The Grumman HU-16 Albatross is a large, twin-radial-engined, amphibious flying boat that was used by the United States Air Force (USAF), U.S. Navy (USN), U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), and Royal Canadian Air Force primarily as a search-and-rescue (SAR) aircraft. Originally designated as the SA-16 for the USAF and the JR2F-1 and UF-1 for the USN and USCG, it was redesignated as the HU-16 in 1962.

Design and development

An improvement of the design of the Grumman Mallard, the Albatross was developed to land in open-ocean situations to accomplish rescues. Its deep-V hull cross-section and keel length enable it to land in the open sea. The Albatross was designed for optimal seas, and could land in more severe conditions, but required JATO (jet-assisted takeoff, or simply booster rockets) for takeoff in seas or greater.

The Albatross initially carried an APS-31A radar in a pod on the left wing. However, the position meant the fuselage blocked the ability of the radar to search to the right of the aircraft, so it was moved to the nose on later SA-16As.

Operational history

thumb|A USAF SA-16A during the [[Korean War]]

thumb|Grumman HU-16 Albatross at MacDill AFB Florida 1951 or early 1952

Most Albatrosses were used by the USAF, primarily in the SAR mission role and initially designated as SA-16. The USAF used the SA-16 extensively in Korea for combat rescue, earning a reputation as a rugged and seaworthy craft. Later, the redesignated HU-16B (long-wing variant) Albatross was used by the USAF Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service and saw extensive combat service during the Vietnam War. In addition, a small number of Air National Guard air commando groups were equipped with HU-16s for covert infiltration and extraction of special forces from 1956 to 1971. Other examples of the HU-16 made their way into Air Force Reserve rescue and recovery units prior to its retirement from USAF service.

The USN also employed the HU-16C/D Albatross as an SAR aircraft from coastal naval air stations, both stateside and overseas. It was also employed as an operational support aircraft worldwide and for missions from the former Naval Air Station Agana, Guam, during the Vietnam War. Goodwill flights were also common to the surrounding Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands in the early 1970s. Open-water landings and water takeoff training using JATO was also conducted frequently by USN HU-16s from locations such as NAS Agana, Guam; Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii; NAS North Island, California, NAS Key West, Florida; NAS Jacksonville, Florida; and NAS Pensacola, Florida, among other locations.

In July 1952, an SA-16 from the 58th Air Rescue Squadron rescued 32 survivors of a British DC-3 that had crashed in the Mediterranean Sea. The pilot, Capt. Kendrick U. Reeves, later received the Cheney Award for his actions.

In October 1957, an SA-16B flew to a position 120 nautical miles south-southeast from Sardinia to pick up a F-100 pilot. After recovering the pilot, takeoff was determined to be impossible due to damage from the landing, and the aircraft taxied 45 nautical miles towards Bizerte, Tunisia, before being taken in tow by a French corvette for the remainder of the trip. This set the USAF record for the longest taxi time from water to dry land.

As part of the International Ice Patrol in 1958 and 1959, USCG UF-2Gs dropped Mk 35 and Mk 36 incendiary bombs on icebergs.

On 24 May 1962, a USAF SA-16 was launched to assist in the recovery of the Aurora 7 space capsule and astronaut Scott Carpenter. Despite arriving on scene ahead of two USN Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King helicopters, the Albatross was instructed not to land by the recovery force commander due to concerns over its ability to take off again in heavy seas. A minor controversy later arose over whether the decision was motivated by interservice rivalry.

In February 1964, a USAF HU-16B sent to retrieve the nose cone of a missile fired from Cape Kennedy Air Force Station ran out of fuel after rough seas forced it to attempt to taxi back to land. As no nearby ships carried aviation gasoline, a fuel truck was lashed to the deck of the , the aircraft was refueled, and it was finally able to take off after five days on the ocean's surface.

On 14 March 1966, an HU-16B, serial number 51-071, attempted a rescue of the crew of an F-4C that had ejected over the Gulf of Tonkin. After landing to pick up the pilot, the aircraft was struck by a mortar round fired from the nearby shore, killing the radio operator and seriously injuring the flight mechanic. The aircraft then sank, drowning the pararescueman, who was tethered to it. The pilot, copilot, flight mechanic, navigator, and both F-4 crew were later rescued by H-3 helicopters. The navigator, Captain Donald Price, was later awarded the Air Force Cross for his actions.

Three days later, on 17 March 1966, an HU-16 was involved in the recovery of Gemini 8.

The HU-16 was also operated by the United States Coast Guard as both a coastal and long-range open-ocean SAR aircraft for many years until it was supplanted by the HU-25 Guardian and HC-130 Hercules.

The final USAF HU-16 flight was the delivery of AF Serial No. 51-5282 to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, in July 1973 after setting an altitude record of earlier in the month.

The final US Navy HU-16 flight was made 13 August 1976, when an Albatross was delivered to the National Naval Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola, Florida.

The final USCG HU-16 flight was at Otis Air National Guard Base in Cape Cod in March 1983, when the aircraft type was retired by the USCG. The Albatross continued to be used in the military service of other countries, the last being retired by the Hellenic Navy of Greece in 1995.

The Pakistan Air Force operated four SA-16As from 1958 to 1968, which it received under the Mutual Defense Assistance Act. No. 4 Squadron was equipped with them while based at Drigh Road Air Base. The SA-16s were used for maritime reconnaissance and coastal patrol during the 1965 War with India. At least one SA-16 was on patrol during the 17-day war, flying 14 missions in support of the Pakistan Navy. They were stored on August 19, 1968.

The Indonesian Air Force operated eight UF-1s acquired in 1958 and four ex-West German Navy UF-2Ss acquired in 1977, all were assigned to the 5th Air Squadron and were retired in the 1980s. The Indonesian Navy also operated two ex-USN UF-2 received in 1960. Three Grumman Albatrosses from the Indonesian Air Force took part in the 1975 invasion of East Timor for maritime patrol role. Due to shortage of ground-attack aircraft in the initial stage of the invasion, the Albatross was modified so it could be armed with 12.7 mm M2 Browning machine guns, bombs, and rockets. The Albatross was only used once for a ground-attack mission.

The Royal Canadian Air Force operated Grumman Albatrosses with the designation "CSR-110".

Civil operations

thumb|[[Transocean Air Lines SA-16 used for Trust Territory service, Oakland 1954]]

thumb|right|Chalk's International Airlines Albatross arriving in Miami Harbor from Nassau, Bahamas, in 1987

In the 1950s, Transocean Air Lines flew SA-16s under contract to the United States Department of the Interior between the islands of Micronesia. After Transocean's 1960 bankruptcy, Pan American World Airways and finally Continental Airlines' Air Micronesia operated the Albatrosses serving Yap, Palau, Chuuk (Truk), and Pohnpei from Guam until 1970, when adequate island runways were built, allowing land operations.

Many surplus Albatrosses were sold to civilian operators, mostly to private owners. These aircraft are operated under either experimental-exhibition or restricted category and cannot be used for commercial operations, except under very limited conditions.

In the early 1980s, Chalk's International Airlines, owned by Merv Griffin's Resorts International, had 13 Albatrosses converted to standard category as G-111s. This made them eligible for use in scheduled airline operations. These aircraft underwent extensive modifications from the standard military configuration, including rebuilt wings with titanium wing-spar caps, additional doors, and modifications to existing doors and hatches, stainless steel engine oil tanks, dual engine fire-extinguishing systems on each engine, and propeller auto-feather systems installed. The G-111s were operated for only a few years and then put in storage in Arizona. Most are still parked there, but some have been returned to regular flight operations with private operators.

thumb|left|Cockpit of Grumman Albatross N44RD, which flew around the world in 1997

Satellite technology company Row 44, now known as Anuvu, bought an HU-16B Albatross (registration N44HQ) in 2008 to test its in-flight satellite broadband internet service. Named Albatross One, the company selected the aircraft for its operations because it has the same curvature atop its fuselage as the Boeing 737 aircraft for which the company manufactures its equipment. The plane purchased by Row 44 was used at one time as a training aircraft for space shuttle astronauts by NASA. It features the autographs of the astronauts who trained aboard the plane on one of the cabin walls.

In 1997, a Grumman Albatross (N44RD), piloted by Reid Dennis and Andy Macfie, became the first Albatross to circumnavigate the globe. The 26,347 adj=on flight around the world lasted 73 days, included 38 stops in 21 countries, and was completed with 190 hours of flight time. In 2013 Reid Dennis donated N44RD to the Hiller Aviation Museum.

Since the aircraft weighs over 12,500 pounds, pilots of civilian US-registered Albatross aircraft must have a type rating. A yearly Albatross fly-in is held at Boulder City, Nevada, where Albatross pilots can become type rated.

Proposed new build

Amphibian Aerospace Industries in Darwin, Australia, acquired the type certificate and announced in December 2021 that it planned to commence manufacturing a new version of the Albatross from 2025. Dubbed the G-111T, it would have modern avionics and Pratt & Whitney PT6A-67F turboprop engines, with variants for passengers, freight, SAR, coastal surveillance, and aeromedical evacuation.

Variants

thumb|An XJR2F-1 prototype at [[Naval Air Station Patuxent River|NAS Patuxent River in the 1940s]]

thumb|Some SA-16s were equipped with skis on the pontoons and a retractable keel in the hull as part of a "triphibian" system that allowed them to operate off of land, water or snow

Company

;G-64

:Company designation for UF-1/SA-16A

;G-88

:Proposed anti-submarine warfare development of UF-2

;G-288

:UF-2G for U.S. Coast Guard

;HU-16A

:USAF version. Originally designated SA-16A.

;HU-16A

:Indonesian version. Originally designated UF-1.

;HU-16B

:USAF version modified with long wing. Originally designated SA-16B.

;SHU-16B

:Export version, modified HU-16B for Anti-Submarine Warfare. Featured an AN/APS-88 in the nose and MAD boom in the tail

;HU-16C

:US Navy version. Originally designated UF-1.

;LU-16C

:US Navy version equipped with skis.

;CSR-110

:RCAF version

;G-111T

:Proposed new builds with modern avionics and turboprop engines.

;S-16

:Brazilian Air Force designation of the HU-16A. Originally designated A-16, U-16, and later M-16.

;AD.1

:Spanish Air Force designation for the HU-16.

Operators

;

thumb|right|HU-16B of the Argentine Air Force, [[LADE 1st flight to Port Stanley, 1972]]

  • Argentine Air Force - 3 aircraft.
  • Argentine Naval Aviation - 4 aircraft.
  • 2nd Propositos Generales Squadron
  • Escuadrilla Aeronaval de Busqueda y Salvamento

;

thumb|right|A Grumman Albatross of the [[Royal Canadian Air Force|RCAF]]

  • International Test Pilots School
  • Royal Canadian Air Force
  • 442 Transport and Rescue Squadron
  • 2nd Group

;

thumb|right|Preserved Hellenic AF aircraft at Dekelia AB.

  • German Navy
  • 353 Naval Cooperation Squadron

;

  • Indonesian Navy
  • Indonesian Air Force
  • Airfast Indonesia
  • Dirgantara Air Service
  • Pelita Air
  • 140th Squadron

;

thumb|right|A Spanish HU-16

  • Mexican Navy
  • 3rd Naval Air Squadron
  • No. 330 Squadron
  • No. 4 Squadron
  • 31st Group
  • 27th SAR and Reconnaissance Squadron
  • 4th Squadron
  • 206 Squadron
  • 2nd Air Rescue Squadron
  • 3rd Air Rescue Squadron
  • United States Navy
  • Antarctic Development Squadron Six

Accidents and incidents

  • On 24 January 1952, SA-16A Albatross, 51-001, c/n G-74,
  • On 16 May 1952, a USN Grumman Albatross attached to the Iceland Defense Force crashed on Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland. Due to bad weather conditions, rescuers did not make it to the crash site until two-and-a-half days later. One crew member was found dead in the wreckage, but the other four were not found despite extensive search. Evidence on scene suggested that they had tried to deploy the emergency radio, but most likely failed due to very poor weather conditions, and then tried to walk down the glacier. In 1964, partial remains of one of the crewmembers along with an engraved wedding ring were found at the rim of the glacier. On 20 August 1966, the remains of the three remaining crew members were found at a similar location.
  • On 18 May 1957, USCG HU-16E Albatross, Coast Guard 1278, stalled and crashed during a JATO demonstration during the Armed Forces Day display at Coast Guard Air Station Salem. The pilot and another crewman were killed. The stall was caused by pilot error.
  • On 22 August 1957, U.SCG HU-16E Albatross, Coast Guard 1259, crashed during takeoff at Floyd Bennett Field, killing four of the six crew on board. The aircraft had just completed an inspection in which the control columns were removed and inspected for fatigue cracks. Although not proven, poor maintenance during the reinstallation of the control columns is believed to have led to the crash.
  • On 3 July 1964, USCG HU-16E Albatross, Coast Guard 7233, was lost along with all five crew members as it returned from a search for a missing fishing boat. Two days later, the wreckage was found on a mountainside, from its base at Air Station Annette, Alaska.
  • On 18 June 1965, on the first Operation Arc Light mission flown by B-52 Stratofortresses of Strategic Air Command to hit a target in South Vietnam, two aircraft collided in the darkness. Eight crew were killed, but four survivors were located and picked up by an HU-16A-GR Albatross amphibian, AF serial number 51-5287. The Albatross was damaged on take-off by a heavy sea state, and those on board had to transfer to a Norwegian freighter and a Navy vessel, the aircraft sinking thereafter.
  • On 9 January 1966, a Republic of China Air Force HU-16 carrying three mainland Chinese naval defectors, two officers of the Defense Ministry, and four officers of the Matsu Defense Command, was shot down by communist MiGs over the Taiwan Straits, just hours after they had surrendered their landing ship and asked for asylum. The Albatross was attacked just 15 minutes after departing the island of Matsu on a flight to Taipei. According to a U.S. Defense Department announcement, the attack was a swift—and perhaps intentional—retribution for the communist sailors who killed seven fellow crew members during their predawn escape to freedom.
  • On 23 April 1966, a RCAF Grumman CSR-110 Albatross (9302) serving with No. 121 Composite Unit (KU) at RCAF Station Comox, BC, crashed on the Hope Slide near Hope, BC. It was the only RCAF Albatross loss. Five of the six crew members died (Squadron Leader J. Braiden, Flying Officer Christopher J. Cormier, Leading Aircraftsman Robert L. McNaughton, Flight Lieutenant Phillip L. Montgomery, and Flight Lieutenant Peter Semak). Flying Officer Bob Reid was the sole survivor. A portion of the wreckage is still visible and can be hiked to.
  • On 18 January 1967, a Grumman HU-16A Albatross operated by the Air Force of the Republic of Indonesia (AURI), military registration 302, en route to Malang-Abdul Rachman Saleh Airport (MLG/WARA), was reported as missing with the loss of all 19 occupants onboard.
  • On 5 March 1967, USCG HU-16E Albatross, Coast Guard 1240, c/n G-61, out of Coast Guard Air Station St. Petersburg, Florida, deployed to drop a dewatering pump to a sinking yacht, Flying Fish, in the Gulf of Mexico off of Carrabelle, Florida. Shortly after making a low pass behind the sinking vessel to drop the pump, the flying boat crashed a short distance away, with loss of all six crew. The vessel's crew heard a loud crash, but could see nothing owing to fog. The submerged wreck was not identified until 2006.
  • On 15 June 1967, USCG HU-16E Albatross, Coast Guard 7237, was based at Coast Guard Air Station Annette Island, in Alaska. The crew was searching near Sloko Lake, British Columbia, Canada, for a missing light plane. The pilot began following the river up to Sloko Lake, intending to turn around at the lake and fly back out of the valley. The co-pilot called for a right turn, but for some reason, the plane went left. According to reports, the co-pilot shouted, “Come right! Come right!” The plane hit the mountain and burst into flames. The three observers in the back were able to get clear of the wreckage, and reported seeing an intense fire engulf the front half of the aircraft. Pilot Lt. Robert Brown, co-pilot Lt. David Bain, and radio operator AT2 Robert Striff, Jr., however, were killed. The wreckage can still be seen on the side of the mountain in Atlin Provincial Park.
  • On 7 August 1967, USCG HU-16E Albatross, Coast Guard 2128, c/n G-355, (ex-USAF SA-16A, 52-128), out of CGAS San Francisco, returning from a search mission for an overdue private cabin cruiser Misty (which had run out of fuel) in the Pacific Ocean off of San Luis Obispo, struck a slope of Mount Mars near the Monterey-San Luis Obispo County line, about east of Highway 1. The airframe broke in two, killing two crew immediately and injuring four others, with one dying in the hospital several days later.
  • On 21 September 1973, U.S. Coast Guard HU-16E Albatross, Coast Guard 2123, was lost over the Gulf of Mexico. The crew was dropping flares over a search area when one flare ignited inside the aircraft, incapacitating the pilots, which led the aircraft to enter an uncontrollable spin. All seven on board were killed.
  • On 5 November 2009, Albatross N120FB of Albatross Adventures crashed shortly after take-off from St. Lucie County International Airport, Fort Pierce, Florida. An engine failed shortly after take-off; the aircraft was damaged beyond economic repair.

Aircraft on display

Argentina

thumb|right|BS-02, Museo Nacional de Aeronáutica de Argentina

  • BS-02 – HU-16B on static display at the at Moron, Buenos Aires.
  • BS-03 – HU-16B on static display at the Museo Aviación Naval in Buenos Aires. Displayed as Argentine Naval Aviation 4-BS-3.
  • IR-0220 – HU-16A in storage at Husein Sastranegara International Airport in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. It was displayed during Bandung Airshow 2017.
  • Unknown – HU-16A on static display at Abdul Rachman Saleh Air Force Base in Malang, East Java, Indonesia.

Greece

  • One HU-16B preserved at the Hellenic Air Force Musem, Dekelia Air Base [https://www.haf.gr/history/museum/collection/]. No 190 (51-7190), formerly of the Hellenic AF 353 Maritime Patrol Squadron

Italy

  • MM50-174 – HU-16A on static display at in Cameri, Piedmont.

United States

  • USAF 51-0006 – HU-16B on static display at the Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum in Ashland, Nebraska.
  • USAF 51-0022 – HU-16A on static display at the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona.
  • USAF 51-7144 – HU-16B on static display at the Museum of Aviation in Warner Robins, Georgia.
  • USAF 51-7163 – HU-16B on static display at the Castle Air Museum in Atwater, California.
  • USAF 51-7176 – HU-16B on static display at Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater in Clearwater, Florida. It was previously at the Pate Museum of Transportation, until its disassembly and relocation to CGAS Clearwater for restoration. It is marked as USCG 1023.
  • USAF 51-7193 – HU-16B on static display at Warfield Air National Guard Base in Baltimore, Maryland.
  • USAF 51-5291 – HU-16B on static display at the Pima Air & Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona.
  • BuNo 137928 Hemisphere Dancer – HU-16C on static display at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. It was previously owned by musician and pilot Jimmy Buffett.
  • BuNo 137932 – HU-16C on static display at the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, California. It was flown around the world by Reid W. Dennis in 1997.
  • USCG 7209 – HU-16E on static display at the Aerospace Museum of California in Sacramento, California.
  • USCG 7216 – HU-16E on static display with the Historic Aircraft Restoration Project at Floyd Bennett Field in New York, New York.
  • USCG 7245 – HU-16E on static display at the Pacific Coast Air Museum in Santa Rosa, California.
  • USCG 7247 – HU-16E on static display at Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City in Elizabeth City, North Carolina.
  • USCG 7250 – HU-16E on static display at Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod in Mashpee, Massachusetts.
  • USCG 1280 – HU-16E on static display at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
  • USCG 1293 – HU-16E on static display at the March Field Air Museum in Riverside, California.
  • USCG 2129 – HU-16E on static display at Battleship Memorial Park in Mobile, Alabama.

Specifications (HU-16B)

See also

References

Footnotes

Notes

Further reading

  • Historical Aircraft page on Northrop Grumman Web Site
  • HU-16 history, including other designations
  • The Grumman Albatross Site
  • Summary at Coast Guard Historian's site
  • The Grumman Albatross – A Spotter’s Guide