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Template:Infobox Aircraft The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop cargo aircraft and the main tactical airlifter for military forces worldwide. Over 40 models and variants of the Hercules serve with more than 50 nations. By December 2006, the C-130 will become the third aircraft (after the B-52 Stratofortress in January, 2005 and the English Electric Canberra in May, 2001) to mark 50 years of continuous use with its original primary customer (in this case, the United States Air Force).

Capable of short takeoffs and landings from unprepared runways, the C-130 was designed as a troop transport and cargo aircraft. The versatile airframe has found uses in a variety of other roles, including airborne assault, as a gunship, search and rescue, weather reconnaissance, aerial refuelling, aerial firefighting and MEDEVAC. The Hercules family has the longest continuous production run of any military aircraft in history. During more than 50 years of service, the family has participated in military, civilian and humanitarian aid operations.

Development

File:YC-130s formation usaf.jpg

The two YC-130 prototypes; the blunt nose was replaced with radar on later production models.

The Korean War, which began in June, 1950, showed that World War II-era transports—C-119 Flying Boxcars, C-47 Skytrains and C-46 Commandos—were inadequate for modern warfare. Thus, on February 2, 1951, the United States Air Force issued a General Operating Requirement (GOR) for a new transport to Boeing, Douglas, Fairchild, and Lockheed. The new transport would have a capacity for 92 passengers or 64 paratroopers, a range of 1,100 nautical miles, takeoff capability from short and unprepared strips, and the ability to fly with one engine stopped.

The Lockheed design team was led by Willis Hawkins starting with a 130 page proposal for the Lockheed 82.^[1] Hall Hibbard, Lockheed vice president and chief engineer, saw the proposal and directed it to Kelly Johnson, who remarked when he saw the proposal, "If you sign that letter, you will destroy the Lockheed Company." Both Hibbard and Johnson signed the proposal and the company got the contract on July 2, 1951.^[2]

First flight

The first flight of the YC-130 prototype was made on August 23, 1954 from the Lockheed plant in Burbank, California. The aircraft, serial number 53-3397, was the second prototype but the first of the two to fly. The YC-130 was piloted by Stanley Beltz and Roy Wimmer on its 61-minute flight to Edwards Air Force Base; Jack Real and Dick Stanton served as flight engineers. Kelly Johnson flew chase in a P2V Neptune.^[3]

File:Starlifter cockpit hg.jpg

C-130 Hercules Cockpit

Production

After the two prototypes were completed, production moved to Marietta, Georgia, where more than 2,000 C-130s have been built.^[4]

The initial production model, the C-130A, was powered by Allison T56 turboprops with three-blade propellers. Deliveries began in December of 1956, continuing until the introduction of the C-130B model in 1959. Some A models were redesignated C-130D after being equipped with skis and for jet-assisted takeoff. The newer C-130B had ailerons with more boost — 3,000 versus 2,050 lbf/in² (21 versus 14 MPa) — as well as uprated engines and four-bladed propellers that were standard until the late 1990s. The performance gains over the C-130A gave the C-130B the reputation of being the design's 'sports car' model.

The extended range C-130E model entered service in 1962. The increased range was achieved by underwing 5,150 litre (1,360 US gallon) fuel tanks and more powerful Allison T-56-A-7A turboprops. The E model also featured structural improvements, avionics upgrades and a higher gross weight.

The KC-130 tankers, originally C-130Fs procured for the US Marine Corps (USMC) in 1958 (under the designation GV-1), are equipped with a removable 13,626 litre (3600 US gallon) stainless steel fuel tank carried inside the cargo compartment. The two wing-mounted hose and drogue aerial refueling pods each transfer up to 19 litres per second (equivalent to 300 US gallons per minute) to two aircraft simultaneously, allowing for rapid cycle times of multiple-receiver aircraft formations, (a typical tanker formation of four aircraft in less than 30 minutes). The US Navy's C-130G has increased structural strength allowing higher gross weight operation.

The C-130H model has updated Allison T56-A-15 turboprops, a redesigned outer wing, updated avionics and other minor improvements. The H model remains in widespread use with the US Air Force (USAF) and many foreign air forces. Initial deliveries began in 1964, remaining in production until 1996. An improved C-130H was introduced in 1974. The equivalent model for export to the UK is the C-130K, known by the Royal Air Force (RAF) as the Hercules C.1. The C-130H-30 (Hercules C.3 in RAF service) is a stretched version of the original Hercules, achieved by inserting a 2.54 m plug aft of the cockpit and a 2.03 m plug at the rear of the fuselage.

The HC-130N & P are long range search and rescue variants used by the USAF Air Rescue Service. Equipped for deep deployment of pararescue men (PJ's), survival equipment, and aerial refueling of combat rescue helicopters (see KC-130H), they are usually the on-scene command aircraft for combat SAR missions. Early versions were equipped with the Fulton surface-to-air recovery system, designed to pull a person off the ground using a wire strung from a helium balloon. The John Wayne movie The Green Berets features its use. The Fulton system was later removed when aerial refueling of helicopters proved safer and more versatile. The movie The Perfect Storm depicts a real life SAR mission involving aerial refueling by an HC-130.

The C-130R and C-130T are US Navy and USMC models, both equipped with underwing external fuel tanks. The C-130T is similar, but has numerous avionics improvements over the R model and is fully night-vision system compatible. In both models, USMC aircraft are equipped with Allison T-56-A-16 engines. The USMC versions are designated KC-130R or KC-130T when equipped with underwing refueling pods and pylons.

Civilian use

The Lockheed L-100 is a civilian variant, equivalent to a C-130E model without pylon tanks or military equipment. The L-100 also has 2 stretched versions: the L-100-20 has an 8.3 ft (2.5 m) fuselage stretch and the L-100-30 is stretched by 15 ft (4.6 m). The L-100 has not seen widespread use in the civilian market.

Next generation

The propellers of an RAF Hercules C.4 (C-130J-30)

In the 1970s Lockheed constructed one C-130 with turbofan engines rather than turboprops, but the US Air Force preferred the takeoff performance of the existing aircraft. In the 1980s the C-130 was intended to be replaced by the Advanced Medium STOL Transport project. However, the project was cancelled and the C-130 has remained in production.

The C-130J Super Hercules is the newest version of the Hercules and the only model still produced. Externally similar to the classic Hercules, the J model is in fact a radically different aircraft. These differences include new Rolls-Royce Allison AE2100 turboprops with six-bladed composite scimitar propellers, digital avionics (including head-up displays for each pilot), reduced crew requirements (2 pilots—no navigator or flight engineer), increased reliability and up to 27% lower operating costs. The C-130J is also available in a standard-length or stretched C-130J-30 version. Lockheed received the launch order for J model from the RAF, who ordered 25 aircraft, with first deliveries beginning in 1999. The RAF calls the C-130J the Hercules Mk 5 and the stretched C-130J-30 the Hercules Mk 4.

The largest operator of the new model will be the USAF, who are ordering the aircraft in increasing numbers, although as of 2005 the US Congress announced that C-130J acquisition would be dramatically cut back. Current operators of the C-130J are the USAF, United States Marine Corps (KC-130J tanker), US Air National Guard, US Coast Guard, Royal Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force, Danish Air Force and the Italian Air Force.

Lockheed has leased four C-130J's to the German Luftwaffe, which has been awaiting a Transall replacement set for 2010 (i.e. the Airbus A400M).

Indian Air Force is planning to buy 12-13 C-130J for its special operations. A tender was issued July 5, 2006 to replace the Canadian Forces CC-130E and H models with 17 new airlifters.^[5] The C-130J and A400M are expected to be competing for the Canadian order.

Operational use

While the C-130 is involved in cargo and resupply operations daily, it has been a part of some notable operations such as the 1976 Entebbe raid in which Israeli commando forces carried a surprise assault to rescue 103 passengers of an airliner hijacked by Palestinian and German terrorists at Entebbe Airport, Uganda. The rescue force — 200 soldiers, jeeps, and a black Mercedes-Benz (intended to resemble Ugandan Dictator Idi Amin's vehicle of state) — was flown 4,000 km from Israel to Entebbe by five Israeli Air Force (IAF) Hercules aircraft without mid-air refueling (on the way back, the planes refueled in Nairobi, Kenya). In the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War, the Pakistan Air Force modified/improvised several aircraft for use as heavy bombers, and attacks were made on enemy bridges and troop concentrations with some notable successes. No aircraft were lost in the opertions, though one was slightly damaged.^[6] Pakistan Airforce has also used the C-130 at the highest operational airbase in the world, PAF Skardu, in support of operations in Siachen.^[7]

The Hercules also holds the record for the largest and heaviest aircraft to land on an aircraft carrier. In November 1963, a C-130 landed without using the ship's arresting gear on the USS Forrestal (CVA-59). The pilot, Lt. James Flatley III, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his participation. The tests were highly successful, but the idea was considered too risky for routine "Carrier On-board Delivery" (COD) operations. Instead, the C-2 Greyhound was developed as a dedicated COD aircraft. The Hercules used in the test, most recently in service with VMGR-352 until 2005, is now part of the collection at the National Museum of Naval Aviation at NAS Pensacola, Florida.

The MC-130 variant carries and deploys what are currently the world's largest conventional bombs, the BLU-82 "daisy cutter" and GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb. Daisy cutters were used during the Vietnam War to clear landing zones for helicopters and to eliminate minefields and have recently even been proposed for anti-personnel use. The weight and size of the weapons make existing bomber aircraft impossible or impractical for operational use.

Hercules C-130H of the Royal Jordanian Air Force

A prominent C-130T aircraft is Fat Albert, the support aircraft for the US Navy Blue Angels flight demonstration team. Although Fat Albert supports a Navy squadron, its crew consists solely of USMC personnel. At some air shows featuring the flight team, Fat Albert takes part, performing flyovers and sometimes demonstrating its jet-assisted take off (JATO) capabilities.

Notable crashes

The C-130 is generally a highly reliable aircraft. The Royal Air Force recorded an accident rate of about one aircraft loss per 250,000 flying hours over the last forty years, making it one of the safest aircraft they operate (alongside Vickers VC10s and Lockheed Tristars with no flying losses).^[8] However, more than 10% of production has been lost, mainly by the USAF.^[9]

Variants

Significant variants of the C-130 include:

AC-130 gunship
DC-130 and GC-130 drone control
EC-130 Commando Solo command and control, and electronic warfare
EC-130H Compass Call, electronic warfare and electronic spoofing
EC-130E Airborne Battlefield Command and Control Center (ABCCC)
HC-130P/N special operations refueling, long-range surveillance, search and rescue
JC-130 and NC-130 space and missile operations
KC-130 tactical refueling tanker
LC-130 Arctic & Antarctic support
MC-130E/H Combat Talon I/II (special operations)
MC-130P Combat Shadow (special operations)
MC-130W^[10]
YMC-130H three modified for planned Iran hostage crisis rescue attempt under project Credible Sport
PC-130 maritime patrol
RC-130 reconnaissance
SC-130 search and rescue
VC-130 VIP transport
WC-130 weather reconnaissance
CC-130 Hercules designation for Canadian Forces Hercules aircraft

Units using the Hercules

Operators of the C-130 include Abu Dhabi, Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Dubai, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Gabon, Greece, Honduras, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Liberia, Libya, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, North Yemen, Zaire, Zambia.

Specifications (C-130H)

Data from The Aviation Zone^[11]

General characteristics

Crew: 4-6: at least 2 pilots,1 flight engineer, and 1 loadmaster; additional loadmaster and navigator are usually part of the crew
Capacity:
- 92 passengers or
- 64 airborne troops or
- 74 litter patients with 2 medical personnel

Performance

Preserved airframes

AC-130A USAF 53-3129, c.n. 3001 - First production Hercules, modified to gunship configuration in November 1967, survived 37 mm AAA hit over South Vietnam in March 1973, repaired, and finally retired from the 711th Special Operations Squadron in 1995 for display at the USAF Armaments Museum, Eglin AFB, Florida. Named "The First Lady" since November 1970.
AC-130A USAF 54-1626, c.n. 3013 - Prototype AC-130A upgrade, operations in Southeast Asia with the 16th Special Operations Squadron, 1967-1972, then to JC-130A test configuration. To the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio as JC-130A in 1976. Back to AC-130A configuration in late 1990s.
AC-130A USAF 56-0509, c.n. 3117 - Airlifter with 314 TCW, 315 AD, 374 TCW; to Ling-Temco-Vought, August, 1970, and modified to AC-130A. Operations with 16th Special Operations Squadron,; damaged at An Loc, South Vietnam, 23 December 1972; named "Raids Kill 'Em Dead", October, 1974, to 711th Special Operations Squadron, July. 1975, named "Ultimate End", April, 1994; assigned to Hurlburt Field, Florida, October, 1994, and retired to Air Commando display park, May, 1995.
C-130G USN BuNo 151891, c.n. 3878 - Modified to EC-130G, 1966, then testbed for EC-130Q in 1981. To TC-130G in May 1990 and assigned as Blue Angels support craft, serving as "Fat Albert Airlines" from 1991 to 2002. Retired to the National Museum of Naval Aviation at NAS Pensacola, Florida, November, 2002.

References

^ Rhodes, Jeff (2004). "Willis Hawkins and the Genesis of the Hercules". Code One Magazine. 19 (3). Retrieved 2006-08-22.
^ Boyne, Walter J. (1998). Beyond the Horizons: The Lockheed Story. New York: St. Martin's Press.
^ Dabney, Joseph E. (2004). "A Mating of the Jeep, the Truck, and the Airplane" (PDF). Excerpted from HERK: Hero of the Skies in Lockheed Martin Service News. 29 (2). Lockheed Martin Air Mobility Support: 3. Retrieved 2006-08-22. {{cite journal}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |journal= (help)
^ Cite error: The named reference afm was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ "Airlift Capability Project - Tactical". MERX website. Government of Canada. Retrieved 2006-08-22.
^ Saqib Shafi. "Pakistan Air Force - Yesterday and Today". Pakistan Military Consortium. PakDef Info. Retrieved 2006-08-21.
^ Gager, Scott J. (August 2001). "New Pics". C-130 Hercules Headquarters. Retrieved 2006-08-21.
^ "Aircraft Air Accidents and Damage Rates". Defence Analytical Services Agency. Retrieved 2006-08-22.
^ "Lockheed C-130 Hercules". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. 2004-11-13. Retrieved 2006-08-22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
^ Housman, Damian (2006-06-29). "Highly modified C-130 ready for war on terrorism". Air Force Link. United States Air Force. Retrieved 2006-08-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
^ Neely, Mike (©2006). "Lockheed C-130 Hercules". Retrieved 2006-08-22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)

@@ Line 237: / Line 237: @@
 *AC-130A USAF 53-3129, c.n. 3001 - First production Hercules, modified to gunship configuration in November 1967, survived 37 mm AAA hit over South Vietnam in March 1973, repaired, and finally retired from the 711th Special Operations Squadron in 1995 for display at the [[USAF Armaments Museum]], [[Eglin AFB]], Florida. Named "The First Lady" since November 1970.
 *AC-130A USAF 54-1626, c.n. 3013 - Prototype AC-130A upgrade, operations in Southeast Asia with the 16th Special Operations Squadron, 1967-1972, then to JC-130A test configuration. To the [[National Museum of the United States Air Force]], [[Dayton, Ohio]] as JC-130A in 1976. Back to AC-130A configuration in late 1990s.
+*AC-130A USAF 56-0509, c.n. 3117 - Airlifter with 314 TCW, 315 AD, 374 TCW; to Ling-Temco-Vought, [[August]], [[1970]], and modified to AC-130A. Operations with 16th Special Operations Squadron,; damaged at An Loc, South Vietnam, 23 December 1972; named "Raids Kill 'Em Dead", October, 1974,  to 711th Special Operations Squadron, July. 1975, named "Ultimate End", April, 1994; assigned to Hurlburt Field, Florida, October, 1994, and retired to Air Commando display park, May, 1995.
-*AC-130A USAF 56-0509, c.n. 3117,
 *C-130G USN BuNo 151891, c.n. 3878 - Modified to EC-130G, 1966, then testbed for EC-130Q in 1981.  To TC-130G in May 1990 and assigned as [[Blue Angels]] support craft, serving as "Fat Albert Airlines" from [[1991]] to [[2002]]. Retired to the [[National Museum of Naval Aviation]] at [[NAS Pensacola]], [[Florida]], [[November]], [[2002]].