Lockheed S-3A Viking 159391 United States Navy

These are 1/72 scale decals for the Lockheed S-3A Viking, BuNo 159391, operated by VS-29 (Sea Control Squadron Twenty-Nine) — depicted in the standard United States Navy tactical scheme.

The S-3A Viking was the U.S. Navy's carrier-based anti-submarine warfare aircraft of the Cold War era, designed to hunt Soviet submarines from the deck of a carrier strike group. Powered by two turbofan engines and packed with advanced sensors — including a forward-looking infrared system, magnetic anomaly detector, and an extensive sonobuoy suite — the Viking gave carrier air wings a long-range, all-weather ASW capability that had previously required land-based patrol aircraft. Crews affectionately nicknamed it the "Hoover" for the distinctive sound of its engines.

VS-29, the "Dragonfires," was a Pacific Fleet sea control squadron based at NAS North Island, California. The squadron transitioned to the S-3A Viking in 1975 and made history with the first West Pacific S-3 Viking deployment as part of CVW-14 aboard the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) from July 1976 to March 1977. Subsequent deployments followed aboard the USS Ranger with CVW-2, before VS-29 began a long association with CVW-15 starting with a deployment aboard the USS Kitty Hawk in 1981. BuNo 159391 in standard Navy markings could represent any of these storied deployments across three of the Pacific Fleet's most iconic carriers.

A classic Cold War carrier aviation subject and a perfect complement to the same airframe in its striking Bicentennial scheme. Please allow some time for decal printing and shipping.