The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion: The Helicopter That Broke All the Rules 

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I was an Avionics technician on the V-22 and worked closely with the CH-53 guys because of us being in an experimental squadron testing out new technologies before the fleet got it. Both aircraft have their own job to achieve, and they are good at them. The Osprey’s main selling point is its ability to get in/out of a battlefield as quickly as possible. The 53 on the other hand can steal your entire house if you dare piss one of them off

Three Super Stallions flew over our house a couple years ago at about two hundred feet. The house started shaking a minute or so before they flew over. I ran outside in time to see them fly over my head. Amazing.

This man’s sweater demands respect. Kneel before the light blue sweater!!

One thing I know about the CH-53…. It’s always leaking hydraulic fluid on the inside. A crewman once told me that if I ever got into one that wasn’t leaking, to get off. That means it’s out.

This helicopter had my back so many times from Favela to high-rise and even Afghan

As a former Marine I have rode in, repelled out of, been water deployed from and even tethered from and screamed through the treeline on the Super Stallion and I can say it was some of the most memorable times of my career in the Marines. It is without question my all time favorite air frame in the Marines!

All my life, I've lived less than 2 miles from the Sikorsky Aircraft plant here in Stratford CT, so I've seen every type of helicopter (and other aircraft) that they've made for the past 50 years. For most of my childhood, I was used to seeing the original Sea Stallions pass overhead. In the early 1980s, I heard something flying toward me that I could almost feel before I heard it. When I first saw the Super Stallion, I couldn't figure out why it sounded so different than the other CH-53s that I had seen. Then I realized how relatively small the cockpit was compared to the rest of the helicopter, and my mind could wrap around the size of the aircraft that I was seeing. I'm now in my mid-50s, and I still love the sound of the Super Stallion coming toward me from a distance (as well as the UH-60 Black Hawk and the S-92 Super Hawk). One year at the local air show (at the Sikorsky Airport, of course) the show was started late after a fog delay. You could feel the ground shaking, but the fog blocked your view of what was coming. Then, breaking out of the fog bank right at the end of the runway was a Super Stallion with a Black Hawk on either side, flying in perfect formation at nearly top speed, only about 100 feet off the ground. I've had closer encounters with Sikorsky helicopters in my life, but I will never have one that cool again. It was as if they had planned the fog from Long Island Sound *just* for the effect at the beginning of the show. And to top it off, after landing, all 3 helicopters taxied over and parked right in front of me. Just a perfect air show for my father and me. Side Note: The photo of the Sikorsky plant in this video is the original plant on South Main Street, which hasn't been used by Sikorsky since the 1950s, I believe. The new(er) plant is about 10 miles away on North Main Street, right next to the Igor Sikorsky Memorial Bridge (can you tell that Sikorsky means a lot to the town of Stratford?). Igor himself is buried about 1/4 mile from my house near the top of St. John's Cemetery on Nichols Avenue (for all of you Sikorsky fans).

As a Marine Corps corporal in the infantry I remember the CH-53D (or as we called it, the CH-53 Drops like a rock). Always running up to it first, taking a knee and directing others aboard while taking head count...then running down the ramp, taking a knee and making sure no one turned right coming off the helicopter while again taking head count. Flying around Mt. Fuji (from Camp Fuji) and watching out the little windows as the rotor caused small snow storms on the mountain even from a distance. Still my favorite helicopter for missions.

"What's your primary weapon?" CH-53: "Horsepower....all of the horsepower"

My first navy squadron was HM-14 airborne mine countermeasures. The MH-53E has a special place in my heart. It was tough enough that one of ours survived being hit be a Cessna and still carried her crew to safety. Awesome bird.

Worked on H-53’s from 2000 - 2004, these are workhorse. However breaking them down for overseas deployment was a daunting task.

Photos don't really show how huge it is. Imagine a large city bus, that flies, and can land on the water and float like a boat.

Having served from '93-'97 in a marine infantry helo company I was fortunate to fly in the 53e quite often. The most memorable flight I had was when we were doing assault training into a mount facility on pendelton. I heard from one of the crew chiefs that the lead pilot on our bird was the wing CO. A bird colonel. That made us feel a little better because we normally were flown around by 2nd lieutenants and generally wondered if we were going to make it. As we were getting near our LZ the colonel dove down to treetop leval before heading into some canyons approaching the LZ. I briefly looked out the window trying to see if we were close to the LZ when we were put into a steep banking turn I saw the rotors shave off some bushes on an outcropping in the canyon. I never looked out the window again after that. I once heard that you should never fly with someone who is crazier than you are. That colonel was certifiable with the skills to back it up. Memories. Semper Fi. Great vid keep 'em coming.

I was a 6173 (Enlisted Aircraft Crew Chief) on the CH53-E. This was awesome to see.

Sikorsky engineer here. While capacity is the 53's party trick, their real value is pilot workload reduction and operational consistency. The CH-53K, in particular, is designed to operate near it's limits in almost all conditions, not just ideal ones. Ultimately, that is what the military is paying for, not just capacity, but all of it, all the time, and anywhere. (This correspondence does not contain technical information.)

These are the most unique sounding helos I've ever heard. The turbines drown out the whump of the blades, it's akin to how different the A10s sound from other jets.

I carried these several times on C-17s (usually the sea stallion variant) and it was always super stressful to winch this beast on board 😰 it was also one of the cooler things I got to do as a loadmaster 😏

I was volunteering at a makeshift hospital outside of Port-au-Prince, Haiti after their earthquake in 2010. A Navy CH-53 came in to take patients out to the carrier USS Carl Vincent and hospital ship USNS Comfort. Watching that beast land was very impressive. It caused quite a dust storm (I understand why they call it the “hurricane maker”). We loaded about 14 patients on and watched it take off. Hueys and Blackhawks had been coming in in pairs every day, so that had become routine. The docs, nurses and staff (mostly U.S. volunteers) had to come out and watch this big machine come in. It made me proud to see the difference the U.S. can make in a third world country during a crisis.

My dad flew the OG Sea Stallions during the late 60's and early 70's. One time at request of the State Police they picked up a pregnant woman who was stranded on the highway following a pile up. The hospital landing pad was too small for the 53 so he landed at a playground a block away and the local FD drove her the last block. There was a newspaper article about and everything. It was pretty cool having GI Joe as a Dad.

I'll never forget the first time I saw a CH-53E landing an taking off up close when I was in the Marines. The extreme size of these machines and their quality of looking powerful, no matter what they're doing, is a visually and emotionally potent combination. The only thing I can compare the experience to is the first time I saw an American supercarrier in port, gargantuan and towering over everything around it.

The USAF parajumpers were in the barracks next to ours at Kadena back in 77-79 and I saw the Jolly Greens taking off from the inflight kitchen often. Of all the aircraft that did touch and go practice the HH-53 was one of the coolest to watch! Only the SR-71 and the BUFFs that were at Kadena when typhoons hit Guam were more impressive when taking off. Hats off to the USAF parajumpers who could drink the Marines under the table on BC street.

Very cool. Years ago when I was a contractor for a defense company we were at a base with a couple airplanes doing some testing and a detachment of Marines was there as well with a couple of these big helos. It was just us and them. When you see one of these monsters taxiing out alone it is awe inspiring to watch them take off and a few hours later return. We were not part of their detachment but were using the next door hangar so got to know each other while being neighbors for a couple weeks. While we were civilians, those Marines treated us like brothers. They let us look at, climb on, and get in that big helo. Sadly due to security clearances and all we couldn't reciprocate but they understood. They offered to take us flying but we didn't have the time. This was my only time around the big Marine Sikorsky. An amazing machine. Thank you.

As a Navy Corpsman I had the pleasure of riding some of those CH-53 beauties. Awesome helo, we had plenty of room for all of our gear. Was super awesome when the back cargo door drops down and we run out the back. Felt like a movie.

Thank you for being an aviation nerd like me, Simon. Quality content as usual!

What a magnificent airframe. I flew many times in the 53E and the 46. I served at MCAS Tustin from 1983 to 1990.

You are the big boy in town when your individual rotor blades have a greater lifting capacity than the entire wing of many aeroplanes. Then add 6 more leaves and turn on the spin cycle. Amazing what you can do if you beat enough air into submission with brute force. The part where that 53 snipped it's refueling probe off was an engineering masterpiece of brilliance as the articulating ability of the rotor disc to do that so lightening quick and then return to normal position for the flight mode without unduly upsetting the aircraft dangling below by just a shaft. Bravo

I was on an amphibious ship when I was on active duty. We were told to tie off to the rail when they flew over the stern gate station of the ship.

The Super Stallion is a beast. I'm a huge fan. People think the Chinook is to top heavy lift chopper, but this beast reigns.

When I was stationed on aircraft carriers I would sometimes stand watch in the Combat Information Center, located underneath the flight deck. When a CH-53 would hover over the deck, it felt like every single rotor blade was smacking me on the top of the head...through the armored steel flight deck. It was crazy. It changed the air pressure in the space.

I just realized it looks like an absolute roided out Sea King I love it

The King Stallion is here my friends. Flying out of Sikorsky field in southern Connecticut, I've seen (heard ... hard not too) a few flying around Connecticut in "shake-down" flights. They are LOUD!

Proud to be a design engineer on the 53K. Comparing it to the 53E isn't fair to that aircraft because it was redesigned from the ground up. Some really impressive engineering and manufacturing innovations went into developing the 53K.

Some of my first assignments as a Design Engineer were working on the 53E and 53K. What an absolute BEAST. Proud of the work I've done on both.

I see these helicopters regularly. I love watching them drag the naval mine detection sleds. Between these, the twin rotor CH-47 Chinook and the Ch-53D SeaStallion I think these are some of the most incredible rotary wing designs ever built.

I see comments about personal experiences seeing/hearing the Super Stallions. Mine was on a moonless night while camping in a forested section of the high Sierra. The trees likely suppressed any overhead sounds until with only a couple seconds notice, one Stallion flew past. The roar got me out of the tent in time for a second and a third, all flying at tree top level with lights out. Just enough light to make out their silhouettes. This was near the marine's mountain warfare training center near Bridgeport, California. I drove over there a couple day later and saw a bunch of CH-53 and V-22 Osprey's on the tarmac. The marines carry 90+ lb packs while traversing the mountains, hoofing it at speed up steep terrain at ~8000 feet. They are brutally tough 'mutha's', and earn much respect..

that clip of the Super Stallion smashing its refueling probe into its rotor blades is harrowing

I had the pleasure of travelling in this massive aircraft many times in Afghanistan (and much preferred it to the Osprey). What you don't mention is the operating idiosyncrasy that causes the engines to leak large amounts of lubricant all over the inside, often causing small oil puddles which sloshed around on the floor during flight. You could easily identify the USMC flight crew for the Stallions in the rec areas because their uniform flight suits were darker due to the lubricant permanently impregnated in the material. Most of my outer kit also changed colour after the first few flights and the bags have never changed back. After the first flight, I asked the Crew Chief about this; his response has stayed with me to this day, "We don't mind the lub over everything, 'cos when it stops leaking, this bird will fall out of the sky." For some reason after this, I was always happiest when a Chinook came to collect us from a remote area. 😁

Oohrah! I was in an air assault company and rode in these constantly. IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THEI SHOWCASE! all 3 varieties are insane

Of all the helicopters I have flown over an almost 40 yr rotary wing career, the Super Stallion was far and away my favorite! Fast, powerful, nothing else came close in the performance department and that includes the UH-60 and the AH-64. She was a bit of a maintenance queen though. We would hot refuel most of the time because it seemed that on shutdown is when things would break…lol. Also did two WestPacs with her and really enjoyed flying her off of the ship….an awesome machine!

Can confirm both their lifting capacity and the massive rotor wash these things throw! What an amazing machine to sling a load under!

I have flown 53 over 20 years and have 5000 hours in them. Great aircraft. Flew them in combat, rescue missions in earthquakes, typhoons and hurricanes. Been to 20,000 feet in the Peruvian Andes took them on the first shipboard deployment in the Caribbean.

The Navy also had Super Stallions. Our 'utility' squadron in the Phillipines once picked up a broken CH-53E with another CH-53E in order to fly it back to Naval Air Station Cubi Point next to Naval Station Subic Bay. The only thing a Super Stallion isn't good at is at-sea rescue...the rotor downwash while in a hover low enough to effect a rescue is pretty severe. I crewed H-1s, H-3s, H-46s, and H-53s in my Navy tours. I loved them all.

Having been a mechanic on the 53e, this video was amazing to watch and brought back lots of memories.

0:45 - Chapter 1 - The super stallion 2:00 - Mid roll ads 3:30 - Chapter 2 - The manufacturer 6:50 - Chapter 3 - Background 12:00 - Chapter 4 - Development 14:20 - Chapter 5 - Design 17:10 - Chapter 6 - Battle honours & operations 19:50 - Chapter 7 - The future - Chapter 8 -

Here on the Florida panhandle, I get to see CH-53s on a fairly regular basis, along with TH-73s, UH-60s, CH-47s, UH-72s, MH-65s, T-45s. 11:55 F-15s, F-16s, F-18s, F-35s, A-10s, AC-130s, V-22s, and occasionally, Eurofighter Typhoons. I don't ever see F-22s anymore, so I guess they were all transferred to Langley AFB, VA. Not only do we have the world's most beautiful beaches, but our plane spotting opportunities are on point.

I thoroughly enjoyed my 5 years working on these babies, they definitely are, and always will be, impressive!

I had the fortune to be able to work on the MH-53 in the AF; in fact, I've worked on the one pictured, 4428! She was one of my favorites! 😁

Living in Connecticut in the 1960s and 1970s it was great when what we guessed were test flights of many Sikorsky helicopters flew over us.

The Pavelow was an amazing machine, and more-so the men that flew her. I miss the machine, the mission, and the men that I flew with. PLL

Fantastic episode! I served on an amphibious ship for 4 years and we had plenty of '53's and '46's on board. Only one was lost during 2 deployments. Our berthing was under the flight deck and when they took off, you definitely felt it. When they land on deck, the flight crew has to stand at an angle so they don't get blown overboard. Also, we were the deployment group at Mogadishu and if I remember correctly, that baby was born aboard our ship as we had a full hospital bay. You did miss the relief mission of the Mt Pinatubo volcano eruption in 1991 when the '53 was instrumental in moving the Phillipine people from Subic Bay to Cebu.

I was a T64 engine mechanic for the CH-53E in the Marines in early 90's. This aircraft was amazing to ride in.

I flew and worked on the MH-53E (Sea Dragon). I love seeing anything about any of the 53 airframes!!! Please do one on the Sea Dragon and the role it plays in the Navy.

I live by one of the top 10 emergency military hubs for military aircraft, and I’m always sitting outside in the summertime and one morning I had just finished my breakfast and went outside and I could hear the rumble of the CH 53 super stallions from a mile away. My mom was also out there watering the plants. And she goes. Is that a helicopter I hear” and I said yes I’m not sure if it’s civilian and military yet it’s not close enough. Well, within a minute, I heard the whistling turbine in the roar of rat tail rotor, and there were two of them flying side-by-side, and I had had my audio recorder out there because well I always carry it out with me, and so I captured the perfect pass of those helicopters.

Worked on and flew in these amazing machines back when I was in the Marines from 03-08 and I loved them. Happy to see you doing a video on these amazing pieces of engineering. One of the cooler thing I got to see was one of our CH-53E lifting a crashed MH-53J ( Air Force Pavelow 3 which is a modified CH-53D).

The venerable Sikorsky Sea King is my favourite all-time whirlybird. I got to see an old variant of it while visiting the U.S.S. Hornet in Alameda, California.

They are massive! A number of years ago I was at a training event that included several different types of heavy lift helicopters. Had several CH-53 birds take off very close to me and fly right over my head at about 50 feet. I can agree with the reference as a hurricane maker!

I saw one of these carrying a Harrier by cable at Camp Pendleton in the 90s. It's been my favorite helo ever since.

I was the intelligence chief for one of the CH-53 squadrons at Miramar a few years ago after I spent time at an infantry battalion flying in a few of them. It is truly awe inspiring just how large and powerful these aircraft are. Great crew, awesome pilots, and an amazing community.

One time, way back when, we were boarding our Sea Stallion helicopters to deploy from ship to shore. After our stick (group of people) had boarded and jammed ourselves and our equipment into our seats, we were then told to debark (that's the correct word, btw, despite the insistence of the general public to say, "disembarking"). This wasn't part of the usual process. So we all got off the bird, and followed the direction given to us to go below, from the flight deck to the hangar deck, and then to wait. So we waited a few minutes, and then we were hustled back to the flight deck, reboarded the bird, flew to our destination, and completed our mission. It was only then that the word was passed to us regarding why we had been taken off the bird and then put back on it. As it turns out, one of the helicopter's rotors had a hole that was about the diameter a softball in it, or about four or five inches across. I asked how the hell they flight crew had repaired the rotor so quickly. The answer? They didn't "fix" anything. They had simply spun down the bird's engines, and then duct taped over the hole, wrapping it around the rotor a bunch of times to patch the hole. It's a good thing they hadn't told us that sh*t beforehand, because they might have had a mutiny on their hands...lol All hail the All-Healing Power of Duct Tape!! 😮😅

I see these all the time here in Sikorsky's home of Stratford CT and they are always impressive. The Super Stallion and the Osprey were built for very different missions.

I spent quite some time on board these beasts back in the mid-90's while stationed in Hawaii. They're impressive.

i worked in this plane in the marine corps from 2000-2004. i was in hmh-465 over at miramar. went to iraw twice there. these planes will forever be a part of me. thanks for doing a video on this.

Surprised, in your excellent historical review, at no mention of Naval use of RH53D in Airborne Mine Countermeasures since early 1970’s. I served as Squadron Flight Surgeon for HM12 (Norfolk), the FIRST of such units, ‘73-‘76 with deployments to Suez Canal.

A correction: Only one "B" model '53 was ever modified into a Pavelow, acft tail #68-4433, and it was originally an "A" model (you actually show it several times. It's the one with the diagonal struts over the sponsons). This aircraft was also the ONLY YMH-53H Pavelow III, as it was the ORIGINAL Pavelow testbed. I'm a former Aircraft Maintenance Technician, assigned to the 20th AMU, 834th AGS, 1st SOW, Hurlburt Fld AFB. Edit: the E and newer K models produce FAR more than 7500 SHP. That figure is PER ENGINE.

I have to admit, I love the visual of the Super Stallion. Its a massive hulking beast, far sexier looking than the silly V-22 Osprey. Also, its use in the 1st Transformers film was terribly cool.

I swear if I see another ad for surf shark I am going insane. I will not by the product just because of how many times I have to watch the ad on a video that already has ad volume jacked to the max. Great job Simon - keep rolling the dollars.

Hi, former MC-130H Combat Talon II (USAF) maintenance crew chief here! Really cool to hear about the Pave Low III having terrain-following radar, considering my bird had that (they're getting retired, if they're not already). Cool to see how far back some technology goes.

I used to work on these things when I was in the Marine Corps (primarily the Charlie, Delta and Echo) out in Jacksonville NC. It's a same I didn't get to see the Kilo make its appearance before I got out. Actually got to fly on an Echo I had worked on going to a different FOB in Afghan and was kinda pissed at how much I hated getting sandblasted in the face with that shit it kicked up lol.

The simile between the Super Stallion and a super buff inmate seemingly on steroids is spectacular !:-)

I was aboard the Tarawa years back. We had these. It's awesome to watch them take off., They don't really lift off. They lift off a little but and kinda dump off the side. Then you see them gain altitude and go. They are some pretty bad ass helos. And BIG. I was on Aircraft Carriers as well. And though they were on them, the greatest concentration were on the Amphibious Assault Ships.

My father flew the HH53 in Vietnam (Air Force), was mainly rescue, but he opened up to me year later and stated they many of the high tech equipment that we have today he carried in his HH53. Back then vacuum tubes where used, so the high tech transistor & chips weren't fully used so the equipment was large and heavy at that time (1970-1971). So the HH53 was and still is an incredible piece of equipment.

You didn't mention an unique type of mission this helicopter executed in the navy: MCM ops. This helicopter was used for towing influence minesweeping floating platform, consisting in electromagnetic and acoustic generators.

I’ve never clicked on a video faster in my life. I was a mechanic and aircrewman from 2014 to 2019 on the Shitter. She’s a big beautiful dirty hard working b**** and America is lucky to have her!

another benefit of the third engine is that in the event of the loss of an engine while carrying a heavy load, the remaining 2 engines can keep the helicopter in the air or at least allow a slow descent for a controlled emergency landing. With only 2 engines, the loss of an engine cuts the power by 50% and when carrying a large load, the result is that it drops like a rock and crashes hard. For instance, the Navy variant of this aircraft, the MH-53E Sea Dragon, is able to tow a mine clearing sled through the water for MCM work, and there was a plan to have the MH-60S take over this role but it was found that in the event of the loss of an engine (MH-60 has 2), the weight of the sled will likely cause the MH-60 to crash, while the MH-53E is able to remain in control while towing the sled if an engine is lost.

A shipmate who had rode on one said there was a sign in the rear that said "Vehicles please turn left upon exit." 3 Turbines offers a lot of encouragement...

The US Navy version is the MH-53E which is used for mine countermeasure operations. It has enlarged sponsons to provide substantially greater fuel storage and endurance. It also retained the in-flight refueling probe and could be fitted with up to seven 300-US-gallon ferry tanks internally. The MH-53E digital flight-control system includes features specifically designed to help tow minesweeping gear. The MH-53E was used by the Navy beginning in 1986 and is capable of in-flight refueling and can be refueled at hover.

Thank you for the little tour of Igor Sikorsky's history. I want to add that in the USSR Sikorsky had a friend - aircraft designer Konstantin Kalinin. Sikorsky tried several times to persuade Kalinin to move to work in the USA, but Kalinin refused. Sikorsky built a successful company, lived to a ripe old age, and was buried with full honors. Kalinin was shot in 1938 on far-fetched charges of anti-Soviet activities and espionage (the court session lasted 10 minutes without witnesses and the defense). That's the story of two aviation engineer friends

Finally, I have been waiting for first quality and interesting movie about CH53

13:20 US Marines typically aren't deployed from aircraft carriers, Brain Boy. The helo assault unit (of which I was a part) deploys from an LHA (we were on board LHA-3, the USS Belleau Wood). An LHA is capable of launching Harriers and attack helicopters (as we Marines have our own air support), and of launching seaborne operations from its well-deck, which floods as needed to launch LCACs (hovercraft) and AMTRACs (floating IFVs). In other words, this type of ship was specifically designed to carry and deploy on target the bulk of the Infantry component of a MEU (Marine Expeditionary Unit; basically a battalion reinforced), with the redt of the assets being carried and deployed by other ships in the fleet. But, with rare exceptions (Force Reconnaissance assets, for example, who are located with higher command for what should be obvious reasons) Marines don't deploy from aircraft carriers. 😮👍👍

Having worked on MH-53Es, they are amazing powerhouses but you are definitely correct with the maintenance per flight hour. It was hard to keep those bad girls in the air. It also took the navy forever to fix the fire issue.. crappy wiring choice.. It was great for keeping costs down but in the long run it wore down and became brittle. I am excited to see what the "K" model has in store.

Of all the helos I've ridden in, the CH-53E was my favorite ride

Always loved this aircraft design. It just oozes capability.

MCAS CHERRY POINT'S "PEDRO!!!" HH-46E Sea Knight that was retired a few years ago. Different helicopter but awesome history!!!

1:23 the Osprey also has a tendency to fall out of the sky because their tilt mechanisms often jam whilst transferring from one mode to another, that’s why Marine 1 Isn’t an Osprey

I was a MH-53 Crew Chief in the 90’s, thanks for the video!

Gunna show this to all my friend lol thx for all ur hard work Simon and ur shadow organization

living on MCB Quantico, Va many years ago these things rattled everything!!

The very first 53 was test flown and did a barrel roll and a loop. I'm sold just on that. One of the best helicopter designs ever made.

Rattling in the belly of a 53 high above the north shore, I imagined that the litany of screws vibrating to freedom would retain their purchase just long enough to find safe earth in K Bay.

I got to fast rope from a Super Stallion. Hitting the ground it felt like being in the middle of hurricane force winds. It was a fast and smooth flying machine. I always enjoyed taking a ride in one.

My brother spent a few years as a flight nurse. I’m at a double level 1 trauma city and can basically ident med helos on sound…but also we have a mainly Blackhawk AVCRAD…those random Chinooks or Apaches are fun to hear. Love fixed wing but rotary has seen a lack of development.

I remember getting in a ch53 for the first time and thought it was pretty cool. When I got in it the second time, I just wanted to go home.

Flew 53Es with HMH-465 out of MCAS Tustin, CA. Great bird. Would love to grab an armpit full of collective one more time.

I love these aerospace vids. Keep me coming!

just an excellent production, lots of info, love it

Flew in a Sea Stallion (Navy version) twice...it's a big mutha. Logged 1200+ aircrew hours in Sea Kings (SH-3H).

Was stationed next to the Rock. Early on OIF the 53d go every morning and come back through the day. It dusted us bad every day. Merica!

I was in Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron 14 (HM-14) for six years. Started with RH-53D and transitioned to the MH-53E. Beautiful machines, but TONS of manhours to keep them flying! Still, wouldn't trade one day of it! Vanguard!!

The USMC is exalent at getting what it wants no matter how much or how long it takes. Improvise, adapt, and overcome is applied to all aspects of the USMC.