#lockheed ac 130

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The Lockheed AC-130 in action

Due to the cloud of smoke left behind after flares are released, this aircraft is widely known as “The Angel of Death”

[nocternalrandomness]

"Ghostrider Gunship"

[probablybadrpgideas]

Tell your players that they will be fighting an angel of death and see how long it takes them to realize that they are not fighting Samael or any grim reaper but instead a Lockheed Martin AC-130 gunship

[planesawesome]

Lockheed AC-130 Hercules

[buckysmith]

OHHHH COULD YOU WRITE ALEJANDRO, GHOST, SOAP + GRAVES with an s/o who was (or is) in the air forcee???

A little bit not canon but i just keep wondering how it'd be.

I’m absolutely into that idea!!! But I’m not quite happy how it turned out (somehow I managed to just think about jets- I’m stupid, sorry)

Graves:

- Graves with a s/o in the air force? He wouldn’t be quite sure about that at first to be honest

- it’s bad enough that your not a civilian but then you have to fly such an monster?

- man loves when his s/o is a small little bubu that seems weaker than it is, well and with you being an Air Force pilot wouldn’t quite fit

- he definitely ask you to leave but ofc you refuse, that would definitely hurt his ego

- but he would only think that till the moment you save his arrogant little ass

- you remember the Lockheed AC-130? ()

- well imagine that beast against a jet, not quite funny for the shadows inside the Ac-130 cause it wasn’t really made to defend itself against a jet

- You were already in the air cause you had to deal with a Jet that decided to come way to close to you, but then it decided to just fly away

- You were happy, till your husband somehow managed to get into your headset.

- he didn’t do that intentionally, it was somehow a error but you knew that had to be the jet you saw earlier so you helped

- well and it decided to attack your man, not quite an intelligent move but how would the pilot know

- after your commander gave you the ok, you would attack the jet, sending its ass back to the ground way faster than the pilot wanted it

- you would contact your husband, telling him that he’s welcome (out of spite)

- after that he would make sure that the shadows have an jet pilot. You.

- the AC-130 is called angel of death for a reason but now your Codename would be just angel

- And you fulfill that name, at least for the ones that you protect

Alejandro:

- he meet you at his base

- you had to take an emergency landing but had to inform the Mexican base first that you were about to land on

- they would welcome you, or better he and Rodolfo would

- they may do not have the jet you landed in their own military, but they would help you repair it

- while you have to wait Alejandro asks you about anything, really anything

- he’s so interested in you, even you notice that it’s not just friendly talk, this man just knows what he wants and he wants you

- But you both didn’t have much time together with you being in the American Air Force and him being in Mexico so you would leave

- You wouldn’t stop flying tho, but change your little plane to an 35 year old jet in Mexico or to some other aircraft

- it’s not the best, but you make it enough

- now together you can fight and you would

-you’re his angel

Ghost:

- to be honest, he wouldn’t give a fuck about you at first

- your just another pilot

- that would change when you safe his ass, well not only his but his whole teams

- it was a mission like every other, except that the bad guys had jets and ghost and his whole team was in an helicopter without any defense systems

- it was a close call, seeing how the missile was about to hit the helicopter

- you were able to stop the missile with one of your own

- after that you shot that asshole from the sky

- after you both are back on the ground he would thank you

- you joined 141 just a few months later, being it’s only jet pilot had its advantages

- ghost takes pride in you being a jet pilot and he’s thankful when you aid him in the sky

- (he would worry about you tho)

Soap:

- He saw you a few times, mostly on cargo ships 141 had to land on

- he approached you one time and since then you both would have a great friendship and after a while an even greater relationship

- he asked you multiple times if you let him fly (you would not )

- he’s sad till you take him with you

- you were able to talk to some people to fulfill the wish of your boyfriend/ husband

- he’s so exited to fly with you, but after wards he wouldn’t even think about flying again

- his tummy doesn’t like anything about Jets after that

- but when you have to fly a normal military air craft he’s happy cause he can be with you the whole time without throwing up

- he loves to talk about you to his friends

- you’re his pride and joy

[usafphantom2]

AC-130 Gunship’s Laser Weapon Cancelled, 105mm Howitzer May Be Removed

The AC-130J was set to get the first operational airborne laser weapon, but that plan is over as the gunship changes to ensure its relevance.

Joseph TrevithickPUBLISHED Mar 19, 2024 1:56 PM EDT

The US Air Force no longer plans to flight test a laser directed energy weapon on an AC-130J Ghostrider gunship.

USAF

The U.S. Air Force has scrapped plans to flight test an AC-130J Ghostrider gunship armed with a laser directed energy weapon after years of delays. The Airborne High Energy Laser program for the AC-130J had for a time looked set to become the U.S. military's first operational aerial laser directed weapon. This all also comes amid a review of the AC-130J's current and future planned capabilities, which could see the gunships lose their 105mm howitzers, as part of a broader shift away from counter-insurgency operations to planning for a high-end fight.

Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) confirmed that there are no longer plans to test the prototype Airborne High Energy Laser (AHEL) system on an AC-130J and provided other details about the current state of the program to The War Zone earlier today.

"After accomplishing significant end-to-end high power operation in an open-air ground test, the AHEL solid state laser system experienced technical challenges," an AFSOC spokesperson said in a statement. "These challenges delayed integration onto [the] designated AC-130J Block 20 aircraft past the available integration and flight test window."

One past US Air Force rendering of an AC-130 with a laser directed energy weapon. USAF

The original hope was flight testing of an AC-130J with the AHEL system would take place sometime in the 2021 Fiscal Year, but this schedule was repeatedly pushed back. In November 2023, AFSOC told The War Zone that a laser-armed Ghostrider was set to take to the skies in January of this year, something that clearly did not occur.

Lockheed Martin received the initial contract in 2019 to supply the AHEL's laser source for the system and lead the effort to integrate the system onto an AC-130J. The complete AHEL system also includes a beam director and other components.

A now-dated US Special Operations Command briefing slide discussing the AHEL program and the components of the weapon system itself. SOCOM

"As a result, the program was re-focused on ground testing to improve operations and reliability to posture for a successful hand off for use by other agencies," the statement added.

This is all further confirmed by the Pentagon's 2025 Fiscal Year budget request, which was rolled out last week, and does not ask for any new funding for AHEL. Official budget documents say this is because the program is expected to close out in the 2024 Fiscal Year.

What "other agencies" might now be in line to benefit from the AHEL program's work and the exact status of the 60-kilowatt class laser directed energy weapon system developed under the program are unclear. AFSOC directed further questions to U.S. Special Operations Command, which The War Zone has now reached out to for more information.

The U.S. Navy's Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWC Dahlgren) had already been deeply involved in the AHEL program. The Navy has been very active in the development and fielding of various types of shipboard directed energy weapons, including another 60-kilowatt class laser directed energy weapon called the High-Energy Laser with Integrated Optical Dazzler and Surveillance, or HELIOS. Lockheed Martin is also the prime contractor for that system.

The US Navy's Arleigh Burke class destroyer USS Preble pierside in San Diego in July 2022. The ship's HELIOS directed energy weapon system can be seen on a platform immediately in front of the main superstructure. USN

The U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps have also been working to develop and field different types of air and ground-based directed energy weapons.

The Air Force has been working on at least one other aerial laser directed energy weapon in recent years, under the Air Force Research Laboratory's (AFRL) Self-protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator (SHiELD) program. The SHiELD effort was centered around a podded system for tactical jets ostensibly intended to help defend against incoming missiles, though it would have the ability to engage other target sets. In the past, the stated goal was to begin flight testing of the SHiELD pod in 2025, but its current status is unclear.

A rendering of a US Air Force F-16C Viper fighter with a podded laser directed energy weapon. Lockheed Martin

The Air Force is pursuing other directed energy weapon programs, including for base defense use on the ground. Additional work is understood to be going on in the classified realm, including efforts tied to the larger Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) initiative.

For the Air Force's current fleet of 30 AC-130Js, the end of the AHEL program comes amid larger questions about the future of Ghostrider's armament package and other current and future capabilities. There are growing signs that the Ghostriders are set to lose their 105mm howitzers as part of this reassessment of the aircraft's capabilities.

"Initiate engineering analysis and development to remove the aft weapon system (105mm Gun), refit the aft section, and optimize crew workload in support of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) crew reduction initiatives," is the plan for the AC-130Js in the 2024 Fiscal Year, according to the Pentagon's latest budget request. The War Zone has reached out to AFSOC for further clarification.

The Air Force originally planned not to include a 105mm howitzer in the armament package for the AC-130J, which was originally focused more on the employment of precision-guided missiles and bombs than guns at all. The service subsequently changed course and had more recently been in the process of integrating improved howitzers onto the Ghostriders. That work came to a halt last year after the start of the capability review. As of last November, only 17 of the 30 AC-130Js had gotten this upgrade.

AFSOC has been taking this new look at the Ghostrider's current and future planned capabilities in large part due to discussions about how AC-130Js might contribute to future high-end conflicts, especially one in the Pacific against China. AC-130Js, which are today primarily tasked with providing very close support to special operations forces on the ground, currently operate almost exclusively in permissive and semi-permissive environments and at night.

AHEL has been presented in the past as being ideally suited to supporting lower-intensity counter-insurgency-type missions.

"Without the slightest bang, whoosh, thump, explosion, or even aircraft engine hum, four key targets [an electrical transformer, the engine of a pick-up truck, communication equipment, and a parked drone,] are permanently disabled," now-retired Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, then head of AFSOC, said in a 2017 interview with National Defense magazine, describing a notional mission for a laser-armed AC-130. "The enemy has no communications, no escape vehicle, no electrical power, and no retaliatory intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capability. Minutes later, the team emerges from the compound, terrorist mastermind in hand. A successful raid."

In line with all this, the Air Force is also looking to add a new active electronically-scanned array (AESA) radar to these gunships, "allowing the platform to detect, target, identify, and engage across a spectrum of threats at longer ranges and react with greater precision," according to Pentagon budget documents. You can read more about the benefits of adding an AESA to the AC-130J here.

Other specialized C-130 variants belonging to AFSOC have been heavily involved in the testing of a palletized weapon system called Rapid Dragon. Rapid Dragon offers a way to readily transform existing cargo aircraft into launch platforms for AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) cruise missiles and other stand-off munitions. SOCOM has previously expressed interest in the past in integrating precision-guided munitions with longer reach onto the AC-130, in part to help keep those aircraft away from increasingly capable enemy air defenses. A return to a focus on precision-guided munition employment when it comes to the Ghostriders could be important for ensuring their continued operational relevance.

Altogether, the exact mix of capabilities found on the AC-130Js looks set to significantly evolve in the near term. However, a laser directed energy weapon is no longer on the horizon for the Ghostriders.

Howard Altman contributed to this story.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

@warzonewire via X

[c-130hercules]

Douglas FC-47D tail no. 0-48579—the original “Puff the Magic Dragon”—carried three 7.62mm GE miniguns in makeshift mounts. (U.S. Air Force)

An AC-47’s miniguns, each firing at a rate of 6,000 rounds per minute, unleash on Viet Cong positions. (U.S. Air Force)

With its armament of twin 40mm cannons and a pair of 20mm rotary guns, this Spectre awaits its next mission in a revetment at Thailand’s Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base. (U.S. Air Force)

4th Special Operations Squadron crewmen operate an AC-130U’s 105mm gun. (U.S. Air Force)

To supplement the AC-130 in Vietnam, the Fairchild AC-119G and K were developed. (U.S. Air Force)

An AC-130H from the 16th Special Operations Squadron heads out on another mission. (U.S. Air Force)

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Lockheed AC-130 in action, better known as 'The Angel Of Death'.

[floridaboiler]

the ultimate form of the armed cargo aircraft. The Gunship!

 The Gunship concept started with the Douglas AC-47 Spooky I which is a C-47 Skytrain, which is the military version of the famed Douglas DC-3 airliner from the 1930's. During the Vietnam War, the USAF armed the C-47 with side firing Vulcan cannon in the fuselage. The aircraft made full use of it's hauling capacity to literally carry masses of ammunition to the fight where they rained down bullets on the enemy on the ground. As the weapons are side mounted on the left, the aircraft is flown in a banking pylon turn in order to bring it's weapons onto the right bearing.

The basic concept proved so successful, that it was expended onto the Fairchild AC-119G Shadow and AC-119K Stinger.

When the Lockheed C-130 Hercules entered service, the Gunship concept shifted again to the new platform where over time, it had developed into a number of successive versions with the main difference between them being the weapons loadout and sensors. The basic operational doctrine remains the same however, a gunship has it's weapons mounted internally and firing out the port/left side of the aircraft. The aircraft is flown in the now well established pylon turn to bring it's weapons to bear on the target.

The here is a AC-130U Spooky II. Note how all of it's weapons and targeting sensors are mounted on the port/left side. Credits in pic.

[fatherspencer]

Lockheed AC-130 Named Azrael for the angel of death in some Abrahamic religions who severs the soul from the body.

[53v3nfrn5]

AC-130

[nocternalrandomness]

4th Special Operations Squadron Specter

[planesawesome]

On this day 68 years ago the Lockheed C-130 Hercules performed its first flight.

The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medevac, and cargo transport aircraft. The versatile airframe has found uses in other roles, including as a gunship (AC-130), for airborne assault, search and rescue, scientific research support, weather reconnaissance, aerial refueling, maritime patrol, and aerial firefighting. It is now the main tactical airlifter for many military forces worldwide. More than 40 variants of the Hercules, including civilian versions marketed as the Lockheed L-100, operate in more than 60 nations.

The C-130 entered service with the U.S. in 1956, followed by Australia and many other nations. During its years of service, the Hercules has participated in numerous military, civilian and humanitarian aid operations. In 2007, the C-130 became the fifth aircraft to mark 50 years of continuous service with its original primary customer, which for the C-130 is the United States Air Force. The C-130 Hercules is the longest continuously produced military aircraft at more than 60 years, with the updated Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules currently being produced.

[honeysfashion]

US Air Force Lockheed AC-130 4th Of July Hawaiian Shirt

The Lockheed AC-130 gunship has been a staple of the United States Air Force for decades. The aircraft has seen service in many theatres, including Iraq and Afghanistan. This year, the US Air Force is celebrating the Fourth of July with an exclusive AC-130 Hawaiian shirt.The shirt features a patriotic design with an eagle perched atop a mountain of rocks with the American flag flying in the background. The words “4th Of July” are inscribed above the eagle.This year’s AC-130 shirt is a limited edition and is only available through US Air Force websites and military exchanges worldwide.

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Watch "Lockheed AC-130: The Angel of Death" on YouTube

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