyzes the computer-correlated mission data ^ implements the mission tactical operations. ^ SENSO operates the acoustic sensors and acoustic^^ processor. A degree of redundancy is provided arrl crew stations to allow some interchange of °P tional duties should any station become inopera ^ Fully pressurized, the Viking cabin retain ^ pressure equivalent to 5,000-10,000 feet at below 35,000 feet, thus allowing the crew to °Per^£ without the use of oxygen masks. Oxygen equip0 ^ however, is provided and masks are carried by j crew. Each crewman has a modified McUO Douglas rocket ejection seat similar to that us ^ the A-4 Skyhawk. The ejection system is desig°e that command ejection can be initiated by e*t^err,j0 pilot or copilot. It ejects the crew in pairs, and TACCO first, followed one-half second later the pilots. The rear seats are designed to leave ^ aircraft at a 20° vertical offset and the front seat 7° to provide lateral separation while the one ^ second delay provides longitudinal separation- .f TACCO and SENSO can initiate ejection only f°r 1 individual positions. yjjj-
72
Proceedings
/ July
Board of Inspection and Survey trials for rhe ( ing began in October 1973 at the Naval Air ^ Center, Patuxent River. Following the suCCt^tfp- completion of this phase of the program, fleet 1 . te duction came on 20 February 1974 with apPr°Pr
Plo
jMrnonies held at Naval Air Station, North Island en vS-4l received its first S-3A. Designated as the t^et replacement training squadron and referred to as e RAG,” VS-41 has graduated all of the aircrew and aMtenance personnel that now man the fleet’s 11 .. lng squadrons based at North Island and Naval lr Station, Cecil Field, Florida. The VS-41 Sham- continue to provide replacement personnel to e fleet at an annual rate of 1,200 men after a six- °nth training period.
1° mid-197 5, Air Antisubmarine Squadron. 21 de- y with the S-3A to the Mediterranean in the USS ' n P■ Kennedy (CV-67). This was the first deploy- nt °f the Viking and the ship’s first deployment as ^Multipurpose carrier. The Fighting Red Tails of '2l had been out of the “RAG” only three months ^ er> they departed from their North Island ^°Meport to the East Coast. During workup and the ^ en-month deployment, they flew more than 5,000 °Urs and made more than 1,300 arrested landings, k say that the Viking has been eagerly embraced y all air wing commanders and carrier skippers . UM be a gross exaggeration. However, the impres- e capabilities of this rugged aircraft and the musiasm of Viking squadron personnel are slowly Scorning the resistance that first greeted their ,val. The resistance came about when the reduc- j. n in the number of active carriers in the fleet t^rce(f the Navy to adopt the CV concept. Combining / e Mission requirements of the antisubmarine carrier s) with those of the attack carrier (CVA) has re- ^ ted in the multi-mission carrier (CV) with atten- ^aM possible degradation of capability in both areas. ’Mitation of deck space dictates careful tailoring of cn air wing to the specific mission requirements it Ust achieve. ASW aircraft must use as little of this ace as possible so as not to compromise the tactical
strike capability of the wing. Conversely, a sufficient number of ASW aircraft must be carried to maintain the carrier’s antisubmarine integrity. The vastly increased capability of the Viking has aided immensely in maintaining this delicate balance.
The future of the Viking program is somewhat clouded at this point. The potential of the aircraft is great; proposals have been made for electronic countermeasures, tanker, and carrier on-board delivery (COD) versions. One aircraft, bureau number 157998, has been modified and redesignated US-3 A. First deployed with VS-33 for evaluation as a COD aircraft, it has proven so successful that it has been retained in the Western Pacific, transfering to VS-38 and later to VS-37 when those squadrons arrived in the operating area.
The Viking production line is now closed, but the Navy has had Lockheed place the tooling in storage. Should a decision be made to reestablish the line or should contracts for other versions be awarded, a minimum of cost would be required to resume the program. With more than 400 submarines in the Soviet inventory, this may prove to be a wise decision; Germany had 57 U-boats at the start of World War II.
Mr. Lawson retired as a senior chief photographer's mate (aircrewman) in 1977 after 26 years of naval service. He served in the USS Lake Champlain (CVA-39), USS Monterey (CVL-26), USStforw/ (CVS-12), and USS Constellation (CVA-64). Other assignments included duty with Guided Missile Group One, VU-1, MCB- 12, and several naval air stations. Mr. Lawson has written aviation articles for Naval Aviation News, Private Pilot, Aeroplane Monthly, Western Flyer, and several newspapers. He is editor of the Tailhook Association’s quarterly magazine, The Hook, and serves as a director of the American Aviation Historical Society. During his service as an aerial photographer, he accumulated more than 3,000 hours of flight time in 71 different types of military aircraft.
We tend to think of carrier planes in terms of shipboard service and deployments—operating amidst the wind and the waves. But the period ashore between deployments is also an essential part of the planes’ cycle. It is a time for training, time for squadron members to be with their families, and time for the aircraft maintenance which is always necessary—at sea and ashore. At top left, a plane captain tightens fasteners on an engine inspection panel. In the row above, left to right, two ordnancemen load sonobuoys in the fuselage, an electrician takes out an avionics package, and a plane captain removes a nozzle after fueling. Opposite, the cover is taken off the ram air intake. As these pictures illustrate, the S-3 was designed for deck-level maintenance without workstands.
They are all of the same fierce breed, these S-3s, whether their tails are decorated with Viking heads, Viking ships, cloverleafs, griffins, or other devices emblematic of success and the sea. With the advent of the aircraft has come the CV concept. No longer is the large carrier limited to the strike and air defense missions. Now operating among her fighters and attack planes are the antisubmarine aircraft to provide task group defense against undersea enemies. And so it is that these modern Vikings maneuver about the decks of the giant carriers, take their places on steam-emitting catapults, and then soar skyward, exposing row upon row of sonohuoy launching tubes.
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Though a Viking’s crew of four men may spend only a few hours aloft on any given mission, many man-hours will have gone into preparing for the flight. We have seen the maintenance already, and now it is time to bring the plane to the flight deck, load the Mark 46 torpedo, time for the pilot to go over his pre-flight calculations, for the flight deck director to position the plane on the catapult, and finally to take off. And when the mission is completed, the Vikings sit in a row, as falcons sit stoically on the falconer's fist—waiting for the hunt to begin again.
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