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On 26 February 1991, Coalition ground forces were driving the Iraqi Army out of Kuwait. On 25 March 1971, it took an anti-aircraft artillery hit in the belly just aft of the nose gear wheel well over the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos. [34] The AC-130J has two planned increments: the Block 10 configuration includes an internal 30 mm gun, small diameter bombs, and laser-guided missiles launched from the rear cargo door; and Block 20 configuration adds a 105 mm cannon, large aircraft infrared countermeasures, wing-mounted Hellfire missiles, and radio-frequency countermeasures. Later gunship flights exceeded the 1979 Hurlburt-to-Guam flight. On 26 November 2001, Spectres were called in to put down a rebellion at the prison fort of Qala-I-Janghi. Also, schedule considerations drove the decision, he said. It has twice the munitions capacity of the AC-130H. [12], During the Vietnam War, the C-130 Hercules was selected to replace the Douglas AC-47 Spooky gunship (Project Gunship I) to improve mission endurance and increase capacity to carry munitions. Modifications began by cutting holes in the plane to make room for weapons and adding kits and bomb bases for laser-guided munitions. The aircraft now sits on display in the final Air Force Reserve Command configuration with grey paint, black markings, and the four-bladed Hamilton Sunstrand 54H60-91 props at the Air Force Armament Museum at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, USA. By September 1967, the aircraft was certified ready for combat testing and was flown to Nha Trang Air Base, South Vietnam for a 90-day test program. Before the turn of the decade it became clear that the aging AC-130 fleet was in low supply and exceedingly high demand. Ingress Tactics. AC-130 crews conduct a threat assessment by using all available intelli- The Black Crow system was slaved into the targeting computers of the AC-130A/E/H, enabling the detection of the unshielded ignition coils of North Vietnamese trucks hidden under dense jungle foliage along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. During Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada in 1983, AC-130s suppressed enemy air-defense systems and attacked ground forces enabling the assault of the Point Salines Airfield via airdrop and air-land of friendly forces. The aircraft was officially named Ghostrider in May 2012. The aircraft participated in the Vietnam War and the rescue of the SS Mayaguez. When next we looked, enemy tracers were rocket­ing through the airspace where we would have been. At this time, the C-130A gunship was designated the AC-130A. 1C-130(A)A-1 Flight Manual USAF Series AC-130A Airplane (Part 1), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lockheed_AC-130&oldid=1000602309, Articles with dead external links from January 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Articles needing more detailed references, Articles with dead external links from July 2016, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2018, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2011, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2017, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Downed while truck hunting along the Ho Chi Minh Trail by a, Downed while truck hunting by 57 mm AA at 7,500 feet: The "E" model was armed with a 105 mm, Downed while truck hunting along the Ho Chi Minh trail at 7,800 feet by 37 mm AA, 1× 105 mm M102 howitzer (AC-130J Ghostrider only as of 2017), 'Gunslinger' weapons system with launch tube for, AN/APN-59 radar – search and weather radar, This page was last edited on 15 January 2021, at 20:56. AC-130s took part in Operation Assured Response in Liberia in 1996 and in Operation Silver Wake in 1997, the evacuation of American non-combatants from Albania. AFSOC, however, canceled its plans to install the new cannons on its fleet of AC-130Us. Azrael was also assigned to the 919th Special Operations Wing and retired to the museum in October 1995.[93][94]. Versatility, reliability, and ruggedness make it the military transport of choice for more than 60 nations on six continents. The sole operator is the United States Air Force , which uses the AC-130U Spooky and AC-130W Stinger II[8] variants for close air support, air interdiction, and force protection, with the upgraded AC-130J Ghostrider entering service. Did you know that FlightAware flight tracking is supported by advertising? See if your flight has been delayed or cancelled and track the live position on a map. She likes long walks on the beach, men who aren’t … The AC-130 is a heavily armed long-endurance aircraft carrying an array of anti-ground oriented weapons that are integrated with sophisticated sensors, navigation, and fire control systems. The AC-47 had a loiter time of seven hours, allowing it to remain over a target area for extended periods. AFSOC is arming these aircraft to relieve the high operational demands on AC-130 gunships until new AC-130Js enter service. The modifications were done at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base by the Aeronautical Systems Division. [44] In June 2016, Dynetics was awarded a contract by SOCOM to integrate its tactical munition onto the AC-130. The ground commander quickly assessed the accurate fire and capabilities of this weapons system and called for fire on his own perimeter when the Viet Cong attempted to bridge the wire on the west side of his position. The AC-130 Gunner was assigned to assist and protect Delta Force, Team Metal and GIGN from the Ultranationalists invading Paris. [71], On 15 November 2015, two days after the attacks in Paris by ISIL, AC-130s and A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft destroyed a convoy of over 100 ISIL-operated oil tanker trucks in Syria. It made its last flight from Duke Field to Hurlburt Field on 20 October 1994. Codename: Warhammer was providing air support as they searched the streets of Paris for Volk. [26] The precision strike packages consist of a 30 mm gun and several precision guided munitions. With C-130 and L-100s operated out of 69 nations, there is a need for around-the-clock, real-time worldwide fleet support options. At its standard altitude of 12,000 feet, the aircraft had a proven ability to engage moving ground targets. The Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily armed, long-endurance, ground-attack variant of the C-130 Hercules transport, fixed-wing aircraft.It carries a wide array of ground attack weapons that are integrated with sophisticated sensors, navigation, and fire-control systems.Unlike other modern military fixed-wing aircraft, the AC-130 relies on visual targeting. AC-130s from both the 4th and 16th Special Operations Squadrons have been deployed in nearly every conflict in which the United States has been involved, officially and unofficially, since the end of the Vietnam War. Close air support missions include troops in contact, convoy escort and point air defense. Track Air Canada (AC) #130 flight from Vancouver Int'l to Toronto Pearson Int'l. During the Gulf War of 1990–91 (Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm), Regular Air Force and Air Force Reserve AC-130s provided close air support and force protection (air base defense) for ground forces, and battlefield interdiction. On 24 May 1969, the first Spectre gunship was lost to enemy fire.[54]. Crews added a 105 mm cannon, 20-inch infrared and electro-optical sensors, and the ability to carry 250-lb bombs on the wings. In November 1979, four AC-130H gunships flew nonstop from Hurlburt Field to Anderson AFB, Guam, because of the hostage situation at the US Embassy in Iran. AC-130s took part in the NATO missions in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo during the 1990s. [20] In 2007, the Air Force modified four AC-130U gunships as test platforms for the Bushmasters. "PGU-38/U 25mm Ammunition", August 1993, Alliant Techsystems, Public Release, Case No. The AC-130U is equipped with the AN/APQ-180, a synthetic aperture radar, for long-range target detection and identification. The use of AC-130s in places like Fallujah, urban settings where insurgents were among crowded populations of non-combatants, was criticized by human rights groups. The AC-130 gunships usually operate at night, because it is an easy target due to its large profile and low operating altitude. Close air support was the main mission of the AC-130 in Iraq. Those of us in the back held on to anything we could grab. It is capable of delivering precision firepower or area-saturation fire over a target area over a long period of time, at nig… Force-protection missions include defending air bases and other facilities. Learn more about C-130 Sustainment. [27] CLTs are able to fire other small munitions able to fit inside the 6 in (15 cm)-diameter, 48 in (1.2 m)-long tubes. It made its series debut in Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies, and has made sporadically appearances ever since. [29] The decision to retain the C-130 came after funding for 16 C-27Js was removed from the fiscal 2010 budget. On 22 February 1973, American offensive operations in Laos ended and the gunships became totally committed to operations in the Cambodian conflict. Spectres were also called in when the USS Mayaguez was seized, on the open sea, by Khmer Rouge soldiers and sailors on 15 May 1975. Lt Col Michael Byers, then 16 SOS commander, represented the active-duty gunship force and Clyde Gowdy of the Spectre Association represented all Spectre personnel past and present for the unveiling of a monument at the aircraft and the dedication as a whole. The Spectre participated in countless operations within Afghanistan, performing on-call close air support and armed reconnaissance. New time aloft and nonstop distance records were subsequently set by a 16th SOS two-ship AC-130H formation flight that departed Hurlburt Field on 13 November 1979 and landed on 15 November at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, a distance of 7,200 nautical miles (13,300 km) and 29 hours 43 minutes nonstop, refueling four times in-flight. Cabin of the AC-130 is non-pressurized. The AC-130J Ghostrider's primary missions are close air support, air interdiction and armed reconnaissance. The Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily armed, long-endurance, ground-attack variant of the C-130 Hercules transport, fixed-wing aircraft. Conversion of C-130Es into AC-130Es for the "PAVE Spectre" project followed. The attacks were part of an intensification of the US-led Military intervention against ISIL called Operation Tidal Wave II (named after the original Operation Tidal Wave during World War II, a failed attempt to raid German oil fields that resulted in heavy aircraft and aircrew loss) in an attempt to cut off oil smuggling as a source of funding for the group. This commitment of maintainers and crews started in 1983 and lasted until 1990. And extremely vulnerable to almost any type of anti-air platform short of small arms three-bladed propellers to right... 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