There is no aircraft in history that matches the relevance and versatility of the law C130 Hercules

and continuous production longer than any other military aircraft the C130AS earned a reputation as
a workforce ready for any mission conceived in the depths of the Cold War the Hercules has hauled
troops vehicles cargo and refugees in several major wars numerous interventions and countless
relief and humanitarian missions there have also been a dizzying array of special purpose models
filling such diverse roles such as airborne early warning whether reconnaissance side firing gunship
electronic and photographic intelligence aren't decrease applied research and rescue and aerial
refueling tanker the genesis of the C130 program dates back to the 1940s World War Two saw the
first extensive use of tactical airlift and by the end of the war the concept of moving troops into
battlefield areas by air had been proven successful use was made of gliders for transporting vehicles
and heavy equipment during airborne operations however the advantages of a powered aircraft that
could land discharge its cargo take off again under its own power we're obvious the Korean War
showed that World War Two era piston engine transport such as the Fairchild C 119 flying boxcar
Douglas C47 skytrains and Curtis C46 commandos were no longer adequate on February 2nd 1951
the tactical Air Force command issued a request for proposals to Boeing Douglas Fairchild and
Lockheed aircraft companies calling for a medium weight turboprop powered transport capable of
meeting any specifications and performance criteria outlined in any of the three general operational
requirements that included the particular Gor which Lockheed elected to respond called for the
aircraft to accommodate four typical missions referred to as airhead resupply logistical support and
troop carrier the airhead mission required the aircraft to carry a 25,000 LB payload to ground forces
holding a position in enemy territory while retaining combat radius of 1100 nautical miles without
refueling the resupply mission required the aircraft to carry 37,000 800 lbs of cargo over a distance
of 950 nautical miles and back without refueling the logistical support mission required a range of
1700 nautical miles while carrying a £37,800 cargo in the troop carrier configuration the aircraft
would be required to accommodate 64 paratroopers or 92 ground personnel Lockheed was
seemingly the underdog in the competition but it's modulating 2 created by designers of the
company skunkworks division at burbanks California was extremely well thought out with the
configuration that would set the standard for airlifters as the model 82 configuration matured so
grew the preliminary design groups conviction it was creating a logical yet utilitarian aircraft
capable not only of achieving but superseding the basic GR objectives which specified payload
range requirements 8 times that of any then existing design the resulting transport cargo Bay was 40
one feet long 10 feet 3 inches wide and as low as 9 feet high and only 3.5 inches above the ground
level due in part to mounting the high lift wing high on the fuselage straighten loading was
accomplished via rear two piece cargo door whose forward segment was hinged at its forward end
and designed to swing down to a maximum of 13° and thus serve as an entry or exit ramp the
smaller rear segment was hinged at its aft end and designed to swing up to the app you solage thus
providing increased clearance for cargo loading and unloading in consideration of the rough field
requirement and the Gor gene frost deputy director of the preliminary design spent a considerable
amount of time agonizing over the design of the landing gear in the end the high wing configuration
dictated in encapsulated gear assembly attached to the fuselage side and fared in pods this proved an
engineering consult as it simplified the retraction mechanisms left the cargo hold uneffective
volumetrically and had little impact on the aircraft's drag the tandem wheel assemblies equipped
with high flotation tires tracked it vertically into the pod and thus eliminated any geometrically
complex strata assemblies consequently it became possible to build a strong landing gear while
keeping weight to a minimum the advent of efficient turboprop engines in particular allisons buy
now extremely dependable 3750 equivalent shaft horsepower T56A1 provided major windfall for
the model 82 the related decision to equip the aircraft with four instead of two engines permitted
improved safety allowed for significant increase in gross weight and payload weight and ease the
task of meeting speed climb and range requirements additionally pressurization of the entire
fuselage at the time somewhat of a novelty became in Asheville goal due to the excess power
available in addition to the conventional materials and processes a number of new ones are utilized
in the new Lockheed transport in order to obtain increased performance and serviceability the
model 82 also became one of the first aircraft to benefit from the use of a new aluminum alloy most
usage was in the form of plate extrusions for primary structure particularly stiffened skins the
proposals upon completion were submitted to the Air Force during April of 1950 one monkeys
aircraft weighed 57,500 lbs empty and had an all up weighed £108,000 including a £25,000 payload
predictive performance of the aircraft exceeded the requirements in almost every important part of
the envelope because of Korean War pressures the Boeing Douglas Fairchild and Lockheed
proposals were quickly evaluated by the Air Force on July 2nd 5 months after first receiving the
RFP Lockheed was informed its proposal had been picked for prototyping over those of the
competition on July 11th 1951 it was announced that the model 82 would be bought by the USAF
with the military designation C130IN short order the company officially named the new transport
Hercules in concert with its tradition of naming aircraft after the stars and constellations the first
flight of the Y C130 prototype was made on the 23rd of August 1954 at 2:45 PM from Lockheed
plant in Burbank CA the aircraft was second prototype but the first to fly of two the YC 130 was
piloted by Stanley belts and Roy wimmer on its 61 minute flight to Edwards Air Force Base Jack
reel and **** Stanton served as flight engineers Kelly Johnson flew chase in a Lockheed P2V
Neptune the number one Y C130 took off on January 21st 1955 having served as a static test article
while the number 2 aircraft would be used to accomplish the initial flight test tasks as predicted
early flight tests work with the two Roman nosed aircraft move very encouraging pilots reported
good handling characteristics and considerably better than expected performance due in part to the
fact that the basic mission weight of 108,000 lbs had been 5000 lbs lighter than guaranteed cruising
speed was some 20% higher takeoff distances where some 25% lower ceiling and initial climb rates
there's some 35% higher landing distances or some 40% shorter and single engine out climb rates
were a stunning 55% higher than predicted these figures coupled with other obvious attributes of
what was rapidly becoming widely admired as a most remarkable aircraft gave the Air Force
confidence in its decision to support the program had been one remarkably the service had
committed to an initial buy OF7C130A's approximately a year and a half prior to the aircraft first
flight predating the latter event Air Force had requested lowkey to reopen an Air Force zone
manufacturing facility in Marietta GA in order to meet an expected Korean War fan increase in
aircraft production capacity initially it was proposed this facility which had been built for bell
aircraft corporation or World War Two which had initially been used to manufacture bell built
models of Boeing B29 would be utilized to refurbish a large fleet of B20 nines then in storage of
peyote AB some 40 miles West of Odessa TX following the success of this operation and then the
follow on production of some 394 Boeing B47 strato jets Lockheed announced during October of
1952 its decision to shift the production of C 1:30 to the facility under the direction of al brown
brown moved temporarily from Marietta to Burbank and along with the team of Marietta engineers
work side by side with their Burbank associates is the prototype aircraft where assembled after the
two prototypes were completed production began in Marietta GA on March 10th 1955 where over
2300 C one 30s have been built through 2009 by the summer of 1955 two prototype YC one 30s
had been joined by three production examples in flight test work at Edwards the FBI was
progressing rapidly the initial production model the C130A was powered by Allison T56A9
turboprops with three bladed propellers and originally equipped with the blunt nose of the
prototypes the first production batch of C130 aircraft entered service with the US Air Force in
December 1956 C138 production amounted to 231 aircraft the only export customer for new built
machines being the royal Australian Air Force which want 12 powered by T56A11 engines these
have since been retired with some examples being passed on to Chad the C138 was superseded on
the line by the B which first flew on November 20th 1958 the C130B model was developed to
complement the a models that had previously been delivered and incorporated new features
particularly increased fuel capacity in the Formula One salary tanks built into the center wing
section and an AC electrical system 4 bladed Hamilton standard propellers replaced the arrow
products 3 bladed propellers that distinguished the earlier a models where is the C 1:30 AM B
models were bought primarily for tactical transport of troops and logistical support of TAC combat
wings the next Hercules variant would take one new role out of a limited strategic airlifter by the
early 1960s the military air transport service was faced with large fleet of slow and out model
propeller driven transports that could not be the commands need for fast intercontinental airlift to
remedy this the extended range C130E model entered service in 1962 the C 130 E could carry an
additional 2720 gallons of fuel in large external tanks outboard of the engines giving the Hercules
sufficient range to reach what was then West Germany non-stop a critical capability for NATO
missions even the vast Pacific could be crossed with a single stop in Hawaii which would prove
vital during the Vietnam years the 1st C130 flew on August 25th 1961 and a total of 389 examples
were produced for MTS and TAC the line was once again improved with the arrival of the C130H
of 1965 is included yet more powerful Allison T56A15 turboprop engines and eventually saw the
avionics new modernized and a structure further reinforced for extended service lives although the
Hercules has been involved in combat operations worldwide it was the US involvement in
Southeast Asia from 1960 to 1975 and helped cement the types reputation in 1964 C 130 crews
from the 6300 and 15th operations group at naha air base Okinawa commenced forward air control
missions over the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos supporting USAF and and material through a
countrywide war zone in the assault row oracles was almost as versatile as the air mobile since the
100 rudimentary landing strips capable of accommodating C1 thirties rarely approved an obstacle to
the aircraft's excellent short field performance not all Hercules missions in Vietnam involved
conventional or assault landings to unload the aircraft on the ground frequently C1 thirties
parachuted their loads or made use of special delivery techniques there was a ground proximity
extraction system in which the loads were pulled out of the app loading ramp as the aircraft flew a
few feet above the ground by means of a trailing bump which would be engaged with a candle set
up by troops in the field there was also the low altitude parachute extraction system to which
palletized and shocked move loads equipped with large parachutes were simply sucked out from the
open hole while the aircraft was flying a few feet above the ground creating very large items such as
tanks and other armored vehicles to be deposited to units in the actual combat zone below altitude
extraction system were particularly useful to resupply marines and cassan South Vietnam when
isolated United States Marine Corps outpost became too dangerous to land due to hostile ground
fire and shelling the only major US combat parachute assault of the war took place when the US
army launched operation Junction City in February 1967 attempting to destroy the central office for
South Vietnam part of this operation was the first large scale airborne attack combat drop since
Korea with C1 thirties dropping paratroopers from the 173rd airborne brigade north of Cayman city
of DeBary 22nd a total of 13 C one 30s dropped nearly 800 combat troops while another 8 aircraft
dropped supporting equipment returning in the early afternoon carry out for their cargo drops 5C
one 30s were hit but they suffered no serious damage the next day 38 Hercules flew resupply sorties
and these continued for the next 5 days during which daily drops averaged 100 tons by late March
during the final stages of the operation the C one 30s carried out air drops to a floating brigade
using dropdown locations which the ground unit provided by radio by the time Junction City
finished some 1700 tons of supplies and munitions have been air dropped by the Hercules although
other airborne operations would be conducted during the war Junction City alternate would be the
only exercise of such signs as most airmobile missions centered on the use of helicopters as the war
progressed C1 thirties were modified into MC130 combat talons which not only picked up special
operations forces in hostile territories but acted as flying gas tankers orbiting the sky as American
rescue helicopters dumped with them during fuel at Hercules also played an active combatant role
in the Vietnam fighting one of the most notable uses of the C130 in Vietnam was its role as a BL
U82 bomber starting in 1969 C 130 B's of the 463rd were tasked with the commando vault missions
ease being strikes with M120 one 10,000 LB bombs later replaced by new 15,000 BTU 82 B
happens they said this could be BL U82 was a massive bomb equivalent in weight to 20,000 lbs of
TNT and was dropped from C one 30s in order to clear landing zones and destroy enemy positions
although the BL U82 was only used a handful of times it was a highly effective and that helped to
clear the way for ground forces perhaps the most famous variant of the C130 is the AC130 gunship
which is equipped with a wide range of weapons systems including 7.8 inch gatling guns 1.5 inch
cannons and later a side firing 4 inch howitzer the AC130 was deployed to Vietnam in 1968 where
it was used to provide fire support the ground troops and engage enemy forces the idea of an aircraft
with heavy gun armament for ground attack dates back to the First World War and the US made
extensive use of the B-25 and A26 gun ships in World War 2 Korea and Vietnam although effective
forward firing guns could only keep their weapons on target during the run in an aircraft with side
firing weapons could be able to make pylon turns around a target thus always keeping its guns
pointed in the right direction in 1967 J C130A serial number 54-1626 was converted to prototype a
C130A under project gunship 2 new equipment included a night vision telescope installed in the
forward door and an early forward-looking infrared device mounted in the left wheel well the mini
guns were fixed facing down and after along the left side in September 1967 the AC 1:30 called
sign spectre was flown to natrang air base in South Vietnam for a 90 day test program it was an
immediate success and in 1968 seven more airplanes were converted to the same configuration the
AC130 was later supplemented by the AC 119 shadow of project gunship 3 which later proved to be
underpowered on the 28th of January 1973 the Vietnam peace accord went into effect making the
end of spectre operations in Vietnam on the 22nd in February 1973 American offensive operations
in Laos ended and the gunships became totally committed to operations in the Cambodian conflict
but the conclusion of hostiles in Southeast Asia in the mid 1970s the AC130H became the sole
gunship in the regular Air Force while the AC130A fleet was transferred to the Air Force reserves
900 and 19th tactical airlift group AC130 is from both the 4th and the 16th special operations
squadrons have been deployed in nearly every conflict which the United states has been involved
officially and unofficially since the end of the Vietnam War a pair of AC130 eights were already in
Panama when the December 1989 invasion took place and took part in the operation covering the
transports landing at how rare force base as well as operating against noriega's Panama defense
forces during the Gulf War of 1990 to 91 regular Air Force and Air Force reserve a C one 30s
provided close air support and force protection for ground forces in battlefield interdiction the
primary interdiction targets were early warnings such ground control intercept sites along the
southern border of Iraq the first gunship entered the battle of kanji helped stop a southern ban Iraqi
armored column on the 29th of January 1990 one one day later three more gunships provided
further aid to marines participating in the operation the gunships attacked Iraqi positions and
columns moving S to reinforce their positions north of the city the military that used the AC130
gunships during the humanitarian operations in Somalia in 1992 to 93 along with that was also
operation uphold democracy and E in 1994 as late as September 1994 the AC130A's were still
combat ready and we're standing by to provide cover for the US invasion of despite the peaceful
departure of the June July led by general cedras and the subsequent cancellation of the invasion the
gunship still flew over Haiti as the occupation began providing cover for convoys surveying
transportation routes and determining any possible hostile acts by the Haitian military by the mid
1990s the original gunships had reached the end of their lives Now for decades old they were
becoming steadily harder to support and the arrival of the new AC130US meant that they could
finally be retired in subsequent conflicts including the Iraqi war and more ethnic Stan the AC130
has continued to play a critical role in supporting ground forces and engaging enemy targets EC130
strikes are directed by special forces on known Taliban locations during the early days of the war in
Afghanistan the C130 continues to be the world's standard for tactical airlift needs especially in the
form of the C130J super Phillies the Super Hercules offers superior performance in new capabilities
with the range and flexibility for every theater of operations and evolving requirements to date 16
countries operate the C130J which has been used to set 54 world aviation records to see 130 J
family includes 11 variants and it can support more than 16 different mission requirements for
example the C130J super affiliates is the airplane of choice for the Air Force reserve commands
weather reconnaissance squadron known as the hurricane hunters and fly their WC130J straight into
the eye of hurricane travelling from the outskirts of the storm to its center and then out again
making repeated trips to measure wind speed and barometric pressure the results offer critical
predictive data about the sensitivity and direction of tropical storms increasing the accuracy of
National Hurricane centers forecasts by 30% moreover the Hercules has been used to help free
humanitarian crisis is the people of the Congo Somalia Bosnia Rwanda Kosovo Japan and all other
points around the world including New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina have all benefited from the
C one 30s unparalleled delivery and air drop capabilities whether they were acting as a flying
hospital or delivering aid to cows maroon by a snowstorm in January 2010 C1 thirties help pull
more than 13,600 short tons of cargo transporting more than 25,800 passengers in routing 280
patients from medical evaluations from Haiti after the country's devastating earthquake during fire
season in the United states it's specially equipped C1 thirties are put through their paces by crews
little margin for error flying over rugged mountainous terrain often through deadly plumes of black
smoke the C one 30s must slow down to 120 knots zoom in over targeted hotspots and drop fire
retardant before quickly pulling up to avoid oncoming ridges it is essential to firefighting efforts as
the mixture of water and fertilizer coats the foliage to slow the rate of burn just buying precious
time to the firefighters on the ground to contain its spread the C130 is equally adept on snow and
ice equipped with skis and Teflon coated runners the durable aircraft has earned great respect for
safely delivering supplies deep into Antarctica where the Greenland ice cap the C130 Hercules is
one of the most iconic aircraft in military history renowned for its ruggedness versatility and
adaptability from its origins in the 1950s to its use in conflicts around the world the C130 has
played a critical role in military transport and logistics operations with its formidable range payload
capacity inflexibility the C130 will likely remain a mainstay of military aviation for many years to
come 1955 C130 wake up Jeff transport built by the Georgia division of Lockheed aircraft
corporation to speed men cargo and equipment to America's defense outpost instruction of this
aircraft was well underway when the year 1955 began six production model C1 thirties were
already under construction in January at that time the first play in serial number 3001 occupied
position 2 on the production line the aircraft soon was moved to the final assembly position a check
was made to see that the actual weight of the engine and Allison T56 met specifications before
installing it on the planet in the meantime Curtis Wright propellers were uncrated reversible blaze
were fitted into the heads and operation of the blade change mechanism was checked is added to the
engine fuel system until actual engine runs could be accomplished on the flight line the engines
were turned by air ground power for the pickling process all engines were installed by mid February
the plane left the production line installations of personnel seats and equipment project and found to
be satisfactory the seats were removed as special first flight test equipment was installed the first
aircraft was then moved to the engineering flight test department for flutter and vibration test do
you think by late March filling operations and tests have been completed on all engines high speed
taxi runs were made to check the operation of different systems and equipment preparatory to fly
the first production C130 took off on its maiden flight on April 7th 1955 only about 800 feet of
runway were required for the takeoff the plane was in the air one hour and 7 minutes hearing this
flight landing gear and soul tests were satisfactory starting with this trip I half dozen C one 30s
logged a total of 94 hours and 17 minutes in test during the remainder of the year the landing on the
1st flight was routine using reversible propellers the plane required only about 2000 feet of runway
for the landing the landing a few days later however a fire developed resulting from the failure
quick disconnect behind engine #2 fire After the aircraft was repaired more test flights were
conducted file #3001 went through production preflight and engineering flight testing static tests
were being performed on airplane #3002 the second aircraft had been designated as a static test
article a Guinea pig for experimental purposes in the C130 program the fuselage of the static test
article was prepared for an air pressure test that was filled with containers to protect against serious
damage should the section fail yeah sections failed at 12.74 lbs per square inch to reduce potential
damage resulting from pressure tests Lockheed proposed that further tests be conducted
hydrostatically the Air Force concurred I can't believe Paul was built for the hydrostatic or
underwater tests of the afternoon sections the pool cost approximately $20,000 and the water
method has saved an estimated half million dollars the water testing procedure was simple the
fuselage section was bulk headed made watertight filled with water and submerged the interior was
pressurized with the conventional air pressure test method final failure occurs the force of the
exploding compressed air causes secondary damage which sometimes makes it difficult to find the
origin of the weakness damage to the section is less than the hydrostatic test since water for all
practical purposes is not compressible the forward section was pressurized satisfactorily the app
section which failed in the air pressure test was replaced and submerged in the pool the section was
successfully pressurized to 15.1 lbs per square inch more than twice the normal operating pressure
due to the uniformity of the centerpiece align section and as a result of some previous testing at the
California division it was considered safe to test this section with air the section was pressurized to
the required £15 per square inch the other wing flaps were subjected to extensive fatigue tests as
weaknesses were observed designs were improved until the flaps successfully completed 8000
cycles when this began on wing down bending it was necessary to use stop motion photography to
speed up the slow bending of the wing the jumpy movements of the workers were caused by this
camera technique the slowly vending wing withstood ultimate load 3 minutes without failure in the
test for dynamic taxi a condition critical for the outer wing panel it also withstood ultimate load
during the test on wing down bending and main gear load a condition critical for the wing and main
gear combination a number of other tests were performed in an effort to improve the design of the
C130 among these were Focus on the app fuselage including simulated aircraft that is with the
cargo door open the J2 door test the tail down springback test Test From the compilers on the flaps
when the examinations disclosed any weaknesses improvements were made until the parts were
satisfactory separate tests were conducted on many vital parts of the C130 for instance the hydraulic
reservoir was filled to capacity with fluid and slashed and vibrated simultaneously for 25 hours
simulating the most severe operating condition there was no leak during the year special tests were
made on a new cargo floor design the new floor was constructed of extruded stiffeners riveted to a
metal skin which could be used to replace the solid machine stiffened panels in event of need for
wartime acceleration of the C130 program the rolling test consisted of a rubber tire under a load of
6500 lbs rolling back and forth across the floor 2000 times Leslie the lesson operation of the main
landing gear was observed under extreme temperature and environmental conditions and was also
subjected to sand frozen mud and salt spray temperatures range from -65 to plus 160°F this tandem
landing gear is designed to enable the plane to operate safely from semi prepared landing field
while static test article was undergoing many rigorous qualification tests other C one 30s completed
production airplanes were used for flight tests demonstrations and briefings for key military
personnel the first show was staged in July military personnel newspaper reporters photographers
and top television and radio people from all over the nation came to Marietta to see the new air
freighter the demonstration began with an exhibition of the flying characteristics of the Hercules the
turboprop C130 is the fastest transport plane in production for the US Air Force it can travel at
speeds of more than 370 mph a fast climbing aircraft the C130 can reach an altitude of 2500 feet in
only 60 seconds a versatile plane the C130 can fly with the strato jets at 40,000 feet altitude along
missions or it can dip low enough to drop paratroops and supplies to advanced military base
operations the reporters television and radio men watched the Hercules backup over great distances
the unique ability to travel such distances in reverse still playing particularly useful in combat zones
where time and space are limiting factors the steerable nose wheel and the reversible propellers
allow the aircraft to park in a very limited area arrivals and military personnel saw display of
piloting capabilities of the cargo transport man from the 18th Air Force Donaldson air base South
Carolina staged the demonstration a 5000 gallon jet fuel tanker was driven into the aircraft using the
built in loading ramp which serves as a rear door this ramp also can be put at truck floor level or
straight in loading the plane can accommodate 20 tons of heavy equipment the changeover from
cargo to personnel transport can be accomplished in a matter of minutes 92 troops marched into the
airplane during the demonstration C130 to make either aerial or ground deliveries of men and cargo
in November to see 130% of the demonstration of loading general cargo at Dover DE or the military
air transport service a training program was inaugurated to prepare a man to become crew members
of this prop jet plane spare parts shipments to the Air Force commands which are to receive the C
one 30s were ahead of schedule the Air Force decided to change from Curtis Wright propellers to
aeroponics propellers aero props were installed on engine number three of the sixth airplane and
tests were begun late in the year the cargo transport is to be used as a supply ship in the Arctic
regions development design was started on a ski video for this C130 the ski wheels were scheduled
to be quite tested late in 1956 in preparation for flights into snow lands the tail of the C130 was
painted red the standard Arctic marking the color makes the aircraft visible against the background
of snow covered or even desert terrain move the testing and production programs were on schedule
at the end of the year 12 C one 30s have been completed some were at least to the Air Force for
testing airplane #3018 was starting on production line trimatic burial delivery desert wind tunnel
and Arctic test scheduled for the next year back then when the Hercules made its first extended
flight flying from Marietta to Philadelphia for the national air show by late 1956 the new version of
cargo transport was scheduled to take its place as an operational unit of the United states Air Force
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