The CH-53 Sea Stallion (Sikorsky S-65) is an American family of heavy-lift transport helicopters designed and built by the American manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. The Sea Stallion was originally developed in response to a request from the United States Navy's Bureau of Naval Weapons made in March 1962 for a replacement for the Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave helicopters flown by the United States Marine Corps (USMC).

In July 1962, Sikorsky's proposal, which was essentially a scaled-up S-61R fitted with twin General Electric T64 turboshaft engines and the dynamic system of the S-64/CH-54, was selected. On October 14th, 1964, the YCH-53A performed its maiden flight; the first deliveries of production CH-53s to operational units commenced on September 12th, 1966. The first combat use of the type occurred during the following year when it was deployed to the Vietnamese theater; the CH-53 quickly proved its value for moving heavy payloads, particularly in the recovery of damaged aircraft.

Several variants of the type were promptly introduced. The United States Air Force introduced the HH-53 "Super Jolly Green Giant", configured for special operations and combat search and rescue (CSAR) missions, during the latter part of the Vietnam War; the majority of these were subsequently rebuilt into the MH-53 Pave Low. The visually similar CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavier-lifting improved version of the rotorcraft, designated S-80E by Sikorsky; its third engine makes it more powerful than the Sea Stallion and thus displaced it for the heavy-lift mission. Furthermore, many early-build CH-53s were refitted with more powerful engines, while others were reconfigured for different mission roles, such as US presidential flights, training, and airborne mine countermeasures (AMCM) operations.

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale replica of a USMC CH-53 Sea Stallion heavy lift helicopter nicknamed "Nekkid Lady" that was attached to HMH-466 "Wolfpack", then deployed to Saudi Arabia, during 1990-1991 in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Sold Out!

Dimensions:
Rotor Span: 10-inches
Length: 10-inches

Release Date: September 2025

Historical Account: "Wolfpack" - Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 466 (HMH-466) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of CH-53E Super Stallion transport helicopters. The squadron, known as the "Wolfpack", is based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 16 (MAG-16) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW).

In the past 25 years, the Wolfpack has participated in fourteen Marine Expeditionary Units, Special Operations Capable [MEU (SOC)] Deployments and has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, including the Secretary of Defense (SECDEF) Phoenix Award for outstanding maintenance (1987), the Fleet Marine Force Pacific (FMFPAC) Annual Aviation Safety Award (1986), the Mike Yunck Award for best overall squadron in the Third Marine Aircraft Wing (3d MAW) (1988, 1999, 2010), Meritorious Unit Citation (MUC) (1986), Navy and Marine Corps Unit Commendation (NUC) (1992, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009), Presidential Unit Citation (PUC) (2010), the Keith B. McCutcheon Award for Heavy Lift Squadron of the Year (1999, 2006, 2010), the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Aviation Safety Award (1999, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011).