
These AC-130’s are a hard sight to miss in the air. This battle plan is a scary sight, the wingspan is around 132 feet and stretches 97 inches in length. Some other key roles they play are armed reconnaissance, pre-planned air to land strikes, and being a defense patrol in the air for other bases. Jack Braden).īesides being close to land in air support, the AC-130 Spectre Gunship has many other important roles within the military. An AC-130 Spectre from the 16th Special Operations Squadron flies a training mission Aug. The main reason for the AC-130 is to gather close air support for other troops. AC stands for attack cargo, which is one of the purposes of this combat aircraft. This fighter plane that is manufactured by Lockheed and Boeing is operated by the United States Air Force Special Operations. The history of the AC-130’s date back as late as Vietnam/Laos and have become a huge part of our combat. The crew used a laser, which was invisible to the naked eye but showed up clearly on the LLLTV, to aim the AC-130's guns with great accuracy.Ĭlick here to return to the Cold War Gallery.The AC-130 Spectre Gunship, AKA Hell in the Sky, is known to be the US Military’s ultimate combat aircraft. Located just in front of the 20mm guns, the LLLTV could amplify the existing light 60,000 times to produce television images as clearly as if it were noon. The Low Light Level Television Sensor (LLLTV) installed on AC-130 gunships enabled the aircrew to illuminate targets covertly during night operations. General Electric AN/ASQ-145 Low Light Level Television Sensor System
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The aircraft on display was assigned to the 919th Special Operations Wing and was retired to the museum in October 1995.Īrmament: Two 7.62 miniguns, plus two 20mm and two 40mm cannon The crew's heroic efforts left much of the enemy's equipment destroyed or unserviceable, contributing to the defeat of the Iraqi forces.

Facing numerous enemy batteries of SA-6 and SA-8 surface-to-air missiles, and 37mm and 57mm radar-guided anti-aircraft artillery, the crew attacked the enemy skillfully, inflicting significant damage on the convoys.

Azrael was sent to the Al Jahra highway between Kuwait City and Basrah, Iraq, to intercept the convoys of tanks, trucks, buses and cars fleeing the battle. 26, 1991, Coalition ground forces were driving the Iraqi army out of Kuwait. The crew of this AC-130A Spectre gunship, named Azrael ( Azrael, in the Koran, is the angel of death who severs the soul from the body) displayed courage and heroism during the closing hours of Operation Desert Storm. Where facilities were inadequate, the Hercules could deliver cargo by parachute or by a using a low-altitude parachute extraction system without landing. The C-130 could transport up to 92 combat troops and their gear or 45,000 pounds of cargo. The versatile C-130 Hercules, originally designed in the 1950s as an assault transport, was adapted for a variety of missions, including weather mapping and reconnaissance, mid-air space capsule recovery, search and rescue, ambulance service, drone launching, mid-air refueling of helicopters, and as a gunship. To enhance its armament's effectiveness, it used various sensors, a target acquisition system, and infrared and low-light television systems. The AC-130A Spectre is a C-130 converted to a gunship, primarily for night attacks against ground targets.
