Tag Archives: General Electric T58-GE-5

30–31 March 1979

March 31, 2024Aviation33rd ARRS, 37th ARRS, 67-14709, Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service, Combat Search and Rescue, CSAR, General Electric T58-GE-5, Helicopter, James E. Coker, James E. McArdle Jr., Jolly Green 22, Mackay Trophy, Mark Zitzow, Rescue 709, Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, Sikorsky S-61R, Ta Lai, Tony Carlo, Van J. LefflerBryan Swopes

Sikorsky HH-3E 67-14709 at NMUSAF. (U.S. Air Force) — Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant 67-14709 at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force)

30–31 March 1979: That Others May Live. On a dark and stormy night in the Yellow Sea, between China and the Korean Peninsula, the 160 foot (49 meter), 3,000 ton (2,722 Metric tons) Taiwanese freighter Ta Lai ran aground. As 20 foot (6 meters) waves battered the stranded ship, rocks punched through the hull. It was taking on water and sinking. Her crew of twenty-eight men were in danger.

Major James E. McArdle, Jr., U.S. Air Force. (Airman Magazine)

Detachment 13, 33rd Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, at Osan Air Base, 40 miles (64 kilometers) south of Seoul, the capital of the Republic of South Korea, answered the distress call.

Major James E. McArdle, Jr., United States Air Force, and his crew of four, flew their helicopter, “Rescue 709,” a Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, serial number 67-14709, through the darkness and gale-force winds to the stranded vessel. These men were just completing there regular 12-hour duty schedule when the distress call came in, but no other crews or helicopters were available.

In addition to Major McArdle, the aircraft commander, the crew consisted of 1st Lieutenant Van J. Leffler, pilot; Sergeant James E. Coker, flight engineer; Staff Sergeant Tony Carlo and Sergeant Mark Zitzow, pararescue jumpers (“PJs”).

Rescue 709 arrived on scene just before midnight, 30 March. While McArdle and Leffler tried to hold a steady hover over the Ta Lai as it pitched and rolled in the storm, Sergeant Zitzow was lowered 80 feet (24 meters) to the deck. Once there, he assisted the ship’s crew, two at a time, onto the rescue hoist’s jungle penetrator, and after strapping them on, all three were hoisted back to the helicopter. Sergeant Coker, who was controlling the hoist, moved the sailors into the passenger/cargo area of the Jolly Green Giant, and Zitzow was once again lowered to the Ta Lai.

With ten survivors aboard Rescue 709, the helicopter was at its maximum load. Sergeant Zitzow remained aboard Ta Lai. The crew then flew to Kwang-Ju Air Base, 150 miles (241 kilometers) south of Seoul—more than 30 minutes away—to offload the men.

After returning to the rescue scene, Sergeant Zitzow was joined on deck by Sergeant Carlo. While lifting three sailors, the helicopter’s hoist motor overheated and stopped. The sailors were still hanging 50 feet (15 meters) underneath the Jolly Green Giant. The only thing that could be done was to fly to a small island about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) away and lower them to the ground. 709 then returned to the ship, by which time the hoist was working again. They picked up several more sailors and with Carlo once again on board, made the flight to Kwang-Ju.

On the third trip, the winds, though still high, were blowing from a more advantageous direction, and the final twelve men, including Zitzow, were quickly picked up. Rescue 709 returned to Kwang-Ju and landed at 0415 hours, 31 March 1979.

For this rescue, Major McArdle was awarded the Mackay Trophy by the National Aeronautic Association, for the most “meritorious flight of the year” by an Air Force member, members, or organization. He was also awarded another Distinguished Flying Cross. Lieutenant Leffler and Sergeant Coker were awarded the Air Medal, while both Sergeants Zitzow and Coker received the Airman’s Medal.

Sikorsky HH-3E 67-14709 under restoration at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, 2010. (U.S. Air Force)

67-14709 was built by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation at Straford, Connecticut as a CH-3E transport helicopter and was later converted to the HH-3E configuration. It served the United States Air Force from 3 July 1968 to 19 February 1991.

During the Vietnam War, 709 operated with the 37th ARRS at Da Nang in the Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) role. Flying with the call sign “Jolly Green 22,” at least 27 airmen were rescued by this helicopter and its crews.

Jolly Green Giant 67-14709 undergoing restoration at NMUSAF, 2010. (NMUSAF)

During that period, crewmen assigned to 709 were awarded one Air Force Cross,¹ fourteen Silver Stars (three of these had been nominated for the Air Force Cross) and an unknown number of Purple Hearts. On one mission alone, 709 took hits from at least 68 machine gun bullets.

After Operation Desert Storm, 709 was sent to The Boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Tucson, Arizona. After 19 years in the desert, in August 2010, she was pulled from storage and sent to the National Museum of the United States Air Force for a 6-month restoration by Museum staff, as well as technical experts from the 20th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlbert Field, Florida.

67-14709 was repainted in the Southeast Asia camouflage pattern. (NMUSAF)

Sikorsky HH-3E 67-14709 is on display in the Southeast Asia War Gallery of the Museum at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Colonel McArdle, her pilot during the 1979 rescue mission, was present at 709’s Museum debut, 14 December 2010.

Mackay Trophy winner Colonel James E. McCardle, U.S. Air Force (Retired) speaks at the NMUSAF. His Jolly Green Giant, 67-14709, is behind him. (U.S. Air Force)

Colonel James E. McArdle, Jr., was born at LaCrosse, Wisconsin, 2 March 1943. He attended Marquette University High School in Milwaukee, where he competed on the Swimming Team and worked on the student newspaper. He entered the United States Air Force Academy as a cadet in 1961, majoring in engineering management. Upon graduating from the Academy, 9 June 1965, he was presented the Secretary of the Air Force Award for Behavorial Sciences. McArdle was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, United States Air Force.

2nd Lieutenant McArdle trained as a helicopter pilot at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, finishing at the top of his class. After finishing advanced helicopter training at Sheppard AFB, Texas, McArdle was assigned to the 20th Helicopter Squadron, 14th Air Commando Wing, operating in Southeast Asia, where he flew the Sikorsky CH-3C transport helicopter. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, four Air Medals and the Air Force Commendation Medal.

U.S. Air Force Sikorsky CH-3C, 20th Special Operations Squadron, 14th Air commando Wing. (U.S. Air Force) — U.S. Air Force Sikorsky CH-3C, 20th Special Operations Squadron, 14th Air Commando Wing. This aircraft is not equipped with a rescue hoist or refueling boom. (U.S. Air Force)

In 1970, McArdle was retrained as a Northrop T-38A Talon pilot and spent the next four years as an instructor and check pilot at Williams Air Force Base, Arizona.

Major McArdle was assigned to the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps from 1974 to 1978. Next, he became the operations officer for Detachment 13, 33rd Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, Osan Air Base, Korea. During a 12-month period, the detachment saved 80 lives, including those rescued from the Ta Lai.

From 1979 to 1981 Lieutenant Colonel McArdle served at headquarters, Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. While there he developed combat rescue tactics and helped develop the MH-53J Pave Low and MH-60G Pave Hawk special operations helicopters.

Compare this HH-3E to the CH-3C in the photograph above. (U.S. Air Force) — Compare this Sikorsky HH-3E to the CH-3C in the photograph above. The HH-3E has a rescue hoist and spotlight over the door, a refueling boom and external fuel tanks. (U.S. Air Force)

As operations officer of the 67th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron at RAF Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, McArdle supervised three detachments. Next, Lieutenant Colonel McArdle assumed command of the 41st ARRS at McClellan Air Force Base, Sacramento, California, 7 August 1984. At that time, unit’s primary assignment was special operations support, the only helicopter squadron so assigned in the U.S. Air Force.

Colonel McArdle’s final assignment was as Inspector General at McLellan Air Force Base. He retired from the U.S. Air Force on 1 August 1991 after thirty years of service.

An HH-3E of the 129th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Group, California Air National Guard hoists two PJs from the Pacific Ocean, 13 April 1977. (TSgt. Richard M. Diaz, U.S. Air Force) — An HH-3E of the 129th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Group, California Air National Guard, hoists two PJs from the Pacific Ocean, 13 April 1977. (TSgt. Richard M. Diaz, U.S. Air Force)

The SH-3A Sea King (Sikorsky S-61) first flew 11 March 1959, designed as an anti-submarine helicopter for the U.S. Navy. The prototype was designated XHSS-2 Sea King. In 1962, the HSS-2 was redesignated SH-3A Sea King. Many early production aircraft were upgraded through SH-3D, SH-3G, etc. In addition to the original ASW role, the Sea Kings have been widely used for Combat Search and Rescue operations. Marine One, the call sign for the helicopters assigned to the President of the United States, are VH-3D Sea Kings.

The Sikorsky HH-3E (Sikorsky S-61R) is a development of the SH-3A. It earned the nickname Jolly Green Giant during the Vietnam War. It is a dedicated Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) helicopter flown by the U.S. Air Force, based on the CH-3C transport helicopter. The aircraft is flown by two pilots and the crew includes a flight mechanic and gunner. It is a large twin-engine helicopter with a single main rotor/tail rotor configuration. It has retractable tricycle landing gear and a rear cargo ramp. The rear landing gear retracts into a stub wing on the aft fuselage. The helicopter has an extendable inflight refueling boom.

A Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant refuels in flight from a Lockheed MC-130 Combat Talon. (U.S. Air Force) — A Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant refuels in flight from a Lockheed HC-130P Combat King. (U.S. Air Force)

The HH-3E is 72 feet, 7 inches (22.123 meters) long and 18 feet, 10 inches (5.740 meters) high with all rotors turning. The main rotor has five blades and a diameter of 62 feet (18.898 meters). Each blade has a chord of 1 foot, 6.25 inches (0.464 meters). The main rotor turns at 203 r.p.m., counter-clockwise, as seen from above. (The advancing blade is on the right.) The tail rotor also has five blades and has a diameter of 10 feet, 4 inches (3.150 meters). The blades have a chord of 7–11/32 inches (0.187 meters). The tail rotor turns clockwise as seen from the helicopter’s left. (The advancing blade is below the axis of rotation.) The tail rotor turns 1,244 r.p.m.

HH-3E three-view illustration (Sikorsky Historical Archives)

Beginning in 1928, an American food company began using a cartoon figure to advertise its “Green Giant” brand of canned peas. Eventually the mascot represented The Green Giant Company’s other canned and frozen vegetables. The character is now owned by General Mills.

The HH-3E has an empty weight of 13,341 pounds (6,051 kilograms). The maximum gross weight is 22,050 pounds (10,002 kilograms).

The Jolly Green Giant is powered by two General Electric T58-GE-5 turboshaft engines, which have a Maximum Continuous Power rating of 1,400 shaft horsepower, each, and Military Power rating of 1,500 shaft horsepower. The main transmission is rated for 2,500 horsepower, maximum.

The HH-3E has a cruise speed of 154 miles per hour (248 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level, and a maximum speed of 177 miles per hour (285 kilometers per hour), also at Sea Level. The service ceiling is 14,000 feet (4,267 meters). The HH-3E had a maximum range of 779 miles (1,254 kilometers) with external fuel tanks.

The Jolly Green Giant can be armed with two M60 7.62 mm machine guns.

Sikorsky built 14 HH-3Es. Many CH-3Cs and CH-3Es were upgraded to the HH-3E configuration. Sikorsky built a total of 173 of the S-61R series.

The restored Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, 67-14706, on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (NMUSAF) — The restored Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, 67-14709, on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (NMUSAF)

¹ Sergeant Dennis Martin Richardson, United States Air Force

12 October 1976

October 12, 2023Aviationc/n 72001, General Electric T58-GE-5, General Electric TF34-GE-2, N740NA, Rotor Systems Research Aircraft, RSRA, Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Sikorsky S-72Bryan Swopes

Sikorsky S-72 RSRA 72001 in initial configuration. (Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company)

12 October 1976: The Sikorsky S-72 Rotor Systems Research Aircraft (RSRA) made its first flight at Stratford, Connecticut. The S-72 was a hybrid aircraft built for the United States Army and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Its purpose was to serve as a flight test vehicle for various helicopter rotor configurations.

The S-72 was three-place, four-engine, single main rotor/tail rotor compound helicopter with retractable main landing gear. The flight crew consisted of two test pilots in a side-by-side cockpit, and a flight test engineer in the cabin. The left pilot’s position was equipped with “fly-by-wire” flight controls, while the right seat used conventional mechanical controls as a safety back up. The S-72 had a crew escape system, which blew the main rotor blades off, allowing the crew to land the aircraft in its airplane mode, or to be extracted by rockets.

The aircraft was built with a low-drag fuselage capable of reaching 340 knots (391 miles per hour/630 kilometers per hour) and used the rotors and drive train of the S-61 Sea King. A wing and two turbofan engines allowed the aircraft to fly as an airplane.

Sikorsky S-72 N740NA in flight near Edwards Air Force Base, California, without a main rotor, circa 1984. (National Aeronautics and Space Administration ECN 300643) — Sikorsky S-72 N740NA in flight near Edwards Air Force Base, California, without a main rotor, circa 1984. (NASA)

The S-72 had an overall length with rotors turning, of 75 feet, 11 inches (23.139 meters). The fuselage had a length of 63 feet, 8 inches (19.406 meters), and maximum width of 8 feet, 4 inches (2.642 meters). The RSRA had an overall height of 15 feet, 6 inches (4.724 meters). The variable incidence wing has a span of 45 feet, 1.2 inches (13.746 meters). The angle of incidence could be varied in flight from +15° to -9°. The span of the horizontal stabilizer is 20 feet, 10 inches (6.350 meters). The S-72 compound helicopter had an empty weight of 20,812 pounds (9,440 kilograms) and gross weight of 26,392 pounds (11,971 kilograms). When stripped to a pure helicopter configuration, the empty weight was reduced to 14,490 pounds (6.573 kilograms).

The S-72 was first flown using the rotors from the S-61. These were later to be replaced with experimental rotor systems. The S-61 main rotor has five blades and a diameter of 62 feet, 0 inches (18.898 meters). Each blade has a chord of 1 foot, 6.25 inches (0.464 meters). The main rotor turns at 203 r.p.m., counter-clockwise, as seen from above. (The advancing blade is on the right.) The S-72’s tail rotor also has five blades and has a diameter of 10 feet, 7.25 inches (3.232 meters). The blades have a chord of 7–11/32 inches (0.187 meters). The tail rotor turns clockwise as seen from the helicopter’s left. (The advancing blade is below the axis of rotation.) The tail rotor turns 1,244 r.p.m.

General arrangement with dimensions. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)

The S-72 was powered by two General Electric T58-GE-5 turboshaft engines, driving the rotor system, and two General Electric TF34-GE-2 turbofan engines providing thrust for flight in the airplane or compound helicopter configuration.

The T58-GE-5 turboshaft engines are the same engines that powered the HH-3E Jolly Green Giant combat search and rescue helicopters. They are a free-turbine turboshaft with a 10-stage axial-flow compressor section a 2-stage gas generator turbine (N1) and 1-stage free power turbine (N2). The T58-GE-5 has a Maximum Continuous Power rating of 1,400 shaft horsepower, each, and Military Power rating of 1,500 shaft horsepower. The engine is 59.0 inches (1.499 meters) long, 20.9 inches (0.531 meters) in diameter, and weighs 335 pounds (152 kilograms).

The TF34-GE-2 turbofan was developed for the U.S. Navy’s Lockheed S-3A Viking anti-submarine aircraft. It was a two-spool axial-flow jet engine with a single-stage fan section, 14-stage compressor, and 6-stage turbine section (2 high- and 4 low-pressure stages). The TF34-GE-2 was rated at 9,275 pounds of thrust (41.26 kilonewtons).

The S-72 had a maximum speed in level flight of 300 knots (345 miles per hour/556 kilometers per hour), and 340 knots (391 miles per hour/630 kilometers per hour) in a dive.

Two RSRAs were built. After Sikorsky’s flight test program was completed in 1979, the two RSRA aircraft were delivered to NASA Ames. The Aircraft received civil registrations N740NA (72001) and N741NA (72002).

The stripped airframe of the first Sikorsky S-72, 72001, sits behind a chain link fence at Fort Rucker, Alabama.

31 May–1 June 1967

June 1, 2023Aviation48th ARRS, 66-13280, 66-13281, Aerial Refueling, Aéroport de Paris – Le Bourget, Donald B. Murras, FAI, Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, General Electric T58-GE-5, Helicopter, Herbert Zehnder, Igor Sikorsky, Inflight Refueling, Lockheed HC-130H Combat King, Non-Stop Flight, Paris Air Show, Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, Trans Atlantic Flight, Transoceanic Flight, World Record for Speed Over a Recognized CourseBryan Swopes

Left to Right: Major Herbert Zehnder, USAF; Igor Sikorsky; Major Donald B. Murras, USAF, at Le Bourget, 1 June 1967. — Major Herbert R. Zehnder, USAF; Igor Sikorsky; Major Donald B. Murras, USAF, at le Bourget, 1 June 1967. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)

At 0105 hours, 31 May 1967, two Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant helicopters, 66-13280 and 66-13281, from the 48th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, United States Air Force, took off from Floyd Bennett Field, New York, and flew non-stop across the Atlantic Ocean to the Paris Air Show. They arrived at Le Bourget at 1351 hours, 1 June.

“H-211,” one of two 48th ARRS Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant helicopters, lands at Le Bourget after a non-stop trans Atlantic flight, 1 June 1967. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)

The flight covered 4,271 miles (6873.5 kilometers) and took 30 hours, 46 minutes. Nine in-flight refuelings were required from Lockheed HC-130P Combat King tankers. The aircraft commanders were Major Herbert Zehnder and Major Donald B. Murras. Each helicopter had a crew of five.

Flight crews of the two 48th ARRS Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant helicoptersat Le Bourget after a non-stop trans Atlantic flight, 1 June 1967. Major Zehnder is in the back row, at left.

Major Zehnder, in H-211, set a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed Over a Recognized Course for helicopters, with an average speed of 189.95 kilometers per hour (118.03 miles per hour). This record still stands.¹

The route of the two 48th ARRS Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant helicopters from New York to Paris. (Sikorsky Archives News, July 2017)

Lieutenant Colonel Travis Wofford, United States Air Force.

Both Jolly Green Giants, serial numbers 66-13280 and 66-13281, were later assigned to the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron. Both were lost in combat during the Vietnam War.

66-13280, “Jolly Green 27” crashed at Kontum, Republic of South Vietnam, 15 April 1970. The pilot, Captain Travis H. Scott, Jr., was killed, and flight engineer Gerald E. Hartzel later died of wounds. The co-pilot, Major Travis Wofford, was awarded the Air Force Cross and the Cheney Medal for his rescue of the crewmembers from the burning helicopter. Captain Scott was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross.

66-13281, “Jolly Green 28,” was shot down over Laos, 24 October 1969. The crew was rescued and the helicopter destroyed to prevent capture. The pararescueman, Technical Sergeant Donald G. Smith, was awarded the Air Force Cross for the rescue of the pilot of “Misty 11.” He was also awarded the Airman’s Medal.

Master Sergeant Donald G. Smith, United States Air Force.

Major Herbert Zehnder flew another Sikorsky HH-3E, 65-12785, to intentionally crash land inside the Sơn Tây Prison Camp, 23 miles (37 kilometers) west of Hanoi, North Vietnam. He was awarded the Silver Star.

A Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant (66-13290) of the 37th Air Rescue and Recovery Squadron, hovering in ground effect at Da Nang, Republic of South Vietnam, 1968. (U.S. Air Force)

The Sikorsky HH-3E (Sikorsky S-61R) earned the nickname Jolly Green Giant during the Vietnam War. It is a dedicated Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) helicopter flown by the U.S. Air Force, based on the CH-3C transport helicopter. The aircraft is flown by two pilots and the crew includes a flight mechanic and gunner. It is a large twin-engine helicopter with a single main rotor/tail rotor configuration. It has retractable tricycle landing gear and a rear cargo ramp. The rear landing gear retracts into a stub wing on the aft fuselage. The helicopter has an extendable inflight refueling boom.

A Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green Giant refuels in flight from a Lockheed HC-130 Combat King. (U.S. Air Force)