In 1974 the Lockheed S-3 Viking entered service with the USN as a twin-engine jet aircraft used for enemy submarine warfare. By the late 1990’s the role shifted to surface warfare providing the carrier battle group with long range surveillance capabilities and aerial refueling. The S-3 was in production from 1974 until 1978 with 186 (187) aircraft completed. Most airframes saw upgrades low pitch sound of the engines earned the S-3 the nickname “Hoover” after the vacuum cleaner.
VS-29 “Dragonfires” was formed in 1960 and served from 1966 through 1972 in the Gulf of Tonkin. In 1975 VS-29 transitioned from the S-2 Tracker to the new S-3A Viking while stationed on the USS Enterprise. In 1977 the “Dragonfires” deployed on the USS Ranger and later spent repeated times onboard the USS Kitty Hawk, Carl Vinson and Abraham Lincoln. S-3A 15930 MSN 349A-3026 was converted to an S-3B. VS-29 was decommissioned in 2004 and S-3B 15930 transferred to VS-30 “Diamondcutters” before going to AMARC in 2005.