Sikorsky HO5S-1G  Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation's two-seat S-52, the first helicopter to have all-metal rotor blades, first flew on 12 February 1947. Sikorsky developed a four-seat model and gave it the more powerful Franklin 0-425-1 engine. This model was first accepted first by the Marine Corps. It received the designation HO5S-1. The Coast Guard acquired their HO5S-1Gs in September 1952. They proved to be weight limited. Short ranged and the cabin space was too small. Manufacturer: Model: Year: 1952    

Sikorsky HO4S-2G / 3G; “Horse” Late in 1951, the Coast Guard acquired the Sikorsky HO4S-2G helicopter for search and rescue duty. Seven helicopters were obtained on the initial order. Cruising speed was 80 knots and top speed was 115 knots, ceiling 16,000 feet and range, 400 miles. In 1953 the first of 24 upgraded HO4S-3Gs came aboard. Ten additional HRS (HO4S-3G) were obtained from the Navy .in 1961.  The HO4S helicopters extended the Coast Guard’s rescue capabilities far beyond what was imagined 20 years prior.  Although underpowered by today’s standards it was the first operational helicopter capable of carrying multiple survivors in a cabin and carry heavy loads. It had a rescue hoist capable of lifting 400 pounds. It proved, beyond all doubt, the capabilities and value of the helicopter for Coast Guard operations. They performed numerous rescues during the next decade, some best described as miraculous, within parameters never before achieved. Such was the case when a single HO4S helicopter crew [...]

Sikorsky HO3S-1G Four Sikorsky S-51 helicopters, which had been sold to small commercial operators after WWII, were returned to Sikorsky. Sikorsky had originally designed the S-51 with rescue utilization in mind. They were offered to the Coast Guard. CAPT Richard Burke, who had been responsible for sending the helicopters up to Newfoundland for the Sabena rescue, had been assigned as the Chief of the Coast Guard Aviation Division at Headquarters.  Money was found for the purchase and the Coast Guard acquired four S-51 helicopters which were designated as HO3S-1G. An additional five HO3S-1Gs were purchased in 1949/1950. Each of the HO3S-1G was fitted with a rescue hoist and the Coast Guard's Rotary Wing Development Unit based out of Elizabeth City, N.C., experimented with a number of other innovations that enhanced the helicopters' versatility, including a rescue basket and emergency flotation bags that were fitted around the landing gear. The size of the rescue basket, however, and the limited room within the HO3S's [...]

Sikorsky HO2S-1 The Coast used two HO2S-1s to test and develop helicopter dipping Sonar for ASW operations. In January of 1946 LT. Stewart Graham reported to Commander Anti-Submarine Development Detachment VX-1 for temporary duty. A LST fitted with a platform served as a helicopter carrier, a destroyer served as the control station, two smaller vessels took underwater sound measurements and several submarines – including a captured German U-boat – served as targets. Actual testing began on 22 March using a U.S. Submarine between Key West and Cuba. Success was immediate. The final test was conducted using the German U-boat, the newer type, capable of a sustained 15 knots underwater.  The sonar worked very well. Graham later wrote “that once the helicopter sonar tests were analyzed even the most skeptical decision-makers were convinced that the helicopter mounted sonar was a very anti-submarine warfare program.”   Manufacturer: Model: Year: 1946    

Sikorsky HOS-1 (R-6) Sikorsky designed the HOS-1(R-6) as a follow on to his fabric covered HNS-1 (R-4). While retaining the R-4's rotor and transmission system, the R-6 had an all-metal fuselage. In October 1944 the first of three XHOS-1 were delivered to the US Navy and transferred to the US Coast Guard Air Station Floyd Bennett Field for test and evaluation. One of these crashed. The Navy then acquired 36 HOS-1 (R-6A) from the Army Air Force which were purchased by the Coast Guard between January 1945 and January 1946. Of these, two were destroyed in crashes (no fatalities), and the majority of the remaining helicopters   were returned to the Navy or disposed of with the closing of the helicopter training school On 18 June 1946 CDR Erickson was moved to the Coast Guard Elizabeth City air station. His downsized Helicopter Test and Development Unit consisted of a small group of dedicated personnel, one hangar, one HNS and two HOS helicopters. [...]