AFV Club Aircraft 1/144 SH3A/D Sea King Helicopter (2) Kit

At the end of WWII, the Soviet Union pursued aggressive technical upgrading of their submarines and increased the size of their submarine fleet. This effort paid off for during the Cold War Russian submarines surpassed all of their western opponents in terms of speed, diving capabilities, and production numbers. This posed a serious threat to both marine traffic and vessels of the western allies. To address this threat, the United States Navy began rapid developed of anti-submarine warfare equipment. At the end of the 1950’s, Sikorsky received a request from the US Navy to design a helicopter for this purpose. It was required to be able to carry sonar systems, 840 lbs of ordinance, and have an endurance of 4 hours. To fulfill this requirement, a two-engined helicopter was developed since such a design could remain on station even with one engine inoperative. The two-engine design also resulted in a higher effective payload. Moreover, to adapt to shipborne operations the main rotor and