The last two U.S. Navy S-3 Vikings have performed the final Navy flight.

After more than 40 years of service the last pair of S-3B Vikings took off for the last time from the runway at Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu, California, on Jan. 11.

Developed to replace the S-2 Tracker, the “Hoover” (as the S-3 was nicknamed by its aircrews) entered the active service in 1974 and served in a wide variety of roles such as the anti-submarine warfare (ASW), the air-to-air refueling, the electronic intelligence and the carrier onboard delivery (COD).

Officially withdrawn from U.S. Navy front-line service in 2009, two retired Vikings were assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 30 to monitor the vast Point Mugu Sea Range.  As explained by Capt. John Rousseau, who led the charge to bring the retired aircraft to VX-30, the S-3B was the perfect aircraft to patrol the range: “It’s got legs, it can go fast and long. The radar, even though it’s old, there’s not many better. We still spot schools of dolphins and patches of seaweed.”

The VX-30, that still operated three Vikings, retired the first of its S-3Bs in November when the airplane was flown to the military aircraft boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona.

Unlike the two that launched from Point Mugu for the final Navy sortie, at least one will continue flying with NASA.

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The VRC-30 Det. One “Hustlers” 2014-2015 cruise video.

The ‘Hustlers’ of VRC-30 DET ONE completed the longest scheduled deployment since Vietnam between 2014 and 2015.

The following video demonstrates combat logistics at its finest: from cargo and passengers to the occasional distinguished visitor; COD (Carrier On Board Delivery) people move it all with the Grumman C-2A Greyhound a twin-engine, high-wing cargo aircraft, designed perform the COD mission to carry equipment, supplies and mail to and from U.S. Navy aircraft carriers, “ensuring victory at sea through logistics.”

VRC-30 is a United States Navy Fleet Logistics Support squadron based at Naval Air Station North Island with detachments all around the world.

 

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The Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 30 (VRC-30) “Providers” has prepared a cool video to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the C-2A Greyhound, the workhorse of the U.S. Navy fleet.

On Nov. 18, 1964, the Grumman C-2 Greyhound twin-engine, high-wing cargo aircraft, designed perform the COD (Carrier Onboard Delivery) to carry equipment, supplies and mail to and from U.S. Navy aircraft carriers, made its first flight.

Since then, the aircraft and its crews have performed a vital role supplying the carrier fleet with over a million pounds of high priority logistics.

The video, produced by VRC-30, United States Navy Fleet Logistics Support squadron based at Naval Air Station North Island with detachments all around the world, provides some amazing insight into the mission of the COD as well as the challenge/thrill of flying the COD: take a look at the skills (and amount of inputs on the control yoke) required to perform an arrested landing on the flight deck of a nuclear aircraft carrier at sea.

By the way, this author has had the privilege to fly aboard a COD to visit the USS Nimitz off Pakistan in 2009.

H/T to VRC-30 for sending the link to us

 

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Landing on an aircraft carrier in rough seas can be quite dangerous

On Oct. 9, 2001, a C-2A Greyhound COD (Carrier On board Delivery) plane carrying Argentine dignitaries aboard experienced a mishap during a trap landing on the USS Nimitz: the left leg of the main landing gear went overboard and the aircraft almost fell in the ocean.

The PLAT (Pilot Landing Aid Television) footage clearly shows the pilot struggling to properly align the aircraft to the flight deck from the start of the final approach. A series of corrections, with a hard one right before touched down caused the aircraft to veer off the flight deck.

Fortunately, the C-2 got one of the wires and was able to come to a stop before falling overboard.

Here’s a video of the mishap (click this link as the video can’t be embedded out of Youtube).

H/T to @Alert5 for the link to the YT video.

 

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