There are 1448 users online
You can register for a user account here.
Login
Military Photos
Main Menu
Online
Past Articles
Military Quotes
To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace. -- George Washington |
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 (SAR). 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. On March 25, 2003, an S-3B from the "Red Griffins" of Sea Control Squadron Thirty-eight (VS 38) became the first such aircraft to attack inland and to fire a laser-guided Maverick missile in combat. The attack was made on "significant naval target" in the Tigris River near Basra, Iraq. VS-38 was embarked in USS Constellation (CV 64). General Characteristics Primary Function: Force Protection, Organic overhead/mission tanking. Contractor: Lockheed-California Company. Date Deployed: 1975 Unit Cost: $27 million. Propulsion: Two General Electric TF-34-GE-400B turbofan engines (9,275 pounds of thrust each). Length: 53 feet 4 inches (16 meters). Height: 22 feet 9 inches (6.9 meters). Wingspan: 68 feet 8 inches (20.6 meters). Weight: Max design gross take-off: 52,539 pounds (23,643 kg). Airspeed: 450 knots (518 mph, 828.8 kph). Ceiling: 40,000 feet. Range: 2,300+ nautical miles (2,645 statute miles, 4232 km). Crew: Two/Four. Armament: Up to 3,958 pounds (1,781 kg) of AGM-84 Harpoon, AGM-65 Maverick and AGM-84 SLAM missiles, torpedoes, rockets and bombs. |
Military History
Forum Posts
This Day in History
1865:
Confederate General Joseph Johnston officially surrenders his army to General William T. Sherman at Durham Station, North Carolina.
1865: John Wilkes Booth is killed when Union soldiers track him down to a Virginia farm 12 days after he assassinated President Abraham Lincoln. 1865: Joseph E. Johnston surrenders the Army of Tennessee to Sherman. 1937: The ancient Basque town of Guernica in northern Spain is bombed by German planes. 1952: Armistice negotiations are resumed. 1971: The U.S. command in Saigon announces that the U.S. force level in Vietnam is 281,400 men, the lowest since July 1966. 1972: President Nixon, despite the ongoing communist offensive, announces that another 20,000 U.S. troops will be withdrawn from Vietnam in May and June, reducing authorized troop strength to 49,000. |