Tag Archives: John Jean (“Chris”) Christiansen

22 March 1979

Lockheed CP-140 Aurora N64996/140101 photographed during its first flight, 22 March 1979. (Edmonton Journal, 30 March 1979, Page H9, Columns 1–3)

22 March 1979: The Lockheed CP-140 Aurora 140101 (N64996) made its first flight from Hollywood-Burbank Airport at Burbank, California. The pilot in command was Lockheed’s Chief Test Pilot John (“Chris”) Christiansen. The airplane had been initially rolled out of Lockheed’s Building 360 on 25 January 1979.

The CP-140 Aurora is a four-engine turboprop-powered anti-submarine warfare and maritime surveillance aircraft built by the Lockheed-California Company for the Canadian Armed Forces. It uses the airframe of the Lockheed P-3C Orion combined with the ASW equipment of the Lockheed S-3A Viking. It was intended to replace Canada’s fleet of Canadair CP-107 Argus patrol aircraft. The first of 18 CP-140s was delivered 29 May 1980, and the final one, in July 1981. Another three airframes, without the ASW equipment, were completed as the CP-140A Arcturus.

Lockheed CP-140 Aurora 140101 displayed with Canadair CP-107 Argus Mk 1 10718 at Lockheed-California Company, Hollywood Burbank Airport, California. (Lockheed)

The CP-140 Aurora is flown by two pilots and a flight engineer. During missions it is crewed by 8–10 mission specialists. It is 116 feet, 10 inches (35.611 meters) long with a wingspan of 99 feet, 8 inches (30.378 meters) and height of 33 feet, 8.5 inches (10.274 meters). The total wing area is 1,300.0 square feet (120.77 square meters). The wings use a symmetrical NACA 0014 airfoil at the root and NACA 0012 at the tip. The wings have 6° dihedral with 2° 30′ negative twist. The angle of incidence is 3°. The airplane has an empty weight of 61,491 pounds (27,890 kilograms) and maximum permissible weight of 142,000 pounds (64,410 kilograms).

Three-view illustration of a Lockheed P-3A Orion with dimensions. This aircraft is similar in size and appearance to the CP-140 Aurora. (U.S. Navy)

The CP-140 is powered by four Allison T56-A-14 turboprop engines which produce 4,591 shaft horsepower at 13,820 r.p.m., each. They drive four-bladed Hamilton-Standard 54H60-77 constant-speed propellers with a diameter of 13 feet, 5¾ inches (4.109 meters) at 1,020 r.p.m. The T56-A-14 is a single-shaft axial-flow turboprop engine, with a 14-stage compressor section, six combustors, and a 4-stage turbine. The engine is 12 feet, 2.3 inches (3.716 meters) long, 4 feet, 1.0 inches (1.245 meters) in diameter and weighs 1,885 pounds (855 kilograms).

Lockheed CP-140 Aurora 140101. Note the Number 1 engine is shut down to conserve fuel. (Canada Armed Forces)

The CP-140 has a maximum speed of 395 knots (455 miles per hour/732 kilometers per hour). Its service ceiling is 35,100 feet (10,698 meters). The patrol plane has a fuel capacity of 7,661 Imperial gallons (9,200 U.S. gallons/34.828 liters), giving it a maximum range of 5,100 nautical miles (5,869 statute miles/9,445 kilometers). At a mission radius of 1,000 nautical miles (1,151 statute miles/1,852 kilometers), the Aurora can remain on station for 8 hours, 12 minutes.

Lockheed CP-140 Aurora 140109 with open weapons bay. (Canada Armed Forces)

The CP-140 Aurora is armed with eight Mark 46 Mod V homing torpedoes carried in its  weapons bay. There are ten underwing hardpoints. Sonobuoys can be dropped from the belly. A Magnetic Anomaly Detector, the “MAD boom,” is mounted at the tail of the aircraft.

The CP-140 fleet underwent an Aircraft Incremental Modernization Project (AIMP) beginning in 1998. The Aurora Structural Life Extension Program (ASLEP) was completed in 2020. The airplane is expected to remain in service until 2030.

The Auroras are based at Greenwood, Nova Scotia, and Comox, British Columbia.

John Christiansen, 1942. (The 1942 Log)
John Christiansen, 1942. (The 1942 Log)

John Jean (“Chris”) Christiansen was born 1 May 1923, at Oslo, Norway. He was the second of three children of John Christiansen, a painter, and Ruth Floby Christiansen. After the family immigrated to the United States, he grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Christiansen attended Woodrow Wilson High School in Saint Paul, graduating in 1942. He played football and was a member of the W Club.

In June 1942, he was employed by Hayden Motor Service in St. Paul. When he registered for the draft (conscription), he was described as being 5 feet, 10 inches (1.778 meters) tall, 160 pounds (72.6 kilograms), with a ruddy complexion, blonde hair and blue eyes.

Alice Phoebe Zeis, 1942.

John Christiansen married Miss Alice Phoebe Zeis, who had been a fellow student at Woodrow Wilson High School. They had one son. Christiansen was later married to Diane S. Schindler.

Christiansen served in the United States Navy during World War II and the Korean War.

John Christiansen joined the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation as an experimental test pilot in 1953. During his career with Lockheed, he made the first flights of the prototype YP3V-1 (P-3 Orion), 25 November 1958, and the YS-3A Viking, 21 January 1972. He retired from Lockheed in 1983.

The prototype Lockheed YP3V-1 Orion, N1883, U.S. Navy Bu. No 148276. This prototype was constructed from the third L-188 Electra. (Lockheed)
The prototype Lockheed YS-3A Viking, Bu. No. 157992. (Lockheed)
John Christiansen with his family and a Lockheed P-3C Orion, circa 1983.

John Christiansen died at Lake Havasu, Arizona, 6 September 1998, at the age of 75 years.

Full Disclosure: TDiA’s father, Bart Robert Swopes (1925–1995) was Lockheed’s Configuration Manager of both the S-3A Viking and the CP-140 Aurora.

© 2023, Bryan R. Swopes

21 January 1972

Lockheed YS-3A Viking Bu. No. 157992 (394A-1001) during a test flight. (U.S. Navy/Wikipedia)

21 January 1972: At Palmdale, California, Lockheed test pilots John Jean (“Chris”) Christiansen and Lyle Howard Schaefer took the first Lockheed YS-3A Viking, Bu. No. 157992 (Lockheed serial number 394A-1001), for its first flight. The duration of the flight was 1 hour, 42 minutes.

When interviewed afterward, Christiansen said, “The aircraft handled beautifully. It was exceptionally stable and very responsive to the controls. I think it will do everything the Navy expects of it.”

The aircraft was a response to the U.S. Navy’s need to counter the Soviet Union’s massive submarine fleet. By 1972, the USSR had 340 submarines in service, 100 of which were nuclear powered. It was adding new submarines at a rate of 15 per year. The S-3A was needed to replace the aging Grumman S-2 Tracker.

In 1969, the Navy issued a $494,000,000 development contact to Lockheed for the first four YS-3A pre-production aircraft. A second lot of four YS-3As were also built. The total production for the Viking came to 187 aircraft.

Lockheed YS-3A Viking Bu. No. 157992 during first flight, 21 January 1972. (Lockheed Martin)

The Lockheed S-3A Viking is a twin-engine anti-submarine warfare aircraft designed to operate from Essex-class or larger aircraft carriers. It carries a four-man crew consisting of a pilot, co-pilot, tactical coordinator and sensor operator. It is a high-wing aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear. The S-3A had an extensive electronics suite, and a retractable MAD (Magnetic Anomaly Detector) boom. The vertical fin and wings could be folded for storage.

Lockheed YS-3A Viking Bu. No. 157992 at Hollywood-Burbank Airport (BUR), Burbank, California, 1971. (Lockheed Martin)

The S-3A is 53 feet, 4 inches (16.256 meters) long, with a wingspan of 68 feet, 8 inches (20.930 meters) and overall height of 22 feet 9 inches (6.934 meters). The total wing area is 598 square feet (55.6 square meters). With the wings and vertical fin folded for storage, the airplane’s length is reduced to 49 feet, 5 inches (15.062 meters), span 29 feet, 6 inches (8.992 meters) and height of 15 feet, 3 inches (14.648 meters). The S-3A has an empty weight of 26,581 pounds (12,057 kilograms), and a maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 52,539 pounds (23,831 kilograms).

The S-3A is powered by two General Electric TF34-GE-2 turbofan engines mounted under the wings on pylons. The TF34-GE-2 is a two-spool, axial-flow, high-bypass turbofan. It has a single fan stage, a 14 stage compressor, annular combustion chamber and six stage turbine (2 high-pressure stages a 4 low-pressure stages). It has a maximum continuous power rating of 7,513 pounds of thrust (33.420 kilonewtons) at 6,690 r.p.m, N1 (17,130 r.p.m., N2); 8,159 pounds (36.293 kilonewtons) at 6,930 r.p.m., N1 (17,340 r.p.m., N2) for 30 minutes; and a maximum of 9,275 pounds of thrust (41.257 kilonewtons) at 7,365 r.p.m., N1 (17,900 r.p.m., N2), for five minutes. The TF34-GE-2 is 8 feet, 4 inches (2.54 meters) long and 4 feet, 4.4 inches (1.331 meters) in diameter. It weighs 1,421 pounds (664.6 kilograms).

A Lockheed S-3A Viking, Bu. No. 159755, with its MAD boom extended, 6 May 1982. (W.M. Welch, U.S. Navy/VIRIN DN-ST-84-05128)

The cruise speed of the S-3A Viking is 348 knots (400 miles per hour/644 kilometers per hour). Its maximum speed is 429 knots (494 miles per hour/795 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level, or 447 knots (514 miles per hour/828 kilometers per hour) at 20,000 feet (6,096 meters). It can climb at 4,450 feet per minute (22.61 meters per second) and its service ceiling is 40,900 feet (12,466 meters).

The S-3A’s fuel capacity is 2,533 gallons (9,588 liters) usable fuel in three tanks. Its combat range is 2,765 nautical miles (3,182 statute miles/5,121 kilometers). It could also carry two 300 gallon (1,136 liter) drop tanks on the underwing hard points. The maximum ferry range is 3,368 nautical miles (3,875 statute miles/6,238 kilometers).

The S-3A could carry up to 60 sonobuoys. It was normally armed with four Mark 46 homing torpedoes carried in an internal bomb bay. Alternatively, it could carry four Mark 53 mines or Mark 54 depth bombs. It was also capable of carrying two Mark 57 Mod. 0 five-kiloton nuclear depth bombs. Three low drag Mark 82 bombs could be carried on each of the underwing hard points. After conversion to the S-3B configuration, it could carry two AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles.

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the submarine threat was believed to be considerably reduced. 122 S-3As had their antisubmarine suite removed and were converted to the S-3B configuration. Another 16 were converted to ES-3A Shadow electronics intelligence aircraft. YS-3A Bu. No. 157996 was converted to a prototype KS-3A aerial tanker. It and five other YS-3As were later converted to US-3A Carrier Onboard Delivery (“COD”) transport aircraft.

The last S-3s were withdrawn from U.S. Navy service on 30 January 2009. Four S-3Bs were transferred to the NASA John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field, Cleveland, Ohio. The last one was retired 13 July 2021.

Lockheed YS-3A Viking Bu. No. 157992 launches an AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missile, 4 January 1983. (U.S. Navy)

The first YS-3A was rolled out at the Lockheed California Company plant, Burbank, California, on 8 November 1971. It was then transported to the Lockheed plant at Palmdale, California.

Lockheed YS-3A Viking Bu. No. 157992, is rolled out at the Lockheed California Company plant at Burbank, California, 8 November 1971. (Lockheed Martin)

Additional testing of Bu. No. 157992 was carried out at NATC Patuxent River, Maryland.

Lockheed YS-3A Viking, Bu. No. 157992, at NATC Patuxent River, Maryland. (U.S. Navy/Flickr)

According to Rick Pospisil’s “Hoover History,” the first YS-3A, Bu. No. 157992, was damaged at NATF Lakehurst, New Jersey, during barrier arrest trials. It was stricken from the Navy’s active inventory on 20 January 1976, having accumulated just 184.8 flight hours. The damaged aircraft was then stored at the Naval Aircraft Depot (NADEP) at Alameda, California. In 1991, the fuselage was transported to the Navy Avionics Center (NAC) at Indianapolis, Indiana, for modifications. It was later scrapped.

John Christiansen
John Christiansen, 1942. (The 1942 Log)

John Jean (“Chris”) Christiansen was born 1 May 1923, at Oslo, Norway. He was the second of three children of John Christiansen, a painter, and Ruth Floby Christiansen. After the family immigrated to the United States, he grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Christiansen attended Woodrow Wilson High School in Saint Paul, graduating in 1942. He played football and was a member of the W Club.

In June 1942, he was employed by Hayden Motor Service in St. Paul. When he registered for the draft (conscription), he was described as being 5 feet, 10 inches (1.778 meters) tall, 160 pounds (72.6 kilograms), with a ruddy complexion, blonde hair and blue eyes.

Alice Phoebe Zeis, 1942.

John Christiansen married Miss Alice Phoebe Zeis, who had been a fellow student at Woodrow Wilson High School. They had one son. Christiansen was later married to Diane S. Schindler.

Christiansen served in the United States Navy during World War II and the Korean War.

John Christiansen joined the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation as an experimental test pilot in 1953. During his career with Lockheed, he made the first flights of the prototype YP3V-1 (P-3 Orion), 25 November 1958, and the YS-3A Viking, 21 January 1972. He retired from Lockheed in 1983.

John Christiansen with his family and a Lockheed P-3C orion, circa 1984

John Christiansen died at Lake Havasu, Arizona, 6 September 1998, at the age of 75 years.

Lyle Howard Shaefer

Lyle Howard Schaefer, was born 18 Dec 1939 at Union, Nebraska. he was the first of two children of Russell H. Schaefer, a farmer, and Marcella L. McQuin Schaefer. He grew up in Meade, Colorado.

Following his graduation from the University of Colorado, Schaefer entered the United States Navy, 8 June 1962.

Ensign Shaefer was promoted to the rank of lieutenant (junior grade), 6 December 1963.

Serving during the Vietnam War, Lieutenent Schaefer was awarded the Air Medal, 5 October 1968 for meritorious action during a strike mission.

Lieutenant Schaefer was promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander 1 September 1969.

A graduate of the U.S. Navy’s test pilot school, Lieutenant Commander Schaefer resigned in 1972 to join Lockheed.

Lyle Schaefer married Virginia (“Ginny”) Maude Greenlee 29 June 1974, in Los Angeles County

Schaefer later earned a masters degree in business administration (MBA) from California State University Northridge (CSUN).

As Lockheed’s chief experimental test pilot, Schaefer is credited with having set 26 Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) world records for altitude and time to altitude while flying a Lockheed C-130J Hercules, 20 April and 14 May 1999. He was inducted into the Society of Experimental Test Pilots in 2011.

Lyle Howard Schaefer died 1 June 2017 at Marietta, Georgia. His remains were interred at the Georgia National Cemetery, Canton, Georgia.

Full Disclosure: TDiA’s father, Bart Robert Swopes (1925–1995) was Lockheed’s Configuration Manager for both the S-3A Viking and the CP-140 Aurora.

© 2024, Bryan R. Swopes