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Japan Maritime Self Defense Force /
JMSDF - Fleet Air Force Mitsubishi S-61 / HSS-2 'Sea King' Naval ASW / SAR Helicopter |
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| 10/23 |
| Aircraft and users: |
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Serials: S-61A (SAR) 8181 / 8182 / 8183 S-61A-1 (SAR) 8184 / 8185 / 8186 / 8187 S-61AH (Long Range SAR) 8941 / 8942 / 8943 / 8944 / 8945 / 8946 / 8947 / 8948 / 8949 / 8950 / 8951 / 8952 / 8953 HSS-2 (ASW) 8001 / 8002 / 8003 / 8004 / 8005 / 8006 / 8007 / 8008 / 8009 / 8010 8011 / 8012 / 8013 / 8014 / 8015 / 8016 / 8017 / 8018 / 8019 / 8020 8021 / 8022 / 8023 / 8024 / 8025 / 8026 / 8027 / 8028 / 8029 / 8030 8031 / 8032 / 8033 / 8034 / 8035 / 8036 / 8037 / 8038 / 8039 / 8040 8041 / 8042 / 8043 / 8044 / 8045 / 8046 / 8047 / 8048 / 8049 / 8050 8051 / 8052 / 8053 / 8054 / 8055 HSS-2A (ASW) 8056 / 8057 / 8058 / 8059 / 8060 8061 / 8062 / 8063 / 8064 / 8065 / 8066 / 8067 / 8068 / 8069 / 8070 8071 / 8072 / 8073 / 8074 / 8075 / 8076 / 8077 / 8078 / 8079 / 8080 8081 / 8082 / 8083 HSS-2B (ASW) 8084 / 8085 / 8086 / 8087 / 8088 / 8089 / 8090 8091 / 8092 / 8093 / 8094 / 8095 / 8096 / 8097 / 8098 / 8099 / 8100 8101 / 8102 / 8103 / 8104 / 8105 / 8106 / 8107 / 8108 / 8109 / 8110 8111 / 8112 / 8113 / 8114 / 8115 / 8116 / 8117 / 8108 / 8119 / 8120 8121 / 8122 / 8123 / 8124 / 8125 / 8126 / 8127 / 8128 / 8129 / 8130 8131 / 8132 / 8133 / 8134 / 8135 / 8136 / 8137 / 8138 / 8139 / 8140 8141 / 8142 / 8143 / 8144 / 8145 / 8146 / 8147 / 8148 / 8149 / 8150 8151 / 8152 / 8153 / 8154 / 8155 / 8156 / 8157 / 8158 / 8159 / 8160 8161 / 8162 / 8163 / 8164 / 8165 / 8166 / 8167 S-62J (SAR) 33-4771 / 33-4772 / 43-4773 / 53-4774 / 53-4775 / 63-4776 / 63-4777 / 63-4778 / 73-4779 8921 / 8922 / 8923 / 8924 / 8925 / 8926 / 8927 / 8928 / 8929 / JA9156 all retired |
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The Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King (company designation S-61) is an American
twin-engined anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopter designed and
built by Sikorsky Aircraft. A landmark design, it was one of the
first ASW rotorcraft to use turboshaft engines. The Sea King has its origins in efforts by the United States Navy to counter the growing threat of Soviet submarines during the 1950s. Accordingly, the helicopter was specifically developed to deliver a capable ASW platform; in particular, it combined the roles of hunter and killer, which had previously been carried out by two separate helicopters. The Sea King was initially designated HSS-2, which was intended to imply a level of commonality to the earlier HSS-1; it was subsequently redesignated as the SH-3A during the early 1960s. Introduced to service in 1961, it was operated by the United States Navy as a key ASW and utility asset for several decades prior to being replaced by the non-amphibious Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk in the 1990s. In late 1961 and early 1962, a modified U.S. Navy HSS-2 Sea King was used to break the FAI 3 km, 100 km, 500 km, and 1000 km helicopter speed records. The Sea King also performed various other roles and missions such as search-and-rescue, transport, anti-shipping, medevac, plane guard, and airborne early warning operations. The Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King is a twin-engine medium-sized amphibious rotorcraft. Many of the features on board the Sea King represented a considerable advancement over preceding helicopters. In addition to being fully amphibious and capable of operating under all weather conditions, it is the first operational American helicopter to be able to simultaneously hunt and destroy submarines. Its twin-turboshaft powerplant layout gave the SH-3 a higher payload and greater reliability than previous anti-submarine helicopters. In the event of a single engine failing, the Sea King could continue flying on a single engine. The powerplant used on the Sea King was the General Electric T58-GE-8B, which was initially capable of generating up to 1,250 shp (930 kW) each. In normal operations, the Sea King typically would have a four-man crew on board; these being a pilot and copilot in the cockpit, and two aircrew stationed within the main cabin area. When conducting anti-submarine missions, the rear aircrew operated the aircraft's sensors and interpreted the generated data. For search-and-rescue missions, the Sea King's cabin could accommodate up to 22 survivors. In a medical layout, a maximum of nine stretchers plus two medical officers could be carried. In the troop transport role, up to 28 soldiers can be accommodated. The Sea King features many design elements to support naval-orientated operations. The main rotor blades and the tail section can be folded via fully automated systems for storage on board ships. The adoption of an amphibious hull allowed a Sea King to conduct a water landing and, being completely watertight, would enable the rotorcraft to remaining floating for prolonged periods on the ocean's surface. Deployable airbags in the aircraft's sponsons added to the rotorcraft's stability and buoyancy, resisting pitching and rolling. The hull design was compatible with landing on challenging terrain, including ice, snow, swamp land, and tundra. Wheels are installed in the sponsons for land operations. The armament fitted upon a Sea King could vary considerably. For anti-submarine missions, the aircraft could carry up to four torpedoes or four depth charges. ASW equipment used on Sea Kings has included the AQS-13A/B/E dipping sonar which included specialized computers for processing sonar and sonobuoy data, various models of sonobuoys, ARR-75 Sonobuoy Receivers, and the ASQ-81 magnetic anomaly detector. The commonly fitted AKT-22 data link enabled the rapid dissemination of sonar information to other friendly elements. Some later Sea King models featured the TACNAV digital navigation system (first generation GPS) and overhauled cockpit instrumentation for night vision compatibility. Variants, built by Mitsubishi - with Japanese engines and avionics: S-61A: License-built version of the S-61A as Search-and-Rescue and Utility helicopters for the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force. HSS-2: License-built version of the S-61B as an anti-submarine warfare helicopter for the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force. HSS-2A: License-built version of the S-61B (SH-3D) as an anti-submarine warfare helicopter for the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force. HSS-2B: License-built version of the S-61B (SH-3H) as an anti-submarine warfare helicopter for the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force. S-62J: License-built version of the S-62 (HH-52) amphibious SAR helicopter. Specifications (US SH-3D): Crew: 2 flight crew + 2 sonar operators Capacity: (S-61A transport) 26 troops, or 15 stretchers, or 12 VIP passengers Length: 54 ft 9 in (16.69 m) Width: 16 ft 4 in (4.98 m) (rotors folded) Height: 16 ft 10 in (5.13 m) Empty weight: 11,865 lb (5,382 kg) Gross weight: 18,626 lb (8,449 kg) (ASW mission) Max takeoff weight: 21,500 lb (9,752 kg) Powerplant: 2 x General Electric T58-GE-10 turboshaft engines, 1,400 shp (1,044 kW) each Main rotor diameter: 62 ft 0 in (18.90 m) Main rotor area: 3,019 sq ft (280.5 m2) Maximum speed: 144 kn (166 mph, 267 km/h) Cruise speed: 118 kn (136 mph, 219 km/h) for max range Range: 542 nmi (625 mi, 1,005 km) with max fuel, 10% reserves Service ceiling: 14,700 ft (4,480 m) Rate of climb: 2,200 ft/min (11.2 m/s) at sea level source: wikipedia+ |
| images |
 HSS-2 (8006)  HSS-2 (8044) HSS-2B (8086)  HSS-2B (8150)  S-61AH (8949)  S-61AH (8950)  S-61AH (8950)  S-62J (53-4775)  S-62J (8923)  S-62J (8926)  S-62J (8926) |
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