On Saturday, September 20, 2025, the American company Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (a part of Lockheed Martin) announced that two days earlier, Sergei Sikorsky, the son of Igor Sikorsky, the Russian-American designer of the first multi-engine airplanes, flying boats, and helicopters, born in Kyiv and founder of Sikorsky Aero Engineering Corporation, had passed away at the age of 100. The company extended its condolences to the deceased’s wife, Elena.
Photo: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
As highlighted, Sergei served in the United States Coast Guard (USCG) during World War II, assigned to the Helicopter Development Unit at Floyd Bennett Field, which tested the pioneering use of helicopters in maritime rescue operations. Sergei Sikorsky later mentioned that this was the most important job of his life.
“The entire team – past and present – at Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin mourn the passing of a remarkable man, a link to the golden age of aviation who meant so much to the success of our business,” said Rich Benton, Sikorsky vice president and general manager. “Sergei will be greatly missed.”
A video honoring Sergei Sikorsky was posted on Lockheed Martin’s YouTube channel.
“This video tribute commemorates the amazing life and times of Sergei I. Sikorsky, a remarkable man who meant so much to aviation history, the Sikorsky business, its employees and the greater Stratford, Connecticut, community. The remarkable impact of the Sikorsky family spans generations, touching every current and former employee, engineer and technician, the places we live and work and the countless lives saved by the helicopter,” reads the press release.
Sergei Sikorsky worked for the company his father founded for 41 years, playing a significant role in its growth and promoting helicopter aviation abroad. Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation became one of the leading helicopter manufacturers in the world. He was interested in aviation from a young age – his first flight with his father as a passenger was at the age of 8 in the S-38 flying boat, and later on, the prototype of the first helicopter, the Vought-Sikorsky VS-300.
Sergei began his career at his father’s company in 1942 as an intern (a role interrupted by his service in the USCG and studies at the University of Florence in Italy). From 1951, he worked as an employee in the United Technologies Corporation, which owned his father’s company, focusing on international marketing and sales in Europe and East Asia. He played a crucial role in the sale of the heavy transport helicopter S-65C-1 to West Germany in June 1968 as Vice President of the co-production program, which received the military designation CH-53G Sea Stallion and entered service with 110 units.
He later returned to the United States in 1976 when the company, having won the UTTAS (Utility Tactical Transport Aircraft System) program, began delivering prototypes of the multi-role transport helicopter YUH-60A to the US Army, which later became the UH-60A Black Hawk. In December of that year, he took up the position of Vice President for the Stratford division, overseeing the company’s co-production programs.
In early 2023, he reflected on the victory in the UTTAS program:
“The day we won the competition, a number of us went to the local watering hole to celebrate, and as we were toasting each other and the Black Hawk, we began to calculate how many of these aircraft we could build. We thought with luck the Army could hold to its original requirement for 1,400 machines. If we were lucky and won Navy orders for the Seahawk and sold a few overseas, we could see a total production of 2,000, maybe 2,200 units. We recently celebrated 5,000 of these machines built. It was an interesting job just seeing how the Black Hawk was modified into a family of excellent machines.”
Until his retirement in 1992, he handled marketing and special projects as Vice President. Even after retiring, he remained active in the company, serving as a goodwill ambassador at important trade shows and other events, where he signed autographs, shared stories about his family’s legacy, and emphasized his immense passion for helicopters and their life-saving promise around the world.
In 2019, an aviation hangar at the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation facilities in Stratford was dedicated as the Sergei I. Sikorsky Aviation Center. Sergei called this event the greatest honor of his life.
