AC-130 Spectre Lockheed

The AC-130 gunship is a heavily-armed ground attack airplane. The basic airframe is manufactured by Lockheed, and Boeing is responsible for the conversion into a gunship and for aircraft support. It is a variant of the C-130 Hercules transport plane. The AC-130 Gunship II superseded the AC-47 Gunship I in Vietnam.
The gunship's sole user is the United States Air Force, which uses AC-130H Spectre and AC-130U Spooky variants. The AC-130 is powered by four turboprops and has an armament ranging from 20 mm Gatling guns to 105 mm howitzers. It has a standard crew of twelve to thirteen Airmen, including five officers (two pilots, a navigator, an electronic warfare officer and a fire control officer) and enlisted personnel (flight engineer, electronics operators and aerial gunners).

The US Air Force uses the AC-130 gunships for close air support, air interdiction, and force protection. Close air support roles include supporting ground troops, escorting convoys, and flying urban operations. Air interdiction missions are conducted against planned targets and targets of opportunity. Force protection missions include defending air bases and other military facilities. The gunship squadrons are part of the Air Force Special Operations Command and are all assigned to AFSOC at Hurlburt Field in Northwest Florida.



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Type: Fixed-wing gunship
Manufacturer: Lockheed/Boeing
Maiden flight:
AC-130A: 1966
AC-130U: 1990
Service Delivery:
AC-130A: 1968
AC-130U: 1995
Number built: 43

Crew: 13
– Officers: 5 (pilot, copilot, navigator, fire control officer, electronic warfare officer)
– Enlisted: 8 (flight engineer, TV operator, infrared detection set operator, loadmaster, four
aerial gunners)

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Specifications:
Powerplant:
Model: Allison T56-A-15
Type: Turboprop
Number: Four
Horsepower: 4,910 shp

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Dimensions:
Length: 97 ft 9 in (29.8 m)
Wingspan: 132 ft 7 in (40.4 m)
Height: 38 ft 6 in (11.7 m)
Wing area: 1745.5 ft² (162.2 m²)
Max takeoff weight:
– 155,000 lb (69,750 kg)
Performance
Maximum speed: 260 knots (300 mph, 480 km/h)
Range: 2,200 nm (2,530 mi, 4,070 km)
Service ceiling 30,000 ft (9,100 m)

Armament:
AC-130A Project Gunship II
4× 7.62 mm GAU-2/A miniguns
4× 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon
AC-130A Surprise Package, Pave Pronto, AC-130E Pave Spectre
4× 7.62 mm GAU-2/A miniguns
2× 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon
2× 40 mm L/60 Bofors cannon

AC-130E Pave Aegis and
AC-130H Pave Spectre II
2× 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon
1× 40 mm L60 Bofors cannon
1× 105 mm (4.13 in) M102 howitzer

AC-130U "Spooky" Gunship
1× 25 mm GAU-12/U Equalizer gatling gun
1× 40 mm L60 Bofors cannon
1× 105 mm M102 howitzer


or

2× 30 mm Bushmaster II cannon
1× 105 mm M102 howitzer


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Sources:
Wikipedia: AC-130 Spectre