Jodie Peeler is my go-to person on the Sikorsky SH-3. It turns out that she probably knows more about the iconic “Old 66” than anyone else on the planet and helped with the development of a set of decals for it.
For background on the SH-3’s spacecraft crew recovery mission in general and Old 66’s career in particular, see:
Back from Space but Not Home Yet
OLD 66 by JODIE PEELER
BuNo 152711 was an SH-3D delivered to the Navy by Sikorsky in March 1967 and served for much if not all of its career with HS-4, a deployable ASW helicopter squadron. 152711 initially wore the overall Engine Gray SH-3 livery but was repainted into the white/gull gray scheme the Navy directed for the SH-3 in mid-1967. This repaint probably happened during the aircraft's first major
overhaul in 1968. In any event, the repaint had long been done by the
Apollo 8 recovery in December 1968. (1)
When required for spacecraft crew recovery, SH-3s were temporarily reconfigured to provide more room in the cabin for rescue equipment and personnel. The major change was the removal of the AN/AQS-13 sonar equipment in most of the embarked helicopters. The hole in the cabin floor would be covered, but the sonar well would not be plugged.
Removing the sonar also made room for the installation of SARAH (Search and Rescue and Homing) equipment. This system provided the helicopter pilots with the ability to home in on the spacecraft’s radio beacon. It used Yagi-type antennas mounted at the top of the port and starboard sponson struts; the first recovery helicopter to utilize SARAH was the Gemini 12 recovery helicopter in November
1966. (2)
Starting with Apollo 10, the recovery helicopter was equipped with an
uprighting sling made of half-inch nylon line. One end of the sling was
attached to a weapons shackle; the other end was taped in place below
the starboard cabin door. If the command module was apex-down (Stable
II) after splashdown, a helicopter crewman could lower the free end of
the sling to a swimmer in the water, who would attach the sling to the
spacecraft. The helicopter could then pull the spacecraft over to
upright (Stable I) position.
Other modifications to the prime recovery helicopter included
installation of photo and film cameras on the starboard side. Two 70mm
motion picture cameras and a 35mm still camera were carried on a
specially-made mount on the starboard aft weapons position, and at least
one camera was mounted on the starboard side between the sponson and the
fuselage.
These cameras were pointed down to capture images of the
recovery operation that could be analyzed after the mission. These
supplemented the still photos and motion pictures captured by the PHOTO
helicopter. The camera power cables were taped to the starboard fuselage
and ran up to the starboard cabin window; on Apollo 8 they hung loosely,
but starting with Apollo 10 they were more securely fastened along most
of their length with speed tape.
THE APOLLO HISTORY OF BUNO 152711, "OLD 66"
During the Apollo 8 recovery 152711 wore no special markings except for the tail code NU, the side number 66, and squadron designation HS-4. It
doesn't appear to have had the recovery ship's name stenciled on
anywhere.
This began to change by the Apollo 10 recovery in May 1969,
when HS-4 again got the recovery assignment. USS PRINCETON was stenciled
on the sponsons of each aircraft, and since HS-4 had been reassigned to
CVSG-59 after the disestablishment of CVSG-55, the air group code on the
tail changed from NU to NT. (3)
Just before the Apollo 10 recovery, a special "welcome home" greeting
was applied to the belly, below the main cabin door. As the Apollo 10
astronauts looked up at "Old 66," they would see a giant pair of Snoopy
eyes staring back, and the words "Hello Dere Charlie Brown." (This was a
reference to the Command Module call sign "Charlie Brown" and the Lunar
Module call sign "Snoopy.") As it happened, in all the post-splashdown
activity, the astronauts probably didn't see it.
Three months later, Apollo 11 made its historic voyage to the Moon, and
HS-4 was conducting its third spacecraft recovery. 152711 had no changes
to its markings except for a stenciled USS HORNET replacing USS
PRINCETON on the sponsons, and two tiny Apollo spacecraft applied to
either side of the nose, commemorating the Apollo 8 and Apollo 10
recoveries.
In fact, 152711 still had the "Charlie Brown" greeting on
the belly until just before the Apollo 11 splashdown. It was very
quickly removed and replaced with "Hail Columbia" in time for the
recovery on July 24. Upon landing aboard Hornet with the astronauts
aboard, a petty officer ran up to the helicopter and placed a third
spacecraft decal on the nose to signify the Apollo 11 recovery as shown in the following profile and picture. (4)
For a gallery of pictures of the Apollo 11 recovery on the USS Hornet website, see
http://usshornetmuseum.org/PhotoGallery/gallery.php?galleryFolder=1969_CVS_12_Apollo_11
Between July and November 1969 HS-4 switched to three-digit
side numbers in the 3XX range. For most aircraft this was done by
painting over just the old number and applying the newer and smaller
one as shown here on NT315.
However, for the Apollo 12 recovery 152711 had its new number
painted out and replaced with a smaller "66" on both sides; a "66"
was also added to the top of the fuselage just behind the main rotor. The
area where the old number was painted out on each side is obvious in
some photos.
The CVSG-59 designation was added below USS HORNET on
each sponson. A fourth Apollo spacecraft emblem was placed on the nose
before recovery and then covered up; that cover was removed as the
helicopter landed with the astronauts aboard, and a sign reading "THREE
MORE LIKE BEFORE" was taped below the cockpit.
For a gallery of pictures of the Apollo 12 recovery on the USS Hornet website, see
http://usshornetmuseum.org/PhotoGallery/gallery.php?galleryFolder=1969_CVS_12_Apollo_12
The last recovery for HS-4 was the Apollo 13 mission in April 1970. The
HS-4 side numbers had changed to 4XX by that point, but 152711 had kept her
markings from the Apollo 12 recovery. The port side of the helicopter
had minimal changes, but the starboard side, which would be seen up
close on television and in photos, was given a quick and very
non-standard repaint with idiosyncratic stenciling. (5)
A new coat of white paint was applied and the markings were redone; the
"66" was painted in a slightly chunkier fashion than the Apollo 12
version, and "Albert the Alleygator," cigar clenched in his teeth and
lit stick of dynamite in his paws, was painted on the starboard cabin
door just before the recovery itself.(6)
Trim colors on the rotor cap, tail and sponson tips changed from blue to
red for Apollo 13, and USS IWO JIMA replaced USS HORNET on the sponsons,
although the CVSG-59 lettering remained. The Apollo spacecraft were
replaced and reoriented, and again the Apollo 13 emblem was applied
prior to recovery and revealed as the helicopter landed aboard Iwo Jima.
The live coverage of the Apollo 13 splashdown, with plenty of live
video from the photo helicopter, may be seen starting here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swTUBotqTRk
(7)
Note that the Yagi array had been removed from the sponson strut when this picture was taken.
Following Apollo 13, 152711 went back to its standard mission of
anti-submarine warfare. In 1971 while aboard USS Ticonderoga it wore the
modex NT-401; two years later, with HS-4 aboard Kitty Hawk, it wore 040
before finally ending up with the modex NH-740 (8). Even after
repaints, however, 152711 still wore five Apollo spacecraft symbols on
both sides of the nose. The aircraft's history was well known, and
anecdotes from HS-4 crewmembers speak of VIPs being given tours of the
helicopter or, in some instances, being flown aboard it.
Unfortunately, 152711 crashed into the Pacific off the coast of southern California during a dipping sonar practice mission on the night of June 4, 1975 and sank in 800 fathoms.
At least three preserved SH-3s have been repainted to resemble long-lost "Old 66." Two of these aircraft - BuNo 148999 aboard the now-preserved USS Hornet (
http://www.uss-hornet.org/) and BuNo 149006 in the Evergreen Aviation Museum (
http://evergreenmuseum.org/) - are themselves actual recovery helicopters, having recovered Gemini 4 and Gemini 7, respectively. 148999 had been repainted as "66" for the 1995 motion picture "Apollo 13." 149006 carries spurious "ABANDON CHUTE" markings on its belly that were not carried aboard
152711 during the Apollo operation. The third "Old 66" is BuNo 149711 aboard
Midway in San Diego.
BUILDING "OLD 66" IN SCALE
Revell provides the smallest (1/530th scale) but most complete representation of the Gemini or Apollo recovery missions utilizing the SH-3. It issued its SCB-27A/125 angled-deck Essex-class kit as USS Wasp (Kit H-375) in 1968, complete with a tiny Gemini spacecraft. The same kit was reissued as USS Hornet in the "Hornet + 3" boxing (H-354), with a tiny Apollo spacecraft and an ASW air group, in 1970.
The good news is that building any SH-3 recovery helicopter in the usual modeling scales is also a fairly simple matter, as the modifications for recovery were straightforward enough to be done while deployed. However, it’s better yet if you have a set of "Old 66" decals. These were issued in both 1:72 and 1:48 variants, both for the Apollo 8-12 variants and a newer sheet depicting the Apollo 13 markings (with bonus markings included for the Apollo 12 variant). The instructions packaged with the decal sets from Old 66 Decals provided scale drawings for cameras, the camera mounts, and Yagi antennas, and also provide details on how the aircraft's markings evolved through its brief time in the spotlight.
These decals were based on decades of research and the best information we could find at the time they were designed, and include extensive instructions showing the subtle variations for each recovery. A lot of work went into them, and we believe they're the most accurate decals yet produced for this historic helicopter. And, yes, that's Albert the Alleygator on our Apollo 13 sheet, not a frog.
The Apollo 8-12 set has long since been sold out in both scales, but an improved reprint is in the works. However, the Apollo 13 decals in both scales and with the conversion instructions are now available through Starfighter Decals (
http://www.starfighter-decals.com/old-66-deca66.html).
Artwork for other recovery helicopters is being prepared and
if there's enough interest, those projects may become decals in the near
future.
Interior views of any SH-3 in this time period are hard to come by, let
alone "Old 66" during the Apollo era. However, the following will get
you on the right track.
With the exception of the later seats and aft cabin chutes seen in this
picture, the cabin with the sonar removed and the well plated over
should look more or less like this aboard a recovery helicopter, but with a four-seat sling:
http://www.airliners.net/photo/USA---Navy/Sikorsky-SH-3H-Sea/1319744/L/
The period-correct seats for the operator positions and the cockpit will
look like these:
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Italy---Navy/Agusta-SH-3D-Sea/1808416/L/
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Italy---Navy/Agusta-SH-3D-Sea/2020851/L/
Keep the electronics at the operator's station. In scale you can't see
that much inside a completed SH-3 model to begin with, but keeping the
electronics in the cabin will suggest the SARAH equipment installed on
board.
In the aft cabin, make and install a four-place sling seat opposite the
starboard door. This provides seating for the three astronauts and one
physician.
My favorite reference for any Sea King Project is "Famous Aircraft of
the World No. 15," available from several sources. Although it covers
pretty much all Sea King variants worldwide, it has a ton of detail
views and is generally indispensable for the serious Sea King modeler.
It will provide you with plenty of details for the cockpit and other
areas you may want to detail.
1:72 SCALE:
The most accurate kit to date is the Cyber-Hobby SH-3. I
recommend getting the SH-3H boxing, which includes a somewhat more
accurate interior and some other components that were missing from the
SH-3D and SH-3G issue. The SH-3H kit includes both styles of sponsons,
the original "teardrop" shaped and the extended one fitted to
reworked SH-3Ds and SH-3Hs. Follow the instructions in my build article
here
(
http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/04/cyber-hobby-sh-3d-build-by-jodie-peeler.html),
but do not build or install the AN/AQS-13 array and winch; instead, just
put a little piece of plastic over where the sonar well would be in the
floor. Install the two crew positions and electronics racks behind the
"broom closet," however, and extend the sling seat to a four-person
variant.
Here's what Atsushi Tanaka did with the 1/72 Cyber-Hobby kit:
More images of his excellent build are here:
http://www.tinami.com/view/777037 (your results may vary).
As for other 1/72 kits, there’s the Lindberg SH-3...well, it's Lindberg and that was once upon a time. The 1960s Airfix Sea King, while a marvel for its time, has long since been surpassed by better kits. Fujimi's Sea King kits, while an easy build that results in a nice model, are long in the tooth and look a little simple. Revell-Germany's 2000-vintage Sea King kits not only require considerable modification for non-Westland Sea Kings, but suffer from sponsons that are at least 20% too small: the difference is very noticeable. Airfix has a new-tool Westland Sea King reportedly coming in late 2015 or early 2016 that was designed using modern technology and laser measurement of an actual helicopter. It isn't yet known if other Sea King variants will be tooled, again an issue because of very notable differences between Westland and Sikorsky-built Sea Kings.
1:48 SCALE:
The Hasegawa kit, reboxed many times and also offered by
Revell-Germany, is the only 1:48 Sea King. Fortunately, it's a beautiful
kit, and some versions come with the shorter teardrop sponsons (although
if you can't find a boxing with those sponsons, a very nice set is
available in resin from Belcher Bits:
http://www.belcherbits.com/lines/148conv/bb1.htm). Unfortunately, Hasegawa molded
the starboard door shut. Opening it not only requires delicate surgery,
but means you're on your own in scratchbuilding the entire cabin aft of
the cockpit. These are pictures of my build.
I recommend getting inspiration from David Weeks' exquisite
Apollo 9 splashdown diorama, which used the Hasegawa kit as its basis;
this article
(
http://www.scale-rotors.com/galerie/1-utility-helicopters/2284-sikorsky-sh-3d-sea-king-hasegawa.html)
includes a link to a Powerpoint show David put together showing
in-progress views.
Hasegawa released an SH-3D issue of its Sea
King kit that included decals for 152711 in the builder's choice of
NT-66 on Apollo 12 or NT-401 from Ticonderoga.
And that's the knowledge I've collected from two and a half decades of
being interested in spacecraft recovery, and the ships and aircraft that
made it all possible. I always welcome additional information and
(gentle) corrections; feel free to send them to Tommy and he'll pass
them along to me.
NOTES
1. A tiny picture purporting to be of 152711 in Engine Gray circulated
a few years ago on the Internet but was too distant a view to verify.
152711's original appearance is perhaps better illustrated by this
picture of 152713:
http://www.gonavy.jp/bbs1/img/7061.jpg
.The repaint was directed by MIL-C-18263E(AS) Amendment I of 26 July
1967; see p. 86 of Doll/Jackson/Riley, "Navy Air Colors, Vol. II"
(Squadron/Signal, 1985).
2. Details on the SARAH installation aboard the helicopters are described by Bob Fish, "Hornet Plus Three: The Story of the Apollo 11 Recovery" (Creative Minds Press, 2010), p. 79-80.
(3) HS-4 as part of CVSG-55 had been with USS Yorktown roughly since
the group's establishment in 1960. The air group was disestablished in
September 1968, but an eight-aircraft HS-4 detachment remained with
Yorktown for the Apollo 8 recovery that December. See, among others, the
CVSG-55 summary at:
http://www.gonavy.jp/CVSG-NU.html
4. Correspondent Ron Nessen, who represented NBC in the
three-correspondent television pool aboard Hornet, told this story on
the air while the recovery was underway. See
https://youtu.be/DNAcHNsZ57g?t=6m20s
5. The author's belief that 152711 received a starboard-only repaint is
substantiated by a picture posted to the KPRC History Facebook page,
showing station personnel (embarked to provide pool TV coverage of the
splashdown) posing against the port side of 152711 aboard Iwo Jima. The
markings on the helicopter are identical to its Apollo 12 markings.
6. A popular misconception is that the green critter on the door during
the Apollo 13 recovery is an angry UDT frog mascot. This has been
perpetuated in decal sheets and museum recreations, among other places.
That green critter on the door during Apollo 13 was Albert the
Alleygator, from Walt Kelly's "Pogo" comic strip. He wasn't on the door
during the run-up to the recovery, and appears to have been applied just
before the recovery itself.
7. Dana McCarthy, the co-pilot of 152711 during the Apollo 13 recovery
operation, has an incredible Flickr album with lots of pictures from the
recovery deployment, and some very helpful pictures of 152711:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/deacondana/sets/72157616544177389/
Among other scenes, McCarthy has a sequence showing the "reveal" of the
fifth spacecraft emblem as 152711 landed. Also, see the Popular Science
article in Note 14 for more details. Also, in addition to the link in the text, Ben Kocivar’s article “Waiting for Apollo 13” in the August 1970 issue of Popular Science mentions the live television from the recovery scene:
https://books.google.com/books?id=kgEAAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PA44
8. See, respectively:
http://www.gonavy.jp/bbs1/img/7151.jpg (for NT401) and
http://www.gonavy.jp/bbs1/img/7262.jpg (for NH040), and "H-3 Sea King,"
p. 23, for 152711 as NH740.
