The SH-60F helped undermine the case for retaining the S-3 Viking in the carrier ASW role, even though the helicopter could not duplicate every fixed-wing capability. A modern Viking successor would have required new avionics and design work spread across a small production run. The Seahawk could perform an estimated 78 to 80 percent of the work while sharing an airframe with a much larger military program. That commonality reduced the development burden per aircraft and supported a larger rotary-wing fleet. In post-Cold War budgets, a common helicopter built in large numbers was easier to justify than a specialized fixed-wing replacement.
Notable Point · 21:13-22:52
Seahawk economics and the S-3 Viking tradeoff
Helicopters could perform most carrier ASW tasks from a common, high-volume airframe, making a small post-Cold War fixed-wing Viking replacement program difficult to justify.