At the height of the Cold War, the Soviet Union fielded a formidable navy—both above and below the surface. In response, the United States Navy required a carrier-based, fixed-wing aircraft with long on-station time and an extensive air-to-surface and -subsurface avionics sweet and weapons capability. The result was the twin-turbofan, high-wing Lockheed ( https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/index.html ) S-3 Viking ( https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/s3-viking-aircraft/ ).
On this episode, retired U.S. Navy ( https://www.navy.mil/ ) Commander David “Deke” Slayton joins us to discuss S-3 variants, which weapons it can carry, why it looks the way it does, and much more. Deke was an S-3 instructor when co-host Sunshine received his initial fleet training in the Viking—an aircraft he would fly before later transitioning to the F/A-18 Hornet.
During the listener question segment, we dig a little deeper into the Mutha ( https://www.militarynews.com/norfolk-navy-flagship/oceana/news/gunslingers-win-mutha-trophy-for-most-strike-fighter-spirit/article_080753ab-228c-5e80-96bf-f7c13d2cd504.html ) trophy, discuss the purpose of exchange programs, talk about the relevance of a gun on combat fighters, stereotypes for military pilots, the need to self-assess before flight, and brushes with death.
Click here ( https://wingsoveramerica.us/ ) to check out Wings Over America and support scholarships for military dependents. To compliment the interview, click here ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0897477022/ref=as_li_tl?camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0897477022&ie=UTF8&linkCode=as2&linkId=0ffe399091a97f889149c936e7e4e144&tag=ftrpltpdcst18-20 ) to order Brad Elward’s authoritative book, S-3 Viking in Action.
Bumper music by Jaime Lopez / announcements by Jim Hendershot ( https://militaryrf.com/ ).
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