S-3B Viking

View a clip of a landing S-3B aboard USS JOHN F. KENNEDY. ( Filesize: 399 Kb)

Description:

S-3B aircraft are tasked by the Carrier Battle Group Commanders to provide Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and Anti-Surface Warfare (ASUW), surface surveillance and intelligence collection, electronic warfare, mine warfare, coordinated search and rescue, and fleet support missions, including air wing tanking.

The S-3B Aircraft is manned and operated by an aircrew of four. The aircrew consists of a pilot, Copilot Tactical Coordinator (COTAC), acoustic Sensor Station Operator (SENSO), and Tactical Coordinator (TACCO). Each of these four person has an own ejector seat.

The S-3B Aircraft carries surface and subsurface search equipment with integrated target acquisition and sensor coordinating systems which can collect, process, interpret, and store ASW and ASUW sensor data. It has a direct attack capability with a variety of armament.

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Versions:

S-3A	First serial version with foldable wings, retractable undercarriage and air-conditioned cockpit. First flight: January 21, 1972.
US-3A	Logistics version, all ASW installations removed.
KS-3A	Tanker, just tested and later suspended. As a result all S-3As got Buddy-Buddy stores.
ES-3A	Click here to read more about this version.
S-3B	Improved S-3A with modifications and the capability to carry the AGM-84 Harpoon missiles.

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Features:

The S-3B aircraft is a modified S-3A Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) aircraft, with increased ASW and new Anti-Surface Warfare capabilities through improvements to various mission avionics and armament systems. It has increased capabilities through improvements to the general purpose digital computer, acoustic data processor, radar, sonobuoy receiver, sonobuoy reference system, and electronic support measures, and includes the installation of an electronic countermeasures dispensing system and the Harpoon Missile System. It also encompasses provisions for the Joint Tactical Information Distribution System. The Communications Control Group (CCG) provides improved communication capability and greatly improved reliability over the Switching Logic Unit and Intercommunication System used in the S-3A. The Global Positioning System (GPS) modification replaces the Tactical Air Navigation (TACAN) portion of the S-3B aircraft TACAN Inertial Navigation System once TACAN is phased out. This new navigation system will also comply with the requirement for the S-3B aircraft to have Federal Aviation Administration certifiable GPS Radio Navigation capability. The GPS will provide increased operational capability and mission effectiveness by providing precise navigation position information during all phases of aircraft operations. The AN/USH-42 Mission Recorder Reproducer Set [MR/RS] replaces the obsolete and unsupportable RO457 Video Signal Recorder. It allows for multi-channel recording of S-3B aircraft Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar, Forward Looking Infrared, and mission avionics data. The capability for in-flight video recording, in-flight and post-flight playback, analysis, and duplication are also new features.

The S-3B's high speed computer system processes information generated by the acoustic and non-acoustic target sensor systems. This includes a new Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR) and ESM systems suites. To destroy targets, the S-3B Viking employs an impressive array of airborne weaponry. This provides the fleet with a very effective airborne capability to combat the significant threat presented by modern combatants and submarines. Additionally, all S-3B aircraft are capable of carrying an in-flight refueling "buddy" store. This allows the transfer of fuel from the Viking aircraft to other Naval strike aircraft, thus extending their combat radius.

For in-flight maneuvers the S-3B is equipped with a Aero ID 300 USG (300 gallons) fuel tank on the left wing and with a Douglas D-704 Buddy-Buddy refueling tank extendable snorkel.

The undercarriage (an improved F-8 Crusader undercarriage), the wings, the tail and the power unit gondolas were designed and produced by Vought.

The Viking’s General Electric TF-34-GE-400 Turbofan power units were specially designed for the S-3.

These engines allow high cruise speeds and very low carrier approach speeds and can easily be identified by their belching sounds during revolutions changes while approaching a carrier.

For a better accommodation aboard a carrier the wings and the tail unit can be folded.

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History:

In 1969, Lockheed was awarded a contract to build 187 S-3As after the company had won the Navy’s competition for a new anti-submarine aircraft.

The prototype took off on January 21, 1972, and in 1974 the delivery of the ordered planes began.

Between July 1987 and July 1991, all east coast S-3A aircraft were modified by a contractor field team at the Naval Air Station (NAS) Cecil Field, Florida. In March 1992, a contractor field team at NAS North Island, California, began modifying west coast S-3A Aircraft to the S-3B aircraft configuration and completed modifications in September 1994. In early 1995, CCGs were installed in approximately 40 of the S-3B aircraft at NAS North Island. Installation of the remaining CCGs began in March 1997 and is scheduled to be completed first quarter FY00. The GPSs and AN/USH-42s are scheduled for concurrent installation beginning first quarter FY98 and continuing through the first quarter FY01. The S-3B aircraft is in Phase III, Production, Fielding, Deployment, and Operational Support phase of the Weapon System Acquisition Process.

In fiscal year 1992, ten aircraft S-3B squadrons were reduced to six aircraft. In 1993, aircraft assets for deployed squadrons were increased to eight, to meet increased operational requirements caused by retirement of the A-6E from the Navy inventory. All S-3B squadrons are currently configured and manned for eight aircraft.

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General Facts:

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S-3 Image Gallery:

The photos below show the S-3 museum aircraft and other S-3B planes at Naval Air Station Jacksonville in Florida. The photos were taken by us on August 1, 2000.

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Video Gallery:

The following video clips were recorded by us. They were recorded at Naval Air Station Jacksonville on August 1, 2000. Just click on an image to view the respective video clip.

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