Sikorsky HH-52A Seaguard, 1378 / 62056, USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Museum
This picture is © Martin Laycock and may not be used or published without permission.
Registration: 1378
Construction Number: 62056
Model Sikorsky HH-52A Seaguard
Operator: USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Museum
Airport: Mobile - Battleship Memorial Park, USA - Alabama
Photographer: Martin Laycock
Date Taken: 08/1996
Date Submitted: 18/02/2009
Displayed alongside the USS Alabama as part of the Battleship Memorial Park, is this ex-USCG HH-52A. The Sikorsky S-62 was powered by a single turbine engine, and was originally developed as a commercial venture by the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation of Stratford, Connecticut. They were mainly used by the United States Coast Guard as the HH-52A Seaguard primarily for search and rescue, and have now been replaced by non-amphibious types such as the HH-65 Dolphin which rely on using a winch to retrieve people from a hover. The HH-52A used a boat hulled shaped fuselage, smaller but similar to the US Navys SH-3 (Sikorsky S-61), and was employed aboard the larger Coast Guard cutters and icebreakers. The S-62 used a single 1,250 hp (930 kW) General Electric T58-GE-8 turboshaft engine, the same powerplant used on the larger twin-engined SH-3. The turbine powered S-62 could carry more weight and fly faster than the H-19 (S-55). The aircraft was first conceived and designed to be amphibious so that flotation gear would not be required for over water flights, and rescues could be made by landing on the water. The fuselage is watertight for landings on water or snow. Two outrigger floats resist pitching and rolling on the water. Although the HH-52A looks very different from the Sikorsky H-19, it used many of the same components.
Picture ID:1159349