Tag Archives: World Record for Speed Over a 15km/25km Straight Course

Jacqueline Auriol (5 November 1917–11 February 2000)

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Jacqueline Auriol devant le Mystère IV, en juillet 1955. L’avion a servi de modèle au collier vendu aux enchères mardi 13 mai 2014 à Genève. [AP Photo/Str – Keystone]
Jacqueline Marie-Thérèse Suzanne Douet was born 5 November 1917 at Challans, Vendée, France. She was the daughter of Edmund Pierre Victor Douet, a ship builder, and Suzanne Jeanne Chevy. She attended school in Nantes, then studied art at L’École du Louvre, Paris.

On 26 February 1938, Paul Auriol, the son of Vincent Jules Auriol, who was later the first president of France’s Fourth Republic, married Mlle Douet. They would have two sons. The couple divorced, 12 November 1965, but re-married, 24 Jan 1987.

During World War II, Paul and Jacqueline worked with La Résistance française, fighting against the German invaders and the Vichy government of France.

After taking a flight with Commander Raymond Guillaume, Mme Auriol was determined to learn to fly. She earned a private license in 1948.

Jacqueline Auriol, 1947 (Ministère de la Culture – Médiathèque du Patrimoine, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Studio Harcourt)

July 1949, Jacqueline Auriol was severely injured in crash of a Société de construction aeronavale (SCAN) 30 seaplane (a license-built Grumman G-44A Widgeon), on the Seine at Les Mureaux. She required 14 operations at the Foch Hospital to repair the damage to her face, followed by 8 more operations performed by Dr. John Marquis Converse at the Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital in the United States.

In 1950, Jacqueline Auriol qualified as a French military pilot. She was then accepted as a test pilot for Société des Avions Marcel Dassault.

While in the United States for continued medical treatment, Mme Auriol trained as a helicopter pilot at the Bell Aircraft Company plant at Buffalo, New York. After only 23 flight hours in a Bell Model 47, she was awarded her helicopter pilot certificate, 23 January 1951. Larry Bell, president of the company, said that she was “the most extraordinary woman in the world. She has met fear head-on and conquered it. She has a complete passion for flying.” She became the eighth member of Whirly-Girls, the international association of women helicopter pilots.

Jacqueline Auriol and instructor Dick Buyers in the cockpit of a Bell Model 47D helicopter, N153B, Buffalo, New York, 23 January 1951. (Airport Journals)

On 12 May 1951, Mme Auriol flew a Goblin-powered de Havilland DH.100 Vampire to set a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) world record for speed over a given distance of 100 kilometers (62.14 statute miles), averaging  818.18 km/h (505.39 m.p.h.). ¹ She broke the existing record, 703.38 km/h (437.06 m.p.h.) set 29 December 1949 by Jacqueline Cochran of the United States with a North American Aviation P-51C Mustang. ² For her record flight, Mme Auriol was named Chevalier de la légion d’honneur. Harry S. Truman, President of the United States, presented her with the Harmon International Aviatrix Trophy, 18 November 1951.

Jacqueline Auriol in the cockpit of a SNCASE SE 535 Mistral. (Flying Review)

On 21 December 1952, at Istres, France, Mme Auriol flew a license-built variant of the de Havilland DH.100 Vampire FB.53 fighter bomber—the Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques du Sud-Est (SNCASE) SE 535 Mistral—to set an FAI World Record for Speed Over 100 Kilometers Without Payload, at 855,92 km/h (531.84 m.p.h.). ³ The aircraft was equipped with a Hispano-built Rolls-Royce Nene 104 turbojet engine. Mme Auriol won a second Harmon Trophy.

President Trumna presents the Harmon Trophy to Jacqueline Auriol.

On 31 May, 1955, Mme Auriol set a World Record for Speed Over a 15km/25km (9.3–15.5 statute miles) Straight Course, flying the prototype Dassault Mystère IV N interceptor. Her speed averaged 1 151 km/h (715 m.p.h.). ⁴ Again she broke a speed record set by Jackie Cochran with a prototype Canadair Sabre Mk.3. ⁵ For this flight, she was promoted to Officier de la Légion d’honneur, 31 October 1956. She was awarded a third Harmon Trophy, which was presented by President Dwight Eisenhower, 23 October 1956. Her record-setting Mystère IV N is on display at the Conservatoire l’Air et l’Espace d’Acquitane, Bordeaux Merignac Airport, France.

Dassault Mystère IV N 01 F-ZXRM, right side profile. (© Collection Pyperpote)

Flying a delta-wing Dassault Mirage III C, at Istres, 22 June 1962, Jacqueline Auriol averaged 1 850,2 km/h (1,149.7 m.p.h.) to set an FAI  World Record for Speed Over 100 Kilometers Without Payload. ⁵

Jacqueline Auriol climbs out of the cockpit of a Dassault Mirage IIIC. (Joyeux Magazine)

The following year, 14 June 1963, Mme Auriol flew the reconnaissance version, the Dassault Mirage III R, over a 100 kilometer course at an average speed of 2 038,70 km/h (1,266.79 m.p.h.). This set her fifth FAI speed record. ⁷ She was the first woman to exceed Mach 2.

Jacqueline Auriol flew this Dassault Mirage III R, 307, to an FAI world speed record, 14 June 1963. (Archives Musee BA 102 – Collection Particuliere)
Jacqueline Auriol (1917-2000), aviatrice française. Remise du Record international féminin (14 juin 1963) par Jacques Allez, directeur de l’Aéroclub de France. Paris, janvier 1964.

In 1965, Mme Auriol set two world speed records while flying the prototype Dassault Aviation Mystère-Falcon 20 business jet, F-WLKB. On 15 May, she averaged 819,13 km/h (508.98 m.p.h.) over a 2000-kilometer (1,242.7 statute miles) closed circuit, ⁸  and on 10 June, over a 1000-kilometer circuit (621.4 miles), 859,51 km/h (534.08 m.p.h.). ⁹

Jacqueline Auriol steps off the Dassault Aviation Mystère-Falcon 20.

On 28 December 1979, Jacqueline Auriol was promoted to Commandeur de la Légion d’honneur, and 13 July 1992, to Grand officier de la Légion d’honneur.

She was awarded the Grand-croix Ordre National du Merite, 14 May 1957.

Mme Jacqueline Marie-Thérèse Suzanne Douet Auriol died at Hotel-de-Ville, Paris, 11 February 2000. Her remains were interred at the cemetery in Ville de Muret, France

Jacqueline Auriol, 1956. (Association Amicale des Essais en Vol/CEV Brétigny)

“Now I know that only life and death are important. When I am in the air, close to both, things finally take on their proper perspective. Nonsense becomes nonsense. The big things stand out, become alive.”

—Jacqueline Auriol

¹ FAI Record File Number 10834

² FAI Record File Numbers 4476 and 12323

³ FAI Record File Number 12462

⁴ FAI Record File Number 9074

⁵ FAI Record File Number 8870

⁶ FAI Record File Number 12391

⁷ FAI Record File Number 12392

⁸ FAI Record File Number  9073

⁹ FAI Record File Number  1351

© 2022, Bryan R. Swopes

21 January–8 February 1971

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A Lockheed P-3C Orion (Mass Communications Specialist 2nd Class John Herman, U.S. Navy)
Lockheed P-3C-225-LO Orion, Bu. No. 162775, of Patrol Squadron Four (VP-4), similar to the record-setting airplane flown by CDR Lilienthal and his crew, 22 January–8 February 1971. (Mass Communications Specialist 2nd Class John Herman, U.S. Navy)

21 January–8 February 1971: A Lockheed P-3C Orion antisubmarine warfare patrol bomber, Bu. No. 156512, under the command of Commander Donald H. Lilienthal, United States Navy, took off from Naval Air Station Atsugi, Japan, at 23:30 UTC, Thursday, 21 January (8:30 a.m., 22 January, Japan Time), and flew 11,036.47 kilometers (6,857.75 statute miles), non-stop, to NATC Patuxent River, Maryland. The airplane landed at 8:51 a.m., Eastern Standard Time (13:51 UTC), Friday, 22 January. The duration of the flight was 15 hours, 21 minutes.

This was a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) world distance record for turboprop airplanes.¹ The Orion’s course deviated around foreign airspace so the actual distance flown was 7,010 miles (11,218.5 kilometers).

Photograph of CDR Lilienthal and LCDR Stoodley with their P-3C, 156521. (JAX AIR NEWS-LATWINGER, 19 February 1971, Page 15.)
Photograph of CDR Lilienthal and LCDR Stoodley with their P-3C, 156512. (JAX AIR NEWS-LATWINGER, 19 February 1971, Page 15.)

For the long distance flight the Orion carried a flight crew of seven: Commander Donald H. Lilienthal, Aircraft Commander; Captain R.H. Ross, Pilot; Lieutenant Commander F. Howard Stoodley, Pilot; Lieutenant R.T. Myers, Navigator; Commander J.E. Koehr, Meteorologist; Chief Aviation Machinist’s Mate K.D. Frantz, Flight Engineer; and Chief Aviation Electrician’s Mate H.A. Statti, Flight Engineer.

A Lockheed P-3C Orion patrol bomber. (U.S. Navy)
A Lockheed P-3C Orion patrol bomber. (Lockheed Martin via Code One Magazine)

On Wednesday, 27 January 1971, the same airplane set both FAI and National Aeronautic Association records for Speed Over a Straight Course of 15/25 Kilometers of 806.10 kilometers per hour (500.89 miles per hour) at NAS Patuxent River.²

The U.S. National Record still stands:

Screen Shot 2015-01-27 at 19.47.13

On February 4, at Edwards Air Force Base in the high desert of Southern California, Commander Lilienthal flew 156512 to a World Record for Altitude in Horizontal Flight of 13,721.5 meters (45,018.1 feet).³

On 8 February 1971, while till at Edwards AFB, Commander Lilienthal and 156512 set five more world records for heavy turboprop airplanes. The P-3C climbed to a height of 3,000 meters (9,843 feet) in 2 minutes, 52 seconds ⁴ ; to 6,000 meters (19,685 feet) in 5 minutes, 46 seconds ⁵ ; to 9,000 meters (29, 528 feet) in 10 minutes, 26 seconds ⁶ ; and 12,000 meters (39,370 feet) in 19 minutes, 42 seconds.⁷ The Orion continued climbing until it reached a world record altitude of 14,086.1 meters (46,214.2 feet). ⁸

For his record-setting flights, Commander Lilienthal was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Lockheed Model 188 Electra prototype, N1881, at Lockheed Air Terminal, Burbank, California, 1957 (Robert Reedy Collection/San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives)

The record-setting airplane was a Lockheed Model 285A P-3C-110-LO Orion, Bu. No. 156512, LAC serial number 5506, built by the Lockheed-California Company at Burbank, California. The Orion was completed 14 August 1969. It was assigned to the Naval Air Test Center at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. The Orion was a standard production P-3C with no engine or fuel system modifications.

The Lockheed P-3 Orion was developed from the Model 188 Electra—a four-engine turboprop airliner which first flew in 1957—primarily as a long-range anti-submarine warfare and maritime surveillance aircraft. The P-3 has been adapted to many other missions. The P-3C variant in U.S. Navy service is usually operated by a crew of 11.

The bomber is 116 feet, 10 inches (35.611 meters) long with a wingspan of 99 feet, 8 inches (30.378 meters) and overall height of 34 feet, 3 inches (10.439 meters). It has a zero-fuel weight of 77,200 pounds (35,017 kilograms) and a normal maximum takeoff weight of 135,000 pounds (61,235 kilograms) (Overload Takeoff: 139,780 pounds/63,403 kilograms).

The P-3C 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).

The P-3C can remain airborne for 16 hours.

There is a wide variety of sensors board the P-3. Sonobuoys can be dropped from the belly. A Magnetic Anomaly Detector, the “MAD boom” is mounted at the tail of the aircraft.

The Orion caries no defensive weapons. It can carry bombs, depth charges, torpedoes, mines, air-to-surface and anti-ship missiles, and nuclear weapons.

Hunter and prey. A U.S. Navy Lockheed P-3C Orion escorts a nuclear-powered Soviet Victor-III attack submarine. (U.S. Navy)
Hunter and prey. A U.S. Navy Lockheed P-3C-205-LO Orion, Bu. No. 161339, escorts a Soviet Victor I (Project 671) nuclear-powered attack submarine. (U.S. Navy)

More than 750 P-3 Orions and its variants were built by Lockheed and licensee Kawasaki Heavy Industries between 1961 and 1996. In addition to the U.S. Navy and various Federal government agencies, the Lockheed P-3 Orion remains in service worldwide with more than twenty countries.

Lockheed P-3C-110-LO Orion Bu. No. 156512 served as a test aircraft at Patuxent River until 15 July 1974. It was then assigned to VP-31 where it remained for over nine years, carrying the squadron identification marking RP and the numeral 9. It later served with VP-9, VP-46, VP-65, VP-16 and finally, VP-45. 156512 was placed in long-term storage at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Tucson, Arizona, in 1995, and was scrapped in 2004.

A Lockheed P-3C Orion of Patrol Squadron Sixty-Five (VP-65) (PG 06)  at NAS Point Mugu (NTD), on the southern coastline of California, 28 March 1993. Photographed by Vance Vasquez. (San Diego Air & Space Museum)
Midshipman D. H. Lilienthal (The 1955 Lucky Bag)

Donald Herman Lilienthal was born 6 February 1931 at Pope, Minnesota. He was the fourth child of Frederick R. Lilienthal, a steam railway worker, and Bertha Camille Metlie Lilienthal. He attended Glenwood High School, Glenwood, Minnesota, graduating in 1949. He then studied mathematics at the University of Minnesota, before accepting an appointment as a midshipman at the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, in 1951.

Midshipman Lilienthal graduated from Annapolis and was commissioned an ensign, United States Navy, 3 June 1955. He was then trained as a pilot. Later, he graduated from the United States Naval Test Pilot School at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland.

In June 1958, Lieutenant (j.g.) Lilienthal married Miss Jeanne L. Murphy, in Duval County, Florida. They had three children, Karen, John and Donald, Jr. They divorced in March 1975.

Lieutenant (j.g.) Lilienthal was promoted to the rank of lieutenant 1 July 1959, and to lieutenant commander, 1 July 1964. He advanced to commander on 1 July 1969.

Commander Donald H. Lilienthal, United States Navy

Commander Lilenthal retired from the United States Navy in December 1975 after 20 years of service as an antisubmarine warfare pilot and test pilot. He later worked as a consultant to the aviation industry.

Commander Lilienthal married Mrs. Jimena Rosa Goich Recavrren, a widow, in Arlington, Virginia, 17 September 1982. They divorced 3 December 1993 in Fairfax, Virginia.

Commander Donald Herman Lilienthal, United States Navy (Retired) passed away at Loudon, Virginia, 21 August 2014 at the age of 83 years. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.

A Lockheed P-3B Orion, Bu. No. 153451, Patrol Squadron 17, off Ohau, 1976. (PH2 (AC) Westhusing, U. S. Navy)
A Lockheed P-3B-90-LO Orion, Bu. No. 153451, of Patrol Squadron 17, off Oahu, Hawaiian Islands, 1976. (PH2 (AC) Westhusing, U. S. Navy)

¹ FAI Record File Number 8070

² FAI Record File Number 8582

³ FAI Record File Number 8476

⁴ FAI Record File Number 3400

⁵ FAI Record File Number 3401

⁶ FAI Record File Number 3402

⁷ FAI Record File Number 3403

⁸ FAI Record File Number 8055

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

5 February 1962

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Lieutenant Robert W. Crafton, U.S. Navy, and Captain Louis K. Keck, U.S. Marine Corps, with the record-setting Sikorsky HSS-2 Sea King. (FAI)
Lieutenant Robert W. Crafton, U.S. Navy, and Captain Louis K. Keck, U.S. Marine Corps, with the record-setting Sikorsky HSS-2 Sea King. (FAI)

5 February 1962: A Sikorsky HSS-2 Sea King (later redesignated SH-3A) became the world’s fastest helicopter by establishing a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) world speed record for helicopters of 339 kilometers per hour (210.645 miles per hour) over a 19 kilometer (11.8 mile) course between Milford and New Haven, Connecticut.¹ The pilots were Lieutenant Robert Wiley Crafton, United States Navy and Captain Louis K. Keck, United States Marine Corps. Both pilots were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the American Helicopter Society’s Frederick L. Feinberg Award.

Having served the United States Navy for 45 years, the Sea King is still in service world-wide, most notably as the VH-3D “Marine One” presidential helicopter.

Sikorsky HSS-2 Sea King, Bu. No. 147xxx, modified for the speed record attempt. (FAI)
Sikorsky HSS-2 Sea King, Bu. No. 147xxx, modified for the speed record attempt. (FAI)

The Sikorsky HSS-2 Sea King was the first of the S-61 series of military and civil helicopters. It is a large twin-engine helicopter with a single main rotor/tail rotor configuration. The fuselage is designed to allow landing on water. The XHSS-2 made its first flight 11 March 1959. The helicopter was originally used as an anti-submarine helicopter.

The HSS-2 is 72 feet, 6 inches (22.098 meters) long and 16 feet, 10 inches (5.131 meters) high with all rotors turning. The helicopter’s width, across the sponsons, is 16 feet. The main rotors and tail can be folded for more compact storage aboard aircraft carriers, shortening the aircraft to 46 feet, 6 inches (14.173 meters). The empty weight of the HSS-2 is 10,814 pounds (4,905 kilograms). The overload gross weight is 19,000 pounds (8,618 kilograms).

The main rotor has five blades and a diameter of 62 feet, 0 inches (18.898 meters). Each blade has a chord of 1 foot, 6¼ inches (0.464 meters). The rotor blade airfoil was the NACA 0012, which was common for helicopters of that time. The total blade area is 222.5 square feet (20.671 square meters), and the disc area is 3,019 square feet (280.474 square meters). The tail rotor also has five blades and a diameter of 10 feet, 4 inches (3.150 meters). They each have a chord of 7–11/32 inches (0.187 meters). At 100% NR, the main rotor turns 203 r.p.m. and the tail rotor, 1,244 r.p.m.

The HSS-2 was powered by two General Electric T58-GE-6 turboshaft engines, which had a Normal Power rating of 900 horsepower, and Military Power rating of 1,050 horsepower; both ratings at 19,555 r.p.m. at Sea Level. The main transmission was rated for 2,000 horsepower, maximum. (Later models were built with more powerful T58-GE-8 engines. Early aircraft were retrofitted.)

The HSS-2 has a cruise speed of 125 knots (144 miles per hour/232 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level, and a maximum speed of 133 knots (153 miles per hour/246 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level. The service ceiling is 12,100 feet (3,688 meters). The hover ceiling at normal gross weight is 5,200 feet (1,585 meters), out of ground effect (HOGE), and 7,250 feet (2,210 meters), in ground effect (HIGE). The HSS-2 had a combat endurance of 4 hours and a maximum range of 500 nautical miles (575 statute miles/926 kilometers).

The Sea King was primarily an anti-submarine aircraft. It could be armed with up to four MK 43 or MK 44 torpedoes and one MK 101 nuclear-armed depth bomb. Other weapons loads included four MK 14 depth charges and four MK 54 air depth bombs.

In 1962, the HSS-2 was redesignated SH-3A Sea King. Many early production aircraft have remained in service and have been 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. Sikorsky produced the last S-61 helicopter in 1980, having built 794. Production has been licensed to manufacturers in England, Italy, Canada and Japan. They have produced an additional 679 Sea Kings.

Captain Louis K. Keck, USMC (left), and Lieutenant Robert W. Crafton, U.S. Navy, in the cockpit of their Sikorsky HSS-2 Sea King. (U.S. Navy NH69960)

¹ FAI Record File Number 13121

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

4–9 February 1982

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A Sikorsky S-76A in flight over the City of New York. (Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company)

4–9 February 1982: Sikorsky test pilots Nicholas D. Lappos, William Frederick Kramer, Byron Graham, Jr., David R. Wright, and Thomas F. Doyle, Jr., set a series of Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) speed, time-to-climb and sustained altitude world records while flying a Sikorsky S-76A helicopter, serial number 760178, FAA registration N5445J, at Palm Beach, Florida.

On 4 February, Nick Lappos, who had made the first flight with the prototype S-76 nearly five years earlier, set a record of 335,50 kilometers per hour (208.47 miles per hour) over a 3-kilometer course (FAI Record File Number 1261, Class E-1d), and 342,61 km/h (212.89 m,p,h.) over a straight 15/25 kilometer course (1262). Flying in the E-1e class for heavier helicopters, Billy Kramer ¹ flew both the 3 kilometer and 15/25 kilometer course at an average 340,48 km/h (211.56 m.p.h.) (1828, 1829).

On 5 February, Byron Graham, Jr.,² flew the S-76A to 3,000 meters (9,843 feet) in 3 minutes, 11 seconds (1819); to 6,000 meters (19,685 feet) in 8 minutes, 37.3 seconds (Class E-1d, 1821); and a sustained altitude of 7,940 meters (26,050 feet) in level flight (Class E-1D, 9947).

On 6 February, David R. Wright averaged 331,22 km/h (205.81 m.p.h.) over a 100 kilometer closed circuit without payload (Class E-1d, 1264), and 334,69 kilometers per hour (207.97 m.p.h.) over a closed circuit of 100 kilometers without payload (Class E-1e, 1265).

After taking a day off, the Sikorsky S-76A was back in the air on 8 February, this time with Thomas F. Doyle, Jr., flying the helicopter over the 500 kilometer closed circuit, without payload. The Sikorsky averaged 345,74 km/h (214.83 m.p.h.) (Class E-1, 1844, E-1e, 1845). This was also an Absolute World Speed Record for helicopters (Class E, 11660).

On the last day of the series, 9 February 1982, David R. Wright was back in the cockpit of N5445J. Flying the 1,000 kilometer closed circuit without payload, the S-76A averaged 305, 10 km/h (189.58 m.p.h.) (Class E-1e, 1827).

After 41 years, nine of these twelve Fédération Aéronautique Internationale world records still stand.

Sikorsky S-76A N5445J

N5445J was owned by Rodgers Helicopter Service, Kearney, Nebraska, and operated as an air ambulance by Good Samaritan AirCare until its U.S. registration was cancelled, 10 July 2006.

Fire-damaged Sikorsky S-76A serial number 760178, registration PR-IME, at Macae Airport, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, 29 December 2008.
Fire-damaged Sikorsky S-76A, serial number 760178, registration PR-IME, at Macaé Airport, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, 29 December 2008.

The record-setting helicopter eventually found its way to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Owned and operated by Atlas Taxi Aereo, 760178 had been re-registered as PR-IME and was transporting Petrobras employees to offshore oil production platforms.

At approximately 8:30 a.m., 29 December 2008, PR-IME had departed Macaé Airport enroute Platform P-12 in the Campos Basin with 7 persons on board.

Shortly after takeoff, the flight crew observed an AC generator caution light and returned to the airport. Before landing, a fire warning light also illuminated. Upon landing on Runway 24, all seven escaped from the burning helicopter without injury. The fire was quickly extinguished, but the Sikorsky S-76A was substantially damaged.

Cutaway illustration of a Sikorsky S-76A. (Sikorsky Archives)
Cutaway illustration of a Sikorsky S-76A. (Sikorsky Archives)

The Sikorsky S-76A is a twin-engine intermediate class helicopter that can be configured to carry 6 to 12 passengers. It is used as an executive transport, a scheduled passenger airliner, utility transport, search and rescue aircraft and air ambulance. The helicopter is certified for instrument flight and has retractable tricycle landing gear.

The prototype was rolled out at Stratford, Connecticut on 11 January 1977 and the first flight took place on 13 March. It was certified in 1978 and the first production aircraft was delivered to Air Logistics, 27 February 1979.

The number 2 Sikorsky S-76 makes the type’s first flight, 13 March 1977. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)

The S-76A is 52 feet, 6 inches (16.00 meters) long with rotors turning. The fuselage has a length of 43 feet, 4.43 inches (13.219 meters) and a width of 8 feet (2.44 meters). The helicopter’s overall height is 14 feet, 5.8 inches (4.414 meters). The four bladed composite main rotor is 44 feet (13.41 meters) in diameter. The blades are attached to a one-piece forged aluminum hub and use elastomeric bearings. As is customary with American helicopters, the main rotor turns counter-clockwise as seen from above. (The advancing blade is on the right.) The four-bladed tail rotor has a diameter of 8 feet (2.438 meters) and turns clockwise as seen from the helicopter’s left. (The advancing blade is below the axis of rotation.) It is mounted in a pusher configuration on the left side of the tailboom. The tail rotor is constructed of composite airfoils mounted to graphite spars.

The S-76A was equipped with two Allison 250-C30 turboshaft engines rated at 557 shaft horsepower, each. Subsequent variants have been built with Turbomeca Arriel 1S and 2S engines, as well as Pratt & Whitney PT6B-3A and PW210S engines.

The S-76 has an empty weight of 7,007 pounds (3,178 kilograms). The S-76A maximum gross weight was 10,500 pounds (4,763 kilograms). Beginning with the S-67B, this was increased to 11,700 pounds (5,307 kilograms).

The Sikorsky S-76 has a maximum cruise speed of 155 knots (287 kilometers per hour). It can hover in ground effect (HIGE) at 7,050 feet (2,149 meters) or out of ground effect (HOGE) at 3,300 feet (1,006 meters). The service ceiling is 13,800 feet (4,206 meters).

The helicopter was designed with offshore oil support as a major consideration. It was intended to carry 2 pilots and 12 passengers 400 nautical miles (460 statute miles, or 741 kilometers). Maximum range with no reserve is 411 nautical miles (473 statute miles/762 kilometers).

Sikorsky built 307 S-76As. More than 850 of all variants have been built. The current production model is the S-76D.

Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation advertisement in The Post, West Palm Beach, Florida, Vol. XLIX, No. 9, Sunday, 28 February 1982, Page A12, columns 1–3.

¹ William F. Kramer was killed in the crash of a Sikorsky S-76B, N5AZ, near Sutton, Massachusetts, 6 June 1986. Also killed were another company test pilot, Ronald W. Kuhrt, son of Wesley A. Kuhrt, a former Sikorsky president; William F. Gilson; and Richard C. Elpel. The aircraft had been flying a group associated with King Hussein of Jordan. At the time, sabotage was considered a possibility. The NTSB investigation was unable to determine a probable cause.

² Byron Graham, Jr., a former U.S. Marine Corps officer, along with Lieutenant Colonel Robert P.Guay, performed as series of loops and rolls with a Sikorsky CH-53A Sea Stallion, 23 October 1968.

© 2024, Bryan R. Swopes

15 December 1959

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Major Joseph W. Rogers, U.S. Air Force, in the cockpit of Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467, at Edwards AFB, 15 December 1956. (U.S. Air Force)
Major Joseph W. Rogers, U.S. Air Force, in the cockpit of Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467, at Edwards AFB, 15 December 1959. (U.S. Air Force)

15 December 1959: At Edwards Air Force Base, California, Major Joseph William Rogers, United States Air Force, flew a Convair F-106A Delta Dart all-weather interceptor, serial number 56-0467, to a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed over a 15 Kilometer-to-25 Kilometer Straight Course, breaking the record set two years earlier by Major Adrian E. Drew with a modified McDonnell F-101A Voodoo.¹

At an altitude of 40,000 feet (12,192 meters), Rogers made two passes over the straight 11 mile (17.7 kilometers) course, once in each direction, for an average speed of 2,455.736 kilometers per hour (1,525.924 miles per hour)—Mach 2.31. For his accomplishment, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the FAI’s Henry De La Vaulx Medal, and the Thompson Trophy.

Convair F-106A Delta dart 56-0467, FAI World Speed Record holder, parked on Rogers Dry lake at Edwards AFB. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467, FAI World Speed Record holder, parked on Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards AFB. Note the jettisonable external fuel tanks. (U.S. Air Force)
A copy of Joseph W. Rogers Diplôme de Record from the FAI. NOTE: The signature of LE PRESIDENT DE LA F.A.I. at the lower right of the document. (F-106DeltaDart.com)
A copy of Joseph W. Rogers’ Diplôme de Record from the FAI. NOTE: The signature of LE PRÉSIDENT DE LA F.A.I. at the lower right of the document. (f-106deltadart.com)
The Thompson Trophy
The Thompson Trophy

Major Rogers was the Air Force F-106 project officer assigned to Convair. He first attempted the record with another F-106A, 56-0459, but when that Delta Dart developed uncontrollable compressor stalls, 56-0467 was substituted. (This has led to confusion over which aircraft actually set the record, but in an interview, Colonel Rogers confirmed that it was 467.)

Joseph William Rogers was born at Chillicothe, Ohio, 28 May 1924. He grew up on a farm, and attended West High School, graduating in 1942. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943 and trained as a pilot. From 1944 he was assigned as a flight instructor in California. Rogers remained in the Air Force after World War II.

During the Korean War, Joe Rogers got the nickname “Whistlin’ Joe” when he put whistles on the wings of his North American Aviation F-51D Mustang in an effort to frighten enemy troops. 1st Lieutenant Rogers was awarded the Silver Star for his actions of 8 October 1950, in close support of a British infantry unit, which was surrounded on a hilltop by the enemy.

Though not officially credited, it is widely accepted that on 8 November 1950, with his Mustang Buckeye Blitz VI, he shot down an enemy Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 jet fighter. An aerial victory of a piston-engine fighter over a jet fighter was a very rare occurrence. Rogers was one of a group of “The American Fighting Man” named Man of the Year by TIME Magazine. He flew 170 combat missions in the F-51 and another 30 in the Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star.

Captain Joseph W. Rogers, U.S. Air Force, in teh cocpt of BUCKEY BLITZ VI, Korea, 1950. (U.S. Air Force)
Captain Joseph W. Rogers in the cockpit of his North American F-51D Mustang, Buckeye Blitz VI, assigned to the 36th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Group, Korea, 1950. Note the red dive bombing stripes on the upper surface of the Mustang’s left wing. (Photograph by Lieutenant Colonel William J. O’Donnell, commanding officer, 36th FBS, via ww2color.com)

Rogers was a 1954 graduate of the Air Force Test Pilot School and worked as a test pilot on the North American Aviation F-86D Sabre radar-equipped interceptor, and then the Convair F-102 Delta Dagger and F-106 Delta Dart.

From 1960 to 1964 Rogers commanded the 317th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, which was, at that time, the largest squadron in the United States Air Force. In 1963, he flew a F-102 in the annual William Tell competition at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, which he won, and was named the Air Force’s “Top Gun.”

Colonel Joseph W. Rogers with a Lockheed SR-71A. (U.S. Air Force)

Next, Rogers he commanded the Lockheed SR-71A and F-12A Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base. He is one of the few pilots to have ejected from an SR-71A, when 61-7953 went out of control, 18 December 1969. Both he and Radar Intercept Officer Lieutenant Colonel Gary Heidelbaugh safely escaped the doomed Blackbird.

Colonel Rogers was Vice Commander of the 3d Fighter Wing, flying the McDonnell F-4 Phantom II during the Vietnam War. After serving as Assistant Deputy Commander of the 7th and 13th Air Forces, he was appointed Chief of Staff for Operations at the Aerospace Defense Command Headquarters, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. Rogers retired from the Air Force in 1975 after 32 years of service.

Joe Rogers worked for Northrop Aerospace for the next 13 years, marketing the company’s F-5 and F-20 fighters.

During his service in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, Colonel Rogers was awarded the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Distinguished Flying Cross with two Oak Leaf Clusters, and Air Medal with thirteen Oak Leaf Clusters.

Joe Rogers was married to the former Charis Tate. They had three children. Mrs. Rogers passed away in 2003.

Colonel Joseph W. Rogers died at Healdsburg, California, 6 August 2005, at the age of 81 years. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, alongside his wife.

Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 after setting World Speed Record. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 after setting World Speed Record. Note the missing paint on vertical fin as a result of the high speed flight. (U.S. Air Force)

The Convair F-106A Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor of the United States Air Force from 1959 to 1988, when it was withdrawn from service with the Air National Guard. It was a single-seat, single engine delta-winged aircraft capable of speeds above Mach 2. The airplane was a development of the earlier F-102A Delta Dagger, and was initially designated F-102B. However, so many changes were made that it is considered to be a new aircraft.

The F-106A is 70 feet, 8¾ inches (21.558 meters) long with a wingspan of 38 feet, 4 inches (11.684 meters). The total area of the delta wing is 697.83 square feet (64.83 square meters). The angle of incidence was 0° and there was no dihedral. The leading edges were swept aft 60°. The top of the vertical fin was 20 feet, 3¼ inches (6.179 meters) high. The Delta Dart weighs 23,646 pounds (10,726 kilograms) empty, and has a maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 38,729 pounds (17,567 kilograms).

The F-106 was powered by a Pratt & Whitney J75-P-17 afterburning turbojet engine. The J75-P-17 was a two-spool axial-flow turbojet engine with afterburner. It used a 15-stage compressor section (8 high- and 7 low-pressure stages) and a 3-stage turbine section (1 high- and 2-low pressure stages. The J75-P-17 had a maximum continuous power rating of 14,100 pounds of thrust (62.72 kilonewtons), and military power rating of 16,100 pounds (71.62 kilonewtons) (30-minute limit). It produced a maximum of 24,500 pounds (108.98 kilonewtons) with afterburner (5-minute limit). The engine was 3 feet, 8.25 inches (1.124 meters) in diameter, 19 feet, 9.6 inches long (6.035 meters), and weighed 5,875 pounds (2,665 kilograms)

The interceptor has a cruise speed of 530 knots (610 miles per hour/982 kilometers per hour). and a maximum speed of 1,153 knots 1,327 miles per hour/2,135 kilometers per hour) at 35,000 feet (10,668 meters). The F-106A had a service ceiling is 53,800 feet (16,398 meters) and a rate of climb of 48,900 feet per minute (248 meters per second). Its combat radius was 530 nautical miles (610 statute miles/982 kilometers) and the maximum ferry range was 1,843 nautical miles (2,121 statute miles/3,413 kilometers).

The Delta Dart was armed with four GAR-3A radar-homing, or -4A (AIM-4F, -4G) infrared-homing Falcon air-to-air guided missiles, and one MB-1 (AIM-2A) Genie unguided rocket with a 1.5 kiloton W-25 nuclear warhead. The missiles were carried in an internal weapons bay. In 1972, the General Electric M61A1 Vulcan 20mm cannon was added to the rear weapons bay with 650 round of ammunition. (The number of gun-equipped Delta Darts is uncertain.)

Convair built 342 F-106 interceptors. 277 were F-106As and the remainder were F-106B two-seat trainers.

Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight. Because of the filter used by the photographer, areas that are actually painted bright “day-glow” orange appear to be  white. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight, seen from left rear quarter. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 in flight, seen from left rear quarter. (U.S. Air Force)

F-106A 56-0467 was built in April 1958 and was the eighteenth production aircraft. After being used for flight testing at Edwards Air Force Base it was converted back to an operational interceptor and assigned to the 329th Tactical Fighter Squadron at nearby George Air Force Base.

Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 on display at at Edwards AFB, May 1961.
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0467 on display at Edwards AFB, May 1961. (Gary Abel from Marty Isham Collection via f-106deltadart.com)

On 14 August 1961, while taking off from George Air Force Base, Victorville, California, on a routine training mission, 56-0467’s right tire blew out. The pilot, James Wilkinson, flew until most of the airplane’s fuel had been exhausted, and then landed at Edwards Air Force Base because of its longer runway and available emergency equipment. After touching down, the right wheel and brake assembly caught fire. The flames quickly spread to the wing and fuselage. The aircraft slid to a stop and the pilot safely escaped. 467 was totally destroyed.

56-0459, which had been scheduled to make the speed record flights, is on display at the McChord Air Force Base Museum.

Major Joe Rogers with Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0459 at Edwards Air Force Base before a speed record attempt. (U.S. Air Force)
Major Joe Rogers with Convair F-106A Delta Dart 56-0459 at Edwards Air Force Base before a speed record attempt. This airplane was originally scheduled for the speed record attempt. (U.S. Air Force)
U.S. Air Force public relations photograph.
U.S. Air Force public relations photograph.

¹ FAI Record File Number 9064

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes