AC-130 gunship

The primary missions of the United States Air Force's AC-130H Spectre and AC-130U Spooky gunships[?] are close air support, air interdiction, and force protection. Missions in close air support are troops in contact, convoy escort and urban operations. Air interdiction missions are conducted against preplanned targets or targets of opportunity. Force protection missions include air base defense and facilities defense.

These heavily armed aircraft incorporate side-firing weapons integrated with sophisticated sensor, navigation and fire control systems to provide surgical firepower or area saturation during extended loiter periods, at night and in adverse weather. The sensor suite consists of a television sensor, infrared sensor and radar. These sensors allow the gunship to visually or electronically identify friendly ground forces and targets any place, any time. The AC-130U employs synthetic apertures strike radar for long-range target detection and identification. The gunship's navigational devices include the inertial navigation systems and global positioning system. The AC-130U employs the latest technologies and can attack two targets simultaneously. It also has twice the munitions capacity of the AC-130H.

The AC-130 gunship has a combat history dating to Vietnam where it was humorously known as "Puff the Magic Dragon." Gunships destroyed more than 10,000 trucks and were credited with many life-saving close air support missions (where "life-saving" depends on your point of view, of course.) During Operation Urgent Fury[?] in 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 Lt. Gen. William H. Tunner Award for the mission.

AC-130s also had a primary role during Operation Just Cause[?] in Panama in 1989 when they destroyed Panamanian 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.

During Operation Desert Storm, AC-130s provided close air support and force protection (air base defense) for ground forces. Gunships were also used during operations Continue Hope[?] and United Shield[?] in Somalia, providing close air support for United Nations ground forces. More recently, gunships played a pivotal role in supporting the NATO mission in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The AC-130H provided air interdiction against key targets in the Sarajevo area.

In 1997, gunships were diverted from Italy to provide combat air support for U.S. and allied ground troops during the evacuation of American noncombatants in Albania. Gunships also were part of the buildup of U.S. forces in 1998 to convince Iraq to comply with U.N. weapons inspections.

General Characteristics

• Primary Function: Close air support, air interdiction and force protection
• Builder: Lockheed Corporation/Boeing Corporation.
• Power Plant: Four Allison T56-A-15 turboprop engines
• Thrust: 4,910 shaft horsepower each engine
• Length: 97 feet, 9 inches (29.8 meters)
• Height: 38 feet, 6 inches (11.7 meters)
• Wingspan: 132 feet, 7 inches (40.4 meters)
• Speed: Mach 0.4 (300 mph) (at sea level)
• Ceiling: 25,000 feet (7,576 meters)
• Range: Approximately 1,300 nautical miles; unlimited with air refueling.
• Maximum Takeoff Weight: 155,000 pounds (69,750 kilograms)
• Armament: AC-130H/U: 40mm cannon and 105mm cannon; AC-130U: 25mm gun
• Crew: AC-130U - Five officers (pilot, co-pilot, navigator, fire control officer, electronic warfare officer) and eight enlisted (flight engineer, TV operator, infrared detection set operator, loadmaster, four aerial gunners)
• Deployment Date: AC-130H, 1972; AC-130U, 1995
• Unit Cost: AC-130H, US$132.4 million; AC-130U, US$190 million (fiscal 2001 constant dollars)
• Inventory: Active duty: AC-130H, 8; AC-130U, 13; Reserve, 0; ANG, 0