The Lockheed S-3 Viking is a four-seat, four-seater turbofan jet aircraft used by the US Navy primarily for anti-submarine warfare. In the late 1990s, the focus of the S-3B mission shifted to surface wars and refueling. The Vikings also provide electronic warfare and surface reconnaissance capabilities to carrier battle groups. Multi-mission aircraft carrier, subsonic, all weather, with long distance; it carries an automatic weapon system, and is able to extend its mission by refueling in flight. Due to the characteristic sound of the Viking engine, it was nicknamed "Hoover" after the brand of vacuum cleaner.
The S-3 has retired from the US Navy's fleet service at the frontline of the aircraft carrier in January 2009, with missions assumed by other platforms such as the Orion P-3C, Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk, and Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. Several airplanes were flown by Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Thirty (VX-30) at Naval Base Ventura County/NAS Point Mugu, California, for range cleaning and surveillance operations at NAVAIR Point Mugu Range until 2016, and one S-3 operated by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) at NASA Glenn Research Center.
Video Lockheed S-3 Viking
Development
In the mid-1960s, the US Navy developed the requirements of VSX (Heavier than air, Anti-submarine, Experimental) for replacement for the Grumman S-2 Tracker piston engine as an anti-submarine for flying a ship parent of the Navy. In August 1968, a team led by Lockheed and the Convair/Grumman team were asked to develop their proposal to meet this requirement. Lockheed admitted that he had little new experience in designing an operator-based aircraft, so Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV) was brought into the team, responsible for the wings and tail-bending, engine nacelles, and landing gear, derived from LTV A-7 Corsair II (nose) and Vought F-8 Crusader (main). Sperry Univac Federal Systems was tasked with developing an onboard computer integrated aircraft input from sensors and sonobuoys.
On August 4, 1969, Lockheed's design was chosen as the winner of the contest, and eight prototypes, designated YS-3A were ordered. The first prototype was flown on January 21, 1972 by a military test pilot John Christiansen, and the S-3 began operating in 1974. During production from 1974 to 1978, a total of 186 S-3As were built. Most of the live S-3As were later upgraded to the S-3B variant, with sixteen aircraft converted into ES-3A Shadow electronic intelligence (ELINT) collection of aircraft.
Maps Lockheed S-3 Viking
Design
S-3 is a conventional monoplane with cantilevered shoulder wings, swept at an angle of 15 Â °. The two high-intersected GE TF-34 turbofan engines mounted on the nacelles under the wings provide excellent fuel efficiency, delivering the Viking long range and durability required, while maintaining benign engine-out characteristics.
The aircraft can accommodate four crew, three officers and one crew, with pilot and co-pilot/tactical coordinator (COTAC) in front of the cockpit and tactical coordinator (TACCO) and sensor operator (SENSO) behind. Entry is with entrance/stairs that fold out from the side of the fuselage. When anti-submarine anti-submarine roles (ASW) ended in the late 1990s, SENSO enlisted the transferred from the crew. In a tanking crew configuration, the S-3B usually flies with the pilot and co-pilot/COTAC. This wing is equipped with Fowler front and wing edges. Spoiler mounted on the top and bottom surfaces of the wings. All control surfaces are driven by two hydraulically reinforced irreversible systems. In the case of double hydraulic failure, Emergency Flight Control System (EFCS) allows manual control with a large number of stick styles and reduces control authority.
Unlike many tactical jets that require ground service equipment, the S-3 is equipped with an additional power unit (APU) and is able to start without assistance. The original APU aircraft could only provide minimal electric power and pressurized air for aircraft cooling and pneumatic engine starters. The newer, more powerful APUs can provide full power to the aircraft. APU itself starts from a hydraulic accumulator by pulling a mechanical handle in the cockpit. APU accumulators are fed from the main hydraulic system, but can also be pumped manually (with much effort) from the cockpit.
All the crew members sat in front of the front, up, onto Douglas Escapac's zero-zero overflow chair. In "group out" mode, launching a lontar from one of the front seats takes the entire crew in sequence, with the back seat spitting out 0.5 seconds before the front to provide a safe separation. The rear seats are capable of performing their own ejection, and the ejection sequence includes a pyrotechnic charge that pushes the backside keyboard tray out of the occupants way immediately before the lontar. A safe discharge requires a seat to be weighed in pairs, and when flying with a single crew on the back of an unoccupied seat is equipped with ballast blocks.
Upon entering the fleet, the S-3 introduced an unprecedented level of system integration. Early ASW aircraft such as the Lockheed P-3 Orion and its S-3 predecessor, the Grumman S-2 Tracker, featured separate instrumentation and controls for each sensor system. Sensor operators often monitor paper traces, using mechanical calipers to make precise measurements and annotate data by writing on rolling paper. Beginning with S-3, all sensor systems are integrated through a General Purpose Digital Computer (GPDC). Each crew station has its own display, the co-pilot/COTAC, TACCO and SENSO views are Multi-Purpose Displays (MPD) capable of displaying data from any number of systems. This new level of integration allows the crew to consult each other by examining the same data across multiple stations simultaneously, to manage the workload by assigning responsibility for the sensors being supplied from one station to another, and to easily incorporate instructions from each sensor to classify faint targets. Because of this, four S-3s are considered roughly equivalent in ability to P-3 which is much larger with a crew of 12.
The aircraft has two underwing hooks that can be used to carry fuel tanks, general purpose and cluster bombs, missiles, rockets, and storage pods. It also has four internal bomb stations that can be used to carry general purpose bombs, air torpedoes, and specialty shops (nuclear weapons B57 and B61). Fifty-ninth sonobuoy launch is equipped, as well as a special Search and Rescue (SAR) parachute. The S-3 is equipped with an ALE-39 countermeasure system and can carry up to 90 rounds of chaff, flares, and disposable buggies (or any combination of all) in three dispensers. The retractable magnetic anomaly detector (MAD) Boom is mounted on the tail.
In the late 1990s, the role of S-3B was changed from anti-submarine warfare (ASW) to anti-surface war (ASuW). At that time, the MAD Boom was removed, along with several hundred pounds of submarine detection electronics. With no sonobuoy processing capability left, most sonobuoy throws flattened with empty slabs.
Operational history
On February 20, 1974, the S-3A officially operated with Air Antisubmarine Squadron FORTY-ONE (VS-41), "Shamrocks," on NAS North Island, California, which serves as the S-3 Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) The Atlantic and Pacific fleets to the Atlantic fleet apart FRS, VS-27, were founded in the 1980s. The first operation of the S-3A took place in 1975 with the VS-21 "Fighting Redtails" on the USSÃ ship, John F. Kennedy .
Beginning in 1987, some S-3As were upgraded to S-3B standards with the addition of new sensors, avionics, and weapon systems, including the ability to launch AGM-84 Harpoon ship anti-missiles. The S-3B can also be equipped with a "friend shop", an external fuel tank that allows Viking to refuel other aircraft. In July 1988, the VS-30 became the first fleet squadron to receive an enhanced Harpoon/ISAR enhanced S-3B capability, based at NAS Cecil Field in Jacksonville, Florida. 16 S-3A is changed to ES-3A Shadow for operator-based electronic intelligence tasks (ELINT). Six aircraft, designated AS-3A , converted for special utilities and limited COD cargo requirements. Plans were also made to develop operator-operated tankers KS-3A , but the program was eventually canceled after the conversion of only one initial development of S-3A.
With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the outbreak of the Warsaw Pact, the threats of Soviet-Russian submarines were thought to be diminishing, and the Vikings had most of their anti-submarine warfare gear removed. The mission of the aircraft then turned into a sea surface search, sea and land attack, targeting above the horizon, and refueling the aircraft. As a result, S-3B after 1997 is usually manned by one pilot and one copilot [NFO]; additional seats in the S-3B can still support additional crew members for a particular mission. To reflect on this new mission the Viking squadron was redesigned from the "Antisubmarine Air Squadron of War" to the "Marine Control Squadron".
Before retiring aircraft from the use of front-line fleets on US aircraft carriers, a number of improvement programs were implemented. These include an inertial Carrier Airborne Navigation System II (CAINS II) upgrade, which replaces older inertial navigation hardware with ring laser gyroscopes with Honeywell EGI (Enhanced GPS Inertial Navigation System) and adds digital electronic flight instruments (EFI). The Maverick Plus System (MPS) adds the ability to use air-to-surface missiles guided by AGM-65E or AGM-65F guided infrared, and AGM-84H/K Resilient Ground Load Response Missile (SLAM/ER). SLAM/ER is a guided GPS/inertial/infrared guided missile originating from AGM-84 Harpoon which can be controlled by aircrew in flight terminal phase if AWW-13 link data pod is carried by plane.
S-3B saw extensive service during the 1991 Gulf War, carried out attacks, tankers and ELINT assignments, and launched the ADM-141 TALD feed. This is the first time S-3B was employed on land during offensive air strikes. The first mission occurred when a plane from VS-24, from USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), attacked an Iraqi Silkworm missile site. The aircraft also participated in the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s and in Operation Enduring Freedom in 2001.
The first ES-3A was delivered in 1991, entered service after two years of testing. The Navy established two squadrons of eight ES-3A aircraft respectively in the Atlantic and Pacific Fleet to provide detachments consisting typically of two aircraft, ten officers and 55 aircrew personnel, maintenance and support (consisting of/supporting four crew members) for mobilize troops. carrier air wing. The Pacific Fleet Squadron, the Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron FIVE (VQ-5), "Sea Shadows," was originally based in the former NAS Agana, Guam but was later transferred to NAS North Island in San Diego, California, with the Pacific Fleet S-3 Viking Squadron The NAS Agana was closed in 1995 as a result of 1993's 1993 Rearrangement and Closing Decision. The Atlantic Fleet Squadron, VQ-6 "Black Ravens," was originally based on all the S-3 Viking Atlantic Fleets at the former NAS Cecil Field in Jacksonville , Florida, but later moved to NAS Jacksonville, about 10 miles (16 km) east, when NAS Cecil Field closed in 1999 as a result of the same 1993 BRAC decision that closed the NAS Agana.
ES-3A operates primarily with combat carrier groups, providing organic 'Indication and Warning' support to group commanders and joint commanders. In addition to their warning and surveillance roles, as well as their exceptionally stable characteristics and range of handling, Shadows is the preferred recovery tanker (aircraft providing refueling for returning aircraft). They average more than 100 hours of flying per month when deployed. Excessive utilization leads to earlier equipment changes than expected when the Navy's aviation fund is limited, making it an easy target for budget-driven decision makers. In 1999, ES-3A and 16 aircraft squadrons have been disabled and the ES-3A inventory is housed in the AMARG Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona.
Iraq War
In March 2003, during Operation Iraqi Freedom, S-3B Vikings from Sea Control Squadron 38 (The "Red Griffins") tested by Richard McGrath Jr. launched from USSÃ, Constellation (CV-64). The crew managed to execute a time-sensitive strike and fired a laser-guided Maverick missile to neutralize significant naval and Iraqi leadership targets in the port city of Basra, Iraq. This is one of the few times in its operational history that the S-3B Vikings have been employed over offensive airborne offensives and first launched laser-guided Maverick missiles in combat.
On May 1, 2003, US President George W. Bush flew on a co-pilot seat of VS-35 Vikings from NAS North Island, California, to USSÃ, Abraham Lincoln off California. There, he delivered the "Mission Achieved" speech announcing the end of a major battle in the 2003 Iraq invasion. During the flight, the plane used the Navy One "customary navy call. The aircraft launched by President Bush was not long ago and on July 15, 2003 was accepted as an exhibition at the National Museum of Naval Aviation at NAS Pensacola, Florida.
Between July and December 2008, VS-22 Checkmates, the last marine control squadron, operates four S-3B detachments from Al Asad Airbase in Al Anbar Province, 180 miles (290 km) west of Baghdad. The planes are equipped with LANTIRN pods and they perform non-traditional intelligence, surveillance, and surveillance (NTISR). After more than 350 missions, the Checkmates returned to NAS Jacksonville, Florida, on December 15, 2008, before disestablishing on January 29, 2009.
Retirement
Although the proposed airframe known as the General Support Aircraft never advanced as the successor of the S-3, E-2 and C-2, this plan failed to materialize. As the surviving S-3 airframes are forced into the sunset, a full-scale Lockheed Martin feasibility test is performed and extends the service life of the aircraft by approximately 11,000 flight hours. The Navy supported this plan to withdraw all Vikings from frontline fleet services in 2009 so new fighter and multi-mission aircraft could be introduced to recapitalize an aging fleet inventory, with previous Viking missions assumed by fixed wing aircraft and rotary wings others..
The last carrier based S-3B Squadron, VS-22 was disabled at NAS Jacksonville on January 29, 2009. Sea Control Wing Atlantic was disabled the next day on January 30, 2009, simultaneously with the US Navy who stopped the last S-3B Viking from the front of Service Fleet-line.
In June 2010, the first of three aircraft to patrol in the Pacific Missile Test Center coverage area outside California was reactivated and shipped. Higher jet airplane speed, 10 hours durability, modern radar, and LANTIRN targeting pod allow it to quickly confirm the clear test range of ships and aircraft before the test begins. The S-3B is flown by Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Thirty (VX-30) based at NAS Point Mugu, California. Also, the NASA Glenn Research Center acquired four S-3Bs in 2005. Since 2009, one of these aircraft (USN BuNo 160607) also carries N601NA civilian recordings and is used for various tests.
By the end of 2015, the US Navy has three Vikings still operating in a supporting role. One was transferred to The Boneyard in November 2015, and the last two were retired, one was saved and the other was transferred to NASA, on 11 January 2016, officially suspending S-3 from the Navy service.
Navy analysts have suggested returning the saved S-3 to serve with the US Navy to fill the void left on the aircraft carrier wing when the plane was retired. This is in response to the awareness that the Chinese navy is producing new weapons that could threaten aircraft carriers beyond the reach of their aircraft to attack them. Against the DF-21D ballistic missile, the F/A-18 Super Hornet and F-35C Lightning IIs aircraft carriers have about half of the unleaded strike range, so bringing the S-3 back to the air tank's task will expand their reach. against it, and freeing more Super Hornets who were forced to fill the role. Against submarines armed with anti-ship cruise missiles such as Clubs and YJ-18s, the S-3 will restore the region coverage for ASW duties. Bringing the S-3 out of retirement can at least be a stop-gap measure to increase the survivability and carrier capability until a new aircraft can be developed for that purpose.
Potential interests
In October 2013, the Republic of Korea Navy expressed interest in acquiring up to 18 ex-USN S-3s to add a fleet of 16 Lockheed P-3 Orion aircraft. In August 2015, a military program review group approved a proposal to include 12 S-3 littered for performing ASW duties; The Viking Plan will be sent to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration for further assessment before final approval by the national defense system committee. Although the plane is old, it is in the warehouse making them serviceable and using it is a cheaper way to meet the short-haul ASW capability remaining after the S-2 Tracker retirement than buying a newer plane. The updated S-3 can be re-used in 2019. By 2017, the Republic of Korea Navy canceled plans to re-buy and upgrade the Lockheed S-3 Viking aircraft for maritime and anti-submarine patrol duty, leaving offer by Airbus, Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Saab on the table.
General characteristics
- Crew: 4 (Pilot, Ko-Pilot/COTAC, TACCO, Sensor Operator/TFO)
- Length: 53 ft 4 in (16.26 m)
- Wing width:
- Unscrewed: 68 ft 8 in (20.93 m)
- Folded: 29 ft 6 in (9.00 m)
- Height: 22 ft 9 in (6.93 m)
- Wings area: 598 ftÃ,² (55,56 mÃ,²)
- Aspect ratio: 7.73
- Empty weight: 26,581 lb (12.057 kg)
- Weight being loaded: 38,192 lb (17,324 kg)
- Max. heavy takeoff: 52,539 lb (23,831 kg)
- Internal fuel capacity: 1.933 gal US (13,145 lb) (7,320 L) fuel JP-5
- External fuel capacity: 2 ÃÆ'â € "300 US gal (4.080 lb) (1.136 L) tank
- Powerplant: 2 General Electric TF34-GE-2 turbofans, 9,275 lb f (41.26 kN)
Performance
- Maximum speed:
- 429 kn (493 mph, 795 km/h) at sea level
- Mach 0.79, 450 kn (514 mph, 828 km/h) at 20,000 ft (6,100 m)
- Roaming speed: 350 kn (405 mph, 650 km/h)
- Kiosk Speed: 97 kn (112 mph, 180 km/h)
- Ranges: 2.765 nm (3.182 miles, 5,121 kms
- Combat Radius: 853 km (530 mi))
- Ferry reach: 3.368 nm (3.875 mi, 6,237 km)
- Ceiling of service: 40,900 feet (12,465 m)
- Ascent: 5.120 ft/min (26.0 m/s)
- Wings loading: 68.5 lb/ftÃ,² (334 kg/m²)
- Push/weight: 0.353
Armament
- Up to 4,900 lb (2,220 kg) on ​​four internal and two external hardpoints, including:
- 10 ÃÆ'â € "500 lb (227 kg) Mark 82 bomb
- 2 ÃÆ'â € "1000 lb (454 kg) Mark 83 bomb
- 2 ÃÆ'â € "2000 lb (908 kg) Mark 84 bombs
- 6 ÃÆ'â € "CBU-100 cluster bomb
- 2 ÃÆ'â € "Mark 50 torpedoes
- 4 ÃÆ'â € "Mark 46 torpedo
- 6 ÃÆ'â € "mining or depth costs
- 2 ÃÆ'â € "B57 nuclear bomb
- 2 ÃÆ'â € "AGM-65E/F Maverick Missile
- 2 ÃÆ'â € "Harpoon Harpoon missiles
- 1 ÃÆ'â € "AGM-84H/K SLAM-ER Missile
- Two underwing hooks can also be fitted with a directional skirt pod or 300 gal (1.136 l) fuel tank.
Avionics
- AN/APS-116 sea search radar, maximum reach of 150 nmi (173 miles, 278 km)
- Upgraded to S-3B to AN/APS-137 Synthetic Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR)
- OR-89 looks forward to the infrared (FLIR) camera with 3ÃÆ'â € "zoom
- AN/ARS-2 sonobuoy receiver with 13 spoons of antenna on the aircraft body for the exact buzzer location (Sonobuoy Reference System)
- AN/ASQ-81 magnetic detector anomaly (MAD)
- AN/ASN-92 Inertial navigation system (INS) with doppler radar navigation and TACAN
- Up to 60 sonobuoys (59 tactical, 1 Search and Rescue)
Also see
- CP-140 Aurora
Airplane with equivalent role, configuration, and era
- S-2 Tracker
- Fairey Gannet
- Breguet AlizÃÆ' © ©
Related list
- List of Lockheed planes
- List of US military planes
References
Note
Bibliography
External links
- the Viking S-3B fact file and the Viking S-3 history page at Navy.mil
- S-3 Vikings: War Hoover - Navy Flight News (July-August 2004)
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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