Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 2 (HELSEACOMBATRON 2 or HSC-2) (previously Helicopter Combat Support Squadron 2 (HC-2)), also known as the "Fleet Angels" (previously the "Circuit Riders"), is a

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

based at

Naval Station Norfolk Naval Station Norfolk is a United States Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia, that is the headquarters and home port of the U.S. Navy's Fleet Forces Command. The installation occupies about of waterfront space and of pier and wharf space of the Hamp ...

operating the

Sikorsky MH-60S Seahawk The Sikorsky SH-60/MH-60 Seahawk (or Sea Hawk) is a twin turboshaft engine, multi-mission United States Navy helicopter based on the United States Army UH-60 Black Hawk and a member of the Sikorsky S-70 family. The most significant modificatio ...

. The Fleet Angels are a Fleet Replacement Squadron providing trained MH-60S crew to units on the East Coast. HC-2_Circuit_Riders_insignia

VH-3A Sea King of HC-2 at NAS Oceana 1991

History

US Navy 070124-N-8493H-003 Two MH-60S Seahawk helicopters assigned to the

HSC-2 was established as the second squadron designated Helicopter Combat Support Squadron TWO (HC-2) on 1 April 1987 from components of several helicopter squadrons, specifically; HC-6's Atlantic Fleet VIP det flying the VH-3A Sea King, HM-12's Vertical Onboard Delivery (VOD) det flying the

CH-53E Super Stallion The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80, it was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor, ...

, and HS-1's Sea Det flying the SH-3G Sea King in support of the Commander U.S. 6th Fleet in Gaeta Italy and the Commander Middle East Force (what would eventually become 5th Fleet) in Manama Bahrain. The Manama detachment was affectionately known as the "Desert Ducks". The squadron originally named itself the ''Circuit Riders'' but in 1994 it adopted the name ''Fleet Angels'' from the first HC-2, which had been established as HU-2 on 1 April 1948 and was disestablished on 30 September 1977. Later in the squadron's history it replaced its SH-3G Sea Kings with the UH-3H and UH-3H(ET-Executive Transport) versions and it replaced its CH-53E Super Stallions with the

Sikorsky MH-53E Sea Dragon The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80, it was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor, ...

. HC-2 provided detachments to the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

in 1990 and 1991 in support of Operations

Desert Shield The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

and

Desert Storm The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

, conducting

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

medical evacuation Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...

, and prisoner transportation flights, as well as assisting in the search for

naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any ...

s and providing other assistance to the fleet. Civilian assistance was rendered in the aftermath of Hurricanes

Dennis Dennis or Denis is a first or last name from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius, via one of the Christian saints named Dionysius. The name came from Dionysus, the Greek god of ecstatic states, particularly those produced by wine, which is someti ...

and Floyd during which two members of the squadron would be awarded the

Navy and Marine Corps Medal The Navy and Marine Corps Medal is the highest non-combat decoration awarded for heroism by the United States Department of the Navy to members of the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The medal was established by an act of Congr ...

for their heroism in rescuing stranded people in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. Unit citations received over the years have included both a

Battle Efficiency Award The Battle Effectiveness Award (formerly the Battle Efficiency Award, commonly known as the Battle "E"), is awarded annually to the small number of United States Navy ships, submarines, aviation, and other units that win their battle effectiveness c ...

and a

Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...

as well as the

Chief of Naval Operations Aviation Safety Award The Chief of Naval Operations Aviation Safety Award, also known as the Safety "S", is awarded annually to U.S. Navy and United States Marine Corps aviation units operating under Navy chains of command. Selection One squadron from each type of ...

in honor of more than 60,000 flight hours without an accident. In 1997 HC-2 assumed the H-3 Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) role in addition to its other missions when HS-1, which by that time was the Navy's sole H-3 FRS was disestablished that June. The venerable H-3 was finally retired from Navy squadron service by HC-2 in January 2006 and replaced with the Navy's new multi-role combat support helicopter, the

MH-60S Seahawk The Sikorsky SH-60/MH-60 Seahawk (or Sea Hawk) is a twin turboshaft engine, multi-mission United States Navy helicopter based on the United States Army UH-60 Black Hawk and a member of the Sikorsky S-70 family. The most significant modificatio ...

. On 1 January 2006 the squadron was redesignated Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron TWO (HSC-2) and became the East Coast Fleet Replacement Squadron for the MH-60S.

Aircraft

Aircraft operated by HSC-2 and HC-2 include (bold indicates active aircraft types): *

Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80, it was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor, ...

* Sikorsky SH-3G Sea King *

Sikorsky UH-3H Sea King The Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King (company designation S-61) is an American twin-engined anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopter designed and built by Sikorsky Aircraft. A landmark design, it was one of the first ASW rotorcraft to use turboshaft engi ...

* Sikorsky VH-3A Sea King

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:HSC-002 02 02B

History

Aircraft

See also

References