Description:
The S-3B Viking is an
all-weather, carrier-based
jet aircraft, providing protection against hostile surface combatants
while also functioning as the Carrier Battle Groups' primary
overhead/mission tanker. Extremely versatile, the aircraft is equipped
for many missions, including day/night surveillance, electronic
countermeasures, command/control/communications warfare, and search and
rescue.
Features
The
S-3B's high-speed computer system processes and displays information
generated by its targeting-sensor systems. These systems include;
Inverse/Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR/SAR), infrared (IR) sensor and
an Electronic Support (ESM) system. To engage and destroy targets, the
S-3B Viking employs an impressive array of airborne weaponry including
the AGM 84 Harpoon Anti-Ship Missile, AGM 65 Maverick IR missile and a
wide selection of conventional bombs and torpedoes. Future Viking
aircraft will also have a control capability for the AGM 84 Standoff
Land Attack Missile Extended Range (SLAM-ER) missile. The S-3B provides
the fleet with a very effective fixed-wing, "over-the-horizon" aircraft
to combat the significant and varied threats presented by modern
maritime combatants.
Background
Derived
from the S-3A and formerly configured for anti-submarine warfare (ASW),
the S-3B of the 1990s has evolved into a premier surveillance and
precision-targeting platform for the Navy along with modern
precision-guided missile capabilities.
In 1999, the Navy removed the acoustic ASW and aerial mining
systems from the S-3B, which was initially designed to counter the
massive Soviet naval threat, but retained its surveillance,
anti-surface warfare and critical aerial refueling roles. With the
retirement of the A-6E in 1997, the S-3B became the sole organic
refueling platform in the aircraft carrier task force until the
operational debut of the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet in 2002. During
Operation Enduring Freedom in late 2001 and throughout 2002,
forward-deployed S-3B Viking tankers flew more than 200 percent over
their normal flight hours underway, enabling air wing strike fighters
to reach their assigned kill boxes and return safely to the aircraft
carrier from Afghanistan.
During Operation Iraqi Freedom, a VS-38 S-3B made history on
March 25, 2003, with the first combat launch of a laser-guided Maverick
missile, which severely damaged a naval target in the Tigris River near
Basra, Iraq. Operational tempo during Iraqi Freedom was relentless and
all S-3Bs available were positioned on the carrier deck. Sortie rates
of 30 missions a day were not uncommon for squadrons operating from
carriers in the eastern Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf. By 2004,
the S-3B community has completed installation of modern and reliable
upgrades to its communications, navigation and weapons systems, as well
as installation of the advanced AYK-23 computer, significantly reducing
operating costs and increasing combat capabilities.
Also in 2004, the Viking community commenced execution of the
S-3 “Sundown Plan,” a retirement plan highlighted
by a phased
withdrawal from active service by 2009. As carrier air wings are
equipped with two Super Hornet squadrons, the respective S-3 squadron
will be deactivated. VS-29 and VS-38 were deactivated in April 2004,
followed by Japan based, VS-21 in January 2005. VS-35 and VS-30 also
retired in 2005 while VS-33, VS-41 were deactivated in September 2006.
The remaining squadrons VS-22, 24, 31, and 32 will be deactivated
incrementally by February 2009. As of Oct. 1, 2006, about 30 S-3Bs
remained in active service.
Lockheed Martin’s Full-Scale Fatigue Test to determine the
aircraft’s fatigue life expended and areas of structural
concern was
completed in 2004. The results demonstrated that the basic service life
of the airframe could be as high as 23,000 flight hours. The average
number of flight hours on all S-3Bs is currently less than 13,000
flight hours. In March 2006, CNAF approved the modification of 13 S-3Bs
to carry the Low Altitude Navigation Targeting Infrared for Night
(LANTIRN) system, obtained from retiring F-14D Tomcat aircraft, to
fulfill NTISR mission requirements in support of Global War on Terror
(GWOT). Additionally, a video data transmission system has been
installed to facilitate the sending of all aircraft sensor video to
ground units equipped with the Rover III tactical ground station. One
prototype has been delivered to VS-32 and is presently deployed. The
remainder of the installs LANTIRN and video transmission systems will
be completed by early 2007, enabling the S-3B Viking to remain a viable
multi-mission platform until 2009. |
WEFT Description
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- WINGS
- ENGINE
- FUSELAGE
- TAIL
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