The Growth Years

In 1956, with the publishing of the first National Search and Rescue Plan, the US Coast Guard was designated the federal Search and Rescue (SAR) Coordinator responsible for search and rescue in the maritime regions, and, likewise, the US Air Force was designated the federal SAR Coordinator  responsible for search and rescue in the aeronautical (inland) regions. … Read more

In July of 1955 a two aircraft Coast Guard air detachment was permanently establish at the Naval Air Station New Orleans, Louisiana. The detachment consisted of four pilots and seven enlisted personnel flying two Sikorsky HO3S-1G helicopters.  The air station was located on the northern edge of the city on the shores of Lake Ponchartrain. … Read more

The prototype P5M Marlin was based on the PBM-5 Mariner. The P5M had the same wing but an extensively modified fuselage with a hull that extended the full length of the aircraft. It featured a tall single vertical stabilizer instead of the twin tail fins of the PBM-5 and the horizontal stabilizer featured a strong … Read more

The assets of the former Naval Air station at Bermuda, established during World War II, had been turned over to the control of Naval Station Bermuda after the war. Patrol squadrons returned again when, as a result of the Korean War, it was deemed necessary to have advanced ASW patrols to counter the increased Soviet … Read more

On February 20, 1952 the United States Coast Guard commissioned, for the first time, an aviation unit for the sole purpose of providing air transportation for personnel as may be directed by Coast Guard Headquarters. It was a tenant unit at Washington National Airport and as is the practice, named for its geographic location. Washington … Read more

Sikorsky Model S-51 (HO3S) had enjoyed both military and commercial acceptance which led Sikorsky to initiate a follow-on design capable of carrying 10 passengers or equivalent cargo. The Sikorsky Model S-55 was built, without government funds, to compete against large tandem-rotor helicopters such as Piasecki’s PD-22 (H21) that did not require fore and aft balancing … Read more

The Grumman Model G-64, the largest of a series of amphibians designed and manufactured by the Grumman Aircraft Corporation, was the only one originally developed for the military. Design work to meet the U.S. Navy requirement for an all-weather general purpose amphibious transport began in 1944. The Model G-64 was a continuation of the Model … Read more