Grumman S-2

Grumman S2F / S-2 tracker
S-2E "Tracker" of the VS-29 Tromboners Squadron
Type:	Anti-submarine aircraft
Design country:	United States
Manufacturer:	Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation
First flight:	4th December 1952
Commissioning:	1954
Number of pieces:	1,284

The Grumman S-2 Tracker (until 1962 S2F ) was an aircraft carrier -supported submarine fighter aircraft produced by the American manufacturer Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation .

construction

The S-2 is a shoulder-decker to ensure a large cabin volume that was needed to accommodate the extensive on-board equipment. Other design features include a large weapons bay, search radar in an extendable tower under the fuselage, magnetic field location device (MAD) in a retractable tail boom and a searchlight in the right wing. The foldable wings and a catch hook enable use on aircraft carriers .

history

A VS-32 S2F-1 on the USS Leyte , 1955

An S-2A with the MAD and radar extended

S-2E of the VS-25 Squadron of the USS Yorktown , 1967

An Australian S-2E at HMAS Melbourne , 1976

S-2T TurboTracker of the Argentine Navy, 2005

Grumman S-2N of the Koninklijke Navy

Fire fighting aircraft S-2F3AT, 2006

The history of the S-2 began after the Second World War , when the US Navy still used so-called hunter-killer teams, in which one aircraft searched for the submarine with sonar and the other then tried to sink the submarine. However, this concept soon proved to be inadequate, as only the radio link between the two aircraft had to fail to cause a mission to fail. Also, at the time, new nuclear powered submarines were being developed that could go faster and dive deeper. The boats also became quieter and quieter. The Navy was therefore looking for a successor.

Grumman then designed the prototype Grumman G-89 . The prototype accepted by the Navy flew for the first time on December 4, 1952 under the designation XS2F-1. The first production version went into service in February 1954 as the S2F-1 (from 1962 S-2A) with the Anti-Submarine Squadron VS-26. Of this version, more than 500 pieces were built for the Navy, in addition 100 S2F-1 were exported to other countries.

Other versions were the S2F-1S (S-2B), which received improved sonar and better armament, and the S2F-2 (S-2C), which received a larger weapon bay and a larger tail unit to carry the higher weight can. The next version was the S2F-3 (S-2D), which had wings with a larger wingspan, a further enlarged tail unit, a larger fuel capacity and motor cells that could carry more sonar buoys (32 in total). In addition, the front fuselage was lengthened and widened to create more space for the crew. The S2F-3 entered service in May 1961 and ended up serving with at least fifteen squadrons .

Versions

YS-2A (YS2F-1)

Prototypes, 15 built.

S-2A (S2F-1)

Series variant with Wright-R-1820-82WA engines, 740 built.

TS-2A

207 S-2A converted into training aircraft.

US-2A

50 S-2A converted into target tow planes.

S-2B (S2F-1S)

S-2A equipped with a Julie Jezebel location system.

US-2B

64 S-2A, TS-2A, US-2A and S-2B converted to multi-purpose aircraft (without armament).

S-2C (S2F-2)

S-2A with enlarged bomb bay and tail unit, 77 built.

RS-2C (S2F-2P)

some S-2C converted to reconnaissance aircraft.

US-2C (S2F-2U)

48 S-2C converted to multi-purpose aircraft (without armament).

S-2D (S2F-3)

Version with enlarged cockpit, wingspan, tail unit and fuel supply, doubling the number of sonar buoys carried to 16, 100 built.

S-2E (S2F-3S)

S-2D with AN / APS-88 radar, which replaced the AM / APS-38B of the S-2D. The Julie Jezebel device has been replaced by the new AS / ASN-30. Externally, the S-2D and S-2E are identical, 252 were built. The S-2E was also exported to other countries: to Australia, Korea, Taiwan, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru and Turkey.

S-2F (S2F-1S1)

S-2F was the name of a version of the S-2B with more modern search equipment.

S-2G

The last anti-submarine version of the Grumman Tracker used by the US Navy was the S-2G. It was about 49 modernized S-2E. The Julie Jezebel system was further improved and was now called AM / ASN-92V. The possibility of detecting radio messages from the enemy in lower frequency ranges has been further improved with the AN / AQA-7. The S-2G was the first tracker to be equipped with ECM equipment so that it could also defend itself electronically against enemy attacks. The S-2E and S-2G were in use until the mid-1970s. The carriers USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) and USS Saratoga (CV-60) are the only "large" carriers to use the tracker as part of the CV concept. The CV concept included that the attack carriers took over the anti-submarine units to protect themselves against submarines. The S-2G was in service until it was replaced by the S-3 Viking .

CS2F-1

42 S2F-1s built under license by De Havilland Canada.

CS2F-2

improved version with avionics from Litton Industries. 57 were built by De Havilland Canada.

CS2F-3

43 CS2F-2 with improved electronics.

CP-121

Designation for the CS2F-1 / -2 / -3 from 1968.

S-2T

In 1986 an S-2 was equipped with Garrett TPE331 propeller turbines with an output of 1227 kW and a five-bladed propeller. In 1990, after extensive flight tests, it was approved by the FAA. In 1991, tests began on the version, now known as the Turbo Tracker, as a patrol and submarine fighter aircraft, which received carrier qualification in 1992. This conversion went as a kit to Argentina, which took over new machines of this version from 1993. Taiwan also put 27 S-2s converted to turbines, equipped with four-blade propellers and further modernized into service, four of which are still in use in 2009.

Use in the Royal Navy

Between March 8, 1960 and January 12, 1961, the Dutch Navy also received 26 S2F-1 (S-2A) trackers from the US Navy , to which two more were added on March 30, 1962. They carried the serial numbers 146 to 173 and were used in the 320th and 4th squadrons as anti-submarine aircraft. Between June 1968 and December 1970, 18 of these machines were upgraded to S-2N equipment at Fairey in Canada to be used with the 1st Squadron. Four of these machines in turn were converted into training and transport aircraft in May 1971. The Dutch Navy decommissioned the last machines on January 7, 1976. Some of them went to the Turkish Navy .

17 more Grumman CS2F-1 (CS-2A) with the serial number 180-196 of the Canadian Navy were, after they had been overhauled at Fairey, between December 6, 1960 and September 18, 1961 also sold to the Dutch Navy. They were all stationed on Curacao in the Netherlands Antilles and carried out maritime reconnaissance flights and anti-submarine missions. Between May 1, 1968 and August 1, 1970 these machines were transferred to the Netherlands and scrapped there or used as a training aircraft on the ground.

Other versions

One version of the S-2 was the C-1 Trader , a nine-seat liaison aircraft for flights from land to an aircraft carrier.

Another version was the E-1 Tracer, an early warning aircraft with a large radome over the fuselage in which the APS-82 early warning radar rotated. This aircraft was eventually replaced by the Grumman E-2 .

In Canada , some trackers have been converted into fire-fighting aircraft. These aircraft were called Firecat or Turbo Firecat . The Firecat was a simple conversion of the S-2A with a 3296 liter extinguishing agent tank in the fuselage. In the Turbo Firecat, the piston engines were replaced by PT-6A-67AF propeller turbines and a 3455 liter extinguishing agent tank was installed. Marsh Aviation from the USA also converted some machines for fire fighting for the California Department of Forests and Fire Protection. These machines, designated S-2AT, are in turn equipped with Garrett TPE331 engines.

Military users

 Argentina

Purchased seven S-2A in 1962, six S-2E in 1978 and three S-2G in 1990. In the 1990s, six were equipped with turboprop engines and are now referred to as S-2T.

 Australia

 Brazil

The Brazilian Navy (MB) deployed its S-2A (P-16A) and S-2E (P-16E) from the aircraft carrier NAeL Minas Gerais .

 Italy

 Japan

 Canada

 Netherlands

 Thailand

 Peru

 South Korea

 Taiwan

marine

 Turkey

 Uruguay

 United States

 Venezuela

Technical specifications

3-sided tear of an S-2D / E / G

Parameter	S-2E data
Type	Carrier and land-based anti-submarine aircraft
Engine	2 × nine-cylinder radial engines Wright R-1820 -82WA Cyclone, each 1,137 kW (1,546 PS)
Top speed	426 km / h
Patrol speed	241 km / h (at an altitude of 455 m)
Transfer range	2,092 km
Flight duration	9 h (with max. Fuel and 10% reserve)
Empty mass	8,505 kg
Max. Takeoff mass	13,222 kg
span	22.12 m
length	13.26 m
height	5.05 m
Armament	1 × Mk 57 or Mk 101 nuclear depth charge in the internal weapon bay and torpedoes at 6 stations under the wings

Web links

Commons : S-2 Tracker  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ FliegerRevue June 2009, pp. 24–29, The second career of the tracker