"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus."
- Editorial that appeared in the New York Sun, September 1897

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 appeared in the feature film, The Final Countdown, which was embarked upon the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) in 1979. Pre-order! Ship Date: December 2026.

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

Release Date: ?

Historical Account: "The Final Countdown" - The Final Countdown is a 1980 American science fiction war film about a modern, nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that travels through time to the day before the December 7th, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor. It is directed by Don Taylor, his final theatrical film as director, and stars Kirk Douglas, Martin Sheen, James Farentino, Katharine Ross, Ron O'Neal, and Charles Durning.

The film was produced with the cooperation of the United States Navy's naval aviation branch and the United States Department of Defense. It was set and filmed on board USS Nimitz (CVN-68), filming operations of the modern, nuclear warship, which had been launched in the early 1970s. Troma Entertainment founder Lloyd Kaufman was an associate producer of the film, and also has a minor acting role.

The Final Countdown was released by United Artists on August 1st, 1980. It received mixed reviews from critics, but was a moderate success at the box office. It received Saturn Award nominations for Best Science Fiction Film and Best Actor (for Kirk Douglas).