Lockheed C-130 Hercules

During Operation Urgent Fury (Invasion of Grenada) in 1983, AC-130s suppressed enemy air defense systems and attacked ground forces enabling the successful assault of the Point Salines Airfield via airdrop and air land of friendly forces.

The AC-130 aircrew earned the Lieutenant General William H. Tunner Award for the mission. AC-130s also had a primary role during the invasion of Panama in 1989 (Operation Just Cause) when they destroyed Panama Defense Force headquarters and numerous command and control facilities. Aircrews earned the Mackay Trophy for the most meritorious flight of the year and the Tunner Award for their efforts.

La fumée d'un Gatling

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The AC-130 gunship has been nicknamed "The Angel of Death" due to the shape that the anti-missile flares take.

During Gulf War of 1990-91 (Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm), AC-130s provided close air support and force protection (air base defense) for ground forces, and battlefield interdiction.

The primary interdiction targets were early warning/ground control intercept (EW/GCI) sites along the southern border of Iraq.

The first gunship to enter the Battle of Khafji helped stop a southbound Iraqi armored column on 29 January 1991.

One day later, three more gunships provided further aid to Marines participating in the operation. The gunships attacked Iraqi positions and columns moving south to reinforce their positions north of the city.

Despite the threat of surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and increasing visibility during the early morning hours of 31 January 1991, one AC-130H, AF Serial No. 69-6567, call sign Spirit 03, opted to stay to continue to protect the Marines.

A SAM subsequently shot down Spirit 03, and all fourteen crew members perished.

The military has used AC-130 gunships during the humanitarian operations in Somalia (Operation Restore Hope and Operation United Shield) in 1992/1993, in the NATO mission in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and in Operation Silver Wake in 1997, the evacuation of American non-combatants in Albania.

The AC-130U model gunship set a new record for the longest sustained flight by any C-130 with a mission from the 22nd through the 24th of October 1997, when two AC-130U gunships flew 36.0 hours nonstop from Hurlburt Field, Florida to Taegu Air Base (Daegu), South Korea while being refueled seven times in the air by KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft.

This record flight shattered the previous record C-130 longest flight by over 6 hours, while the two U-model gunships took on 410,000 lb (186,000 kg) of fuel. Gunships also were part of the buildup of U.S. forces in 1998 to convince Iraq to comply with UN weapons inspections.

The United States later used gunships during Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan 2001– ), and Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq (2003– ).

In 2007 US Special Operations forces used the AC-130 in attacks on suspected al-Qaeda militants in Somalia.

The AC-130 has the distinction of never having a base under its protection lost to the enemy.

Aerial gunner

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Deployments

AC-130s from both the 4th and 16th Special Operations Squadrons have been deployed in virtually every conflict the U.S. has been involved in, officially and unofficially, since the end of the Vietnam War. These include deployments supporting the following conflicts or contingencies:

* Operation Urgent Fury - Grenada, 1983
* Operation Just Cause - Panama, 1989
* Operation Desert Storm - Iraq/Kuwait, 1991
* Operation Restore Hope - Somalia, 1992–94
* Operation Uphold Democracy - Haiti, 1994
* Operation Deny Flight/Joint Endeavor - Bosnia, 1993–99
* Operation Assured Response - Liberia, 1996
* Operation Allied Force - Kosovo, March-July 1999
* Operation Enduring Freedom - Afghanistan, 2001–present
* Operation Iraqi Freedom - Iraq, 2003–2010

Current aircraft

The AC-130H has a unit cost of US$132.4 million, and the AC-130U a unit cost of US$190 million (fiscal 2001 constant dollars).

Currently there are eight AC-130H and seventeen AC-130U aircraft in active duty service.

Operators

United States

* United States Air Force
o Air Force Special Operations Command
+ 1st Special Operations Wing
# 4th Special Operations Squadron
# 19th Special Operations Squadron
+ 27th Special Operations Wing
# 16th Special Operations Squadron

Aircraft on display

One of the first seven AC-130A aircraft deployed to Vietnam was AF Serial No. 53-3129, named First Lady in November 1970. In addition to being the first AC-130, this aircraft was a conversion of the first production C-130. On 25 March 1971, it took an anti-aircraft artillery hit in the nose over the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos.

The 37 mm shell destroyed everything below the crew deck. In 1975, after the conclusion of US involvement in the Vietnam war, it was transferred to the Air Force Reserve, where it served with the 711th Special Operations Squadron of the 919th Special Operations Wing.

In 1980 the aircraft was upgraded from the original three-bladed propellers to the quieter four-bladed propellers and was eventually retired in late 1995.

The retirement also marked an end to the Air Force Reserve Command flying the AC-130A.

The aircraft now sits on display in the final Air Force Reserve Command configuration with grey paint, black markings, the four-bladed Hamilton Sunstrand 54H60-91 props at the Air Force Armament Museum at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, USA.

A second AC-130A, AF Serial No. 56-0509, named the Ultimate End, was accepted by the Air Force on 28 February 1957, and modified to the AC-130A configuration on 27 July 1970. The aircraft participated in the Vietnam War and the rescue of the SS Mayaguez.

Ultimate End demonstrated the durability of the C-130 after surviving hits in five places by 37 mm anti-aircraft artillery on 12 December 1970, extensive left wing leading edge damage on 12 April 1971 and a 57 mm round damaging the belly and injuring one crewman on 4 March 1972.