"The S-3 was a unique program. We went from first contract to first contact over a submarine in just three years."
- Lockheed Executive Vice President Tom Burbage, who flew the Viking as a Navy test pilot and later ran the S-3 program for the company

The Navy began what became the S-3 Viking program in 1964 to replace the piston-powered S-2 Tracker. Known originally as VSX - for "carrier-based antisubmarine warfare aircraft-X" - a formal request for proposal was issued in April 1968. A joint General Dynamics-Grumman team and the then-Lockheed Aircraft Corp. were chosen from among the competitors to refine their proposals.

Although Lockheed had four decades of land-based antisubmarine warfare experience dating back to the World War II-era Hudson, the company had only built one carrier-based aircraft to that point, the T2V-1 SeaStar trainer. To build a strong Navy-oriented team, Lockheed first brought on LTV Aerospace, formerly Vought, with its long history in carrier aviation, as a partner. Then the Federal Systems Division of Sperry Rand was added to develop the aircraft's computerized acoustic detection system, a first for an airborne antisubmarine warfare platform.

The Lockheed team was declared the winner of the VSX competition on August 4th, 1969. One of several speakers at the 2009 retirement ceremony was current Lockheed Martin F-35 Executive Vice President Tom Burbage, who flew the Viking as a Navy test pilot and later ran the S-3 program for the company. He noted that "the S-3 was a unique program. We went from first contract to first contact over a submarine in just three years."

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale replica of a US Navy Lockheed S-3B Viking anti-submarine aircraft that was attached to VS-30 "Diamondcutters" then embarked upon the USS George Washington (CVN-73) during 2005. Now in stock!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 9-inches
Length: 11-1/2-inches

Release Date: April 2023

Historical Account: "Diamondcutters" - VS-30 was highly effective in screening the heavy traffic areas of the Arabian Gulf for contacts of interest. Many of these areas were too close to land to allow visual identification, so the Diamondcutters used the APS-137 Radar with its unique ISAR capability and ESM information to help sort out the hundreds of contacts that hugged the coastline. The squadron aggressively sought to use the AWW-13 data link pod to control weapons carried by other air wing assets. The Diamondcutters became the first fleet S-3B squadron to control an AGM-62 WALLEYE CATM in flight. WALLEYE control was performed several more times throughout deployment simulating coordinated attacks by S-3B's and F/A-18's on surface ships and littoral targets of opportunity. The VS-30 Diamondcutters went on to finish their deployment and returned to NAS Jacksonville on December 10th, 1998.

In October 1999, the Diamondcutters participated in the Sea Control Advanced Readiness Program (SCARP) at NAS Fallon, NV in preparation for their June 2000 deployment aboard the USS George Washington (CVN-73). During SCARP, VS-30 aircrews delivered various types of ordnance and practiced detecting various early warning sites using the ALR-76 Electronic Support Measures System. The Diamondcutters will be the first Viking squadron to deploy with the new Carrier Airborne Inertial Navigation System II (CAINS II) which includes the Electronic Flight Instruments (i.e. glass cockpit display). The squadron has met the requirements to receive the Naval Safety Center twenty year Class "A" Mishap Free Award and also was nominated for the "PHOENIX" award for Maintenance Efficiency in 1999.

In preparation for its June 2000 deployment aboard the USS George Washington (CVN-73), the Diamondcutters from Sea Control Squadron 30 (VS-30) trained at NAS Fallon for three weeks. The Diamondcutters, along with the other squadrons which comprise Carrier Air Wing Seventeen (CVW-17), completed intense integrated tactical training evolutions designed by the Naval Strike Air Warfare Center (NSAWC). The mission of the training period was to hone skills, identify strengths, expose weaknesses, and improve the ability to execute as an integrated Air Wing.