wonwinglo
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NORFOLK - A workhorse for four decades, the Navy's last two operational H-3 Sea King helicopters rumbled off toward the "bone yard" Friday in a retirement ceremony made up mostly of sailors half their age.
The polished green fuselages, one 42 years old, the other 41, will be preserved in the rust-free air of Arizona, where the military parks hundreds of aircraft relics in case they are needed again some day.
The Sea King has been seen in every role the Navy has had, from Vietnam to last year's Hurricane Katrina relief.
It was used for anti-submarine warfare until the early 1990s, provided range safety during gunnery practice at sea, was used as a fire fighting helicopter, recovered drones, conducted search and rescue and was a passenger transport and mail carrier.
It pulled John Glenn from his bobbing space capsule in 1962 and "Goose," the "Top Gun" character, from his crashed airplane in the 1986 movie , said Cmdr. Kris Croeber, commanding officer of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 2.
"It's been the mainstay of the fleet. It's a ' 57 Chevy," Croeber quipped as he said good bye to an aircraft he has flown since the late 1980s.
"At the time I started flying them, they were twice as old as I was," Croeber said. "When I came back here as executive officer and commanding officer, I was just a year or so older than the aircraft we had."a real and much loved workhorse has retired.
The polished green fuselages, one 42 years old, the other 41, will be preserved in the rust-free air of Arizona, where the military parks hundreds of aircraft relics in case they are needed again some day.
The Sea King has been seen in every role the Navy has had, from Vietnam to last year's Hurricane Katrina relief.
It was used for anti-submarine warfare until the early 1990s, provided range safety during gunnery practice at sea, was used as a fire fighting helicopter, recovered drones, conducted search and rescue and was a passenger transport and mail carrier.
It pulled John Glenn from his bobbing space capsule in 1962 and "Goose," the "Top Gun" character, from his crashed airplane in the 1986 movie , said Cmdr. Kris Croeber, commanding officer of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 2.
"It's been the mainstay of the fleet. It's a ' 57 Chevy," Croeber quipped as he said good bye to an aircraft he has flown since the late 1980s.
"At the time I started flying them, they were twice as old as I was," Croeber said. "When I came back here as executive officer and commanding officer, I was just a year or so older than the aircraft we had."a real and much loved workhorse has retired.