The
Sikorsky S-70B-4 was the US Navy carrier-borne variant of the Seahawk developed to replace the
SH-3 Sea King.
They were initially known as
Oceanhawk by the manufacturer but the official name was always
Seahawk.
They were replaced by the
MH-60S Knight Hawk. In their last years of service they were re-roled to land-based rescue, VIP duties or transferred to the Coast Guard.
Although very similar to the contemporary
SH-60B variant which operated from escorts ships, the
Foxtrot used the AQS-13F dipping sonar for antisubmarine warfare (ASW) instead of sonobuoys and also lacked the search radar. They were used for two additional important tasks, logistic supports (VERTREP from replenishment ships) and plane guard.
Plane Guard
Plane guards are the responsible of quickly recover any aircrew that ditch or crash in the water during the carrier flight operations. There is always a helo flying nearby whenever an aircraft is about to land or taking off.
For this role the SH-60F used to carry an extra 105 gallon cabin fuel tank located behind left pilot seat and forward of TSO console in order to allow them to complete two fixed wing cycles like the SH-3H did.