Sikorsky Aircraft Sikorsky Aircraft The Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation is an American aircraft manufacturer based in Stratford, Connecticut. It was established by Igor Sikorsky in 1923 and was among the first companies to manufacture helicopters for civilian and military use. Previously owned by United Technologies Corporation (UTC), in November 2015 Sikorsky was sold to Lockheed Martin. On May 23, 1923, the "Sikorsky Aero Engineering Corporation" was founded near Roosevelt Field by Igor Sikorsky, an immigrant to the United States who was born in Kiev. In 1925 the company name was changed to "Sikorsky Manufacturing Company". In 1929 the company moved to [[Stratford, Connecticut]],
Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King to pursue the further development of the Sea King for other markets beyond the US Navy. One of the major variants of the Sea King to be produced was a model for civil operators, which was designated as the Sikorsky S-61L. The first operator of the S-61L was Los Angeles Airways, who introduced the type to service on 11 March 1962. Another noteworthy Sea King variant, the significant change this time being the adoption of a conventional hull, the Sikorsky S-61R, was also concurrently developed for transport and search and rescue (SAR) duties, this type being extensively operated by the