The
LockheedThe Lockheed Corporation was an American aerospace company. Lockheed was founded in 1912 and later merged with Martin Marietta to form Lockheed Martin in 1995.-Origins:...
MC-130 is the basic designation for a family of special mission aircraft operated by the
United States Air Force Special Operations CommandAir Force Special Operations Command is the Special Operations component of the United States Air Force and the US Air Force component command to the United States Special Operations Command , a unified command located at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida...
(AFSOC), a wing of the
Air Education and Training CommandAir Education and Training Command was established July 1, 1993, with the realignment of Air Training Command and Air University. It is one of the U.S. Air Force's ten major commands and reports to Headquarters, United States Air Force....
, and an AFSOC-gained wing of the
Air Force Reserve CommandThe Air Force Reserve Command is a major command of the U.S. Air Force with its headquarters at Robins AFB, Georgia.It stood up as a major command of the Air Force on 17 February 1997....
. Based on the
C-130 HerculesThe Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...
transportMilitary transport aircraft are typically fixed and rotary wing cargo aircraft which are used to deliver troops, weapons and other military equipment by a variety of methods to any area of military operations around the surface of the planet, usually outside of the commercial flight routes in...
, their mission is the
infiltrationIn warfare, infiltration tactics involve small, lightly equipped infantry forces attacking enemy rear areas while bypassing enemy front line strongpoints and isolating them for attack by follow-up troops with heavier weapons.-Development during World War I:...
, exfiltration, and resupply of
special operationsSpecial operations are military operations that are considered "special" .Special operations are typically performed independently or in conjunction with conventional military operations. The primary goal is to achieve a political or military objective where a conventional force requirement does...
forces, and the air refueling of (primarily) special operations
helicopterA helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
and tilt-rotor aircraft.
Members of the family include the
MC-130E Combat Talon I,
MC-130H Combat Talon II,
MC-130W Combat/Dragon Spear,
MC-130P Combat Shadow, and
MC-130J Commando II. A possible MC-130 variant, designated the XFC-130H, did not proceed beyond the development stage, but one of its aircraft became the
YMC-130H test bed aircraft for the Combat Talon II. The Air Force is requesting acquisition of at least 37 new production MC-130J aircraft to replace the Combat Talon Is and Combat Shadows, with the first ten to be received in 2011. A total of 69 MC-130J aircraft are planned, which will eventually replace all other MC-130 variants.
The MC-130E was the first Combat Talon and was developed to support clandestine special operations missions during the Vietnam War. Eighteen were created by modifying C-130E transports, and four lost through attrition, but the remainder continue in service more than four decades after their initial modification. An updated Combat Talon II was developed in the 1980s from the C-130H variant of the Hercules and went into service in the 1990s. Four of its 24 original aircraft have been lost in operations. The Combat Spear was implemented in 2006 as a cost effective program to supplement the Combat Talon II force, based on the same airframe. The Combat Shadow is a redesignation of several
HC-130The Lockheed HC-130 is an extended-range, search and rescue and Combat search and rescue version of the C-130 Hercules transport. The HC-130H and HC-130J versions are operated by the United States Coast Guard in a SAR and maritime reconnaissance role. The HC-130P and HC-130N Combat King models...
s. Initially developed during the Vietnam War for
search and rescueSearch and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
operations, 28 were diverted to AFSOC in the 1980s to provide it with organic air refueling assets.
MC-130E Combat Talon I
Development
The Combat Talon was initially developed between December 1964 and January 1967 by
Lockheed Air ServicesThe Lockheed Corporation was an American aerospace company. Lockheed was founded in 1912 and later merged with Martin Marietta to form Lockheed Martin in 1995.-Origins:...
(LAS) at
Ontario, CaliforniaOntario is a city located in San Bernardino County, California, United States, 35 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire region, it lies just east of the Los Angeles county line and is part of the Greater Los Angeles Area...
, as the result of a study by
Big Safari, the USAF's program office responsible for modification and sustainment of special mission aircraft. From it two highly classified test bed aircraft (originally serial no.
64-0506 and
-0507, but with all numbers "sanitized" from the aircraft), were assigned to Project
Thin Slice to develop a low level clandestine penetration aircraft suitable for
Special ForcesSpecial forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
operations in
Southeast AsiaSoutheast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
. In 1964 Lockheed had modified six
C-123B ProvidersThe C-123 Provider was an American military transport aircraft designed by Chase Aircraft and subsequently built by Fairchild Aircraft for the United States Air Force...
for "unconventional warfare" under Project
Duck Hook and then been tasked with adapting the C-130E when the
Duck Hook aircraft proved inadequate for the newly-launched MACV-SOG. The modifications under
Thin Slice and its August 1966 successor
Heavy Chain were code named
Rivet Yard, and the four C-130Es came to be known as "Yards". Discrete modification tests were conducted by the
1198th Operational Evaluation and Training SquadronThe 1198th Operational Evaluation and Training Squadron was a unit at Norton Air Force Base, San Bernardino, California from 1965 to 1972 which conducted the initial testing of C-130 Hercules transports modified for special operations under the project names of Thin Slice and Heavy Chain which led...
, out of Area II of Norton AFB at San Bernardino, California, 30 miles east of Ontario.
As the
Thin Slice aircraft were being developed, SOG requirements resulted in the procurement of 14 C-130Es in 1965 for similar modification. The first aircraft were production C-130Es without specialized equipment that were produced at Lockheed's facility in
Marietta, GeorgiaMarietta is a city located in central Cobb County, Georgia, United States, and is its county seat.As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 56,579, making it one of metro Atlanta's largest suburbs...
. Production airplanes were modified with the installation of the Fulton STARS (then ARS) system, at the rate of three aircraft per month. While awaiting installation of the ARS equipment, the C-130s were ferried to
Greenville, South Carolina-Law and government:The city of Greenville adopted the Council-Manager form of municipal government in 1976.-History:The area was part of the Cherokee Nation's protected grounds after the Treaty of 1763, which ended the French and Indian War. No White man was allowed to enter, though some families...
, for painting by
Ling-Temco-Vought ElectrosystemsLing-Temco-Vought was a large U.S. conglomerate which existed from 1969 to 2000. At its peak, its component parts were involved in the aerospace industry, electronics, steel manufacturing, sporting goods, the airline industry, meat packing, car rentals and pharmaceuticals, among other...
with a low-radar reflective paint that added 370 pounds to their weight. The velvet black and green scheme resulted in the aircraft being nicknamed "Blackbirds". As installation was completed, the Blackbirds were returned to Ontario for installation of the electronics package, code-named
Rivet Clamp. The aircraft modified became known as "Clamps" (two of the original 14,
64-0564 and
-0565, were diverted to
Heavy Chain in August 1966). The aircraft collectively were assigned the designation
Combat Talon in 1967.
The
Fulton Surface-To-Air Recovery SystemThe Fulton surface-to-air recovery system is a system used by the CIA, United States Air Force and United States Navy for retrieving persons on the ground from an MC-130E Combat Talon I aircraft. It involves using an overall-type harness and a self-inflating balloon which carries an attached lift...
was used to extract personnel and materials via air. A large
heliumHelium is the chemical element with atomic number 2 and an atomic weight of 4.002602, which is represented by the symbol He. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table...
balloonA balloon is an inflatable flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, or air. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, while some early balloons were made of dried animal bladders, such as the pig...
raised a
nylonNylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers known generically as polyamides, first produced on February 28, 1935, by Wallace Carothers at DuPont's research facility at the DuPont Experimental Station...
lift line into the air, which was snagged by a large scissors-shaped yoke attached to the nose of the plane. The yoke snagged the line and released the balloon, yanking the attached cargo off the ground with a shock less than that of an opening parachute. A sky anchor secured the line and wires stretched from the nose to both leading
wing tipA wing tip is the part of the wing that is most distant from the fuselage of a fixed-wing aircraft.Because the wing tip shape influences the size and drag of the wingtip vortices, tip design has produced a diversity of shapes, including:* Squared-off...
edges protected the propellers from the line on missed snag attempts. Crew members hooked the snagged line as it trailed behind and attached it to the
hydraulicHydraulics is a topic in applied science and engineering dealing with the mechanical properties of liquids. Fluid mechanics provides the theoretical foundation for hydraulics, which focuses on the engineering uses of fluid properties. In fluid power, hydraulics is used for the generation, control,...
winchA winch is a mechanical device that is used to pull in or let out or otherwise adjust the "tension" of a rope or wire rope . In its simplest form it consists of a spool and attached hand crank. In larger forms, winches stand at the heart of machines as diverse as tow trucks, steam shovels and...
, pulling the attached person or cargo into the plane through the rear cargo door.
Following a fatality on 26 April 1982, at
CFB LahrBlack Forest Airport is a privately owned and operated commercial airport located in Lahr, Germany. Formerly known as Canadian Forces Base Lahr, or CFB Lahr, the Canadian Forces Base was operated primarily as an air force base, and later as an army base, during the late 1960s. The military base...
, Germany, the Fulton STARS system on the Clamp aircraft underwent intense maintenance scrutiny and employment of the system for live pickups was suspended. A major effort at upgrading the system,
Project 46, was pursued from 1986 to 1989, but at its conclusion, use of the STARS system for live extractions remained suspended. The Fulton STARS equipment of all Combat Talons was removed during 1998.
Rivet Clamp installation began with four STARS-equipped C-130s completed by March 1966, followed by installations in eight further aircraft in July 1966 and January 1967. The
Rivet Clamps, originally designated C-130E(I), were equipped with an
electronicAn electronic countermeasure is an electrical or electronic device designed to trick or deceive radar, sonar or other detection systems, like infrared or lasers. It may be used both offensively and defensively to deny targeting information to an enemy...
and infrared (IR)
countermeasureA countermeasure is a measure or action taken to counter or offset another one. As a general concept it implies precision, and is any technological or tactical solution or system designed to prevent an undesirable outcome in the process...
s suite; and the AN/APQ-115 navigational radar. This radar, adapted from the
Texas InstrumentsTexas Instruments Inc. , widely known as TI, is an American company based in Dallas, Texas, United States, which develops and commercializes semiconductor and computer technology...
AN/APQ-89 radar used in the
RF-4C PhantomThe McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is a tandem two-seat, twin-engined, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor fighter/fighter-bomber originally developed for the United States Navy by McDonnell Aircraft. It first entered service in 1960 with the U.S. Navy. Proving highly adaptable,...
photo reconnaissance aircraft, featured
terrain following/terrain-avoidance (TF/TA)Terrain-following radar is an aerospace technology that allows a very-low-flying aircraft to automatically maintain a relatively constant altitude above ground level. It is sometimes referred-to as ground hugging or terrain hugging flight...
, Doppler, and mapping radar modes, to enable it to operate at low altitudes at night and in all weather conditions and avoid known enemy radar and
anti-aircraftNATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
weapons concentrations.
Beginning in 1970, Texas Instruments and Lockheed Air Service worked to adapt the existing AN/APQ-122 Adverse Weather Aerial Delivery System (AWADS) with terrain following/terrain avoidance modes to replace the original APQ-115, which suffered throughout its life with an unacceptably adverse mean-time-between-failure (MTBF) rate. In 1970 they succeeded, and coupled the APQ-122 with the
LittonNamed after inventor Charles Litton, Sr., Litton Industries was a large defense contractor in the United States, bought by the Northrop Grumman Corporation in 2001.-History:...
LN-15J
Inertial Navigation SystemAn inertial navigation system is a navigation aid that uses a computer, motion sensors and rotation sensors to continuously calculate via dead reckoning the position, orientation, and velocity of a moving object without the need for external references...
(INS). Known as MOD-70, the modified radar was installed in all 12 operational Combat Talons and the four
Heavy Chain test beds between 1971-1973. The system proved so successful that it continued in service until the late 1980s. Following the completion of MOD-70, the Combat Talons were divided into three designations: C-130E(CT) for the "Clamp" aircraft, C-130E(Y) for the "Yank" (formerly "Yard") Talons, and C-130E(S) for the "Swap". The Combat Talon I designations were consolidated in 1977 as the
MC-130 and have remained under that designation since. The Combat Talon became the
Combat Talon I in 1984 with the authorization for the modification of 24 C-130Hs to Combat Talon II specifications.
The "Yank" Talons conducted
top secretTop Secret generally refers to the highest acknowledged level of classified information.Top Secret may also refer to:- Film and television :* Top Secret , a British comedy directed by Mario Zampi...
operations worldwide, under the project name
Combat Sam, until late 1972. Two of the original "Clamps" were lost in combat in Southeast Asia and were replaced by two C-130Es (64-0571 and -0572). These remained as Combat Talons until 1972, when
Heavy Chain was gradually discontinued and its four "Yank" aircraft were integrated into the Combat Talon force. The two original
Thin Slice aircraft were given the serials of two destroyed C-130s,
62-1843 and
63-7785 respectively, to disguise their classified origins. The replacements had their modifications removed and returned to airlift duties, although known as "Swaps", they remained available for future Combat Talon use. Both eventually became Combat Talons again after further losses in the Combat Talon inventory.
Capability to act as a Forward Area Refueling Point (FARP) for helicopters on the ground was begun in 1980 in preparation for
Operation Eagle ClawOperation Eagle Claw was an American military operation ordered by President Jimmy Carter to attempt to put an end to the Iran hostage crisis by rescuing 52 Americans held captive at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran on 24 April 1980...
(see below), although only one system could be installed before the mission was executed. The refueling system consists of two palletized 1,800 gallon tanks (known as Benson tanks) mounted on rails within the Talon that tie into the C-130's own pressurized fuel dumping pumps and require no further equipment.
A major modification between 1986 and 1994, MOD-90, modernized the capability and serviceability of the Talon I to extend its service life. All 14 Combat Talon Is with upgraded navigational radars, an enhanced
electronic warfareElectronic warfare refers to any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults via the spectrum. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponent the advantage of, and ensure friendly...
suite and provided new outer wings. By 1995 all Combat Talon Is were equipped with a helicopter-air refueling pods.
Southeast Asia operations
The aircraft received for modification as Combat Talons were assigned in July 1965 to the 464th Troop Carrier Wing at
Pope Air Force BasePope Field is a United States Army facility located 12 miles northwest of the central business district of Fayetteville, in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States.-Units:...
,
North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. Because of a lack of ramp space caused by the buildup of forces for deployment to
South VietnamSouth Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
, they were temporarily housed at
Sewart Air Force BaseSewart Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Smyrna, about 25 miles southeast of Nashville, Tennessee.-World War II:...
,
TennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. The wing's 779th TCS was designated as the training squadron for the modified C-130E(I)s, under Project
Skyhook, in addition to its normal airlift function. Selected crew members received instructor training in their respective systems and returned to Pope by May 1 to begin crew training of six crews for deployment to Vietnam under Project
Stray Goose.
The Combat Talon I first saw operational action in the
Vietnam WarThe Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, beginning September 1, 1966. The six
Stray Goose crews deployed to
Ching Chuan Kang Air BaseChing Chuan Kang Air Base is a Republic Of China Air Force base located on Taiwan. It is the home to the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing, with three squadrons of Ching-kou air-defense /attack fighters...
,
TaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, and forward deployed to
Nha Trang Air BaseNha Trang Air Base is a Vietnam People's Air Force military airfield in Vietnam. It is located northwest of Nha Trang in Khanh Hoa Province....
,
South VietnamSouth Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
. The deployment, known as
Combat Spear, preceded operational deployment of other Combat Talons to Europe (
Combat Arrow) and the United States (
Combat Knife).
Combat Spear was administratively assigned as
Detachment 1, 314th Troop Carrier Wing, but was operationally controlled by MACV-SOG. On October 9, 2009, Detachment 1, 314th Troop Carrier Wing received the
Presidential Unit CitationThe Presidential Unit Citation is a senior unit award granted to military units which have performed an extremely meritorious or heroic act, usually in the face of an armed enemy...
for its support of MACV-SOG activities. Chief of Staff of the Air Force General
Norton A. SchwartzNorton Allan Schwartz is a United States Air Force general who is serving as the 19th Chief of Staff of the Air Force. He previously served as Commander, United States Transportation Command from September 2005 to August 2008...
presented the award to the unit during a ceremony at Hurlburt Field, culminating a six-year campaign by former
Stray Goose member Richard H. Sell to achieve the recognition after the unit was not included in a PUC awarded April 4, 2001, to MACV-SOG for the same period.
On March 15, 1968, the detachment was designated the 15th Air Commando Squadron, and then the
15th Special Operations SquadronThe 15th Special Operations Squadron is part of the 1st Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, Florida. It operates MC-130H Combat Talon II aircraft in support of special operations.-Mission:...
on August 1, 1968, and made part of the 14th Special Operations Wing. In Vietnam, the aircraft was used to drop leaflets over
North VietnamThe Democratic Republic of Vietnam , was a communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976 following the Geneva Conference and laid claim to all of Vietnam from 1945 to 1954 during the First Indochina War, during which they controlled pockets of territory throughout...
ese positions, and to insert and resupply special forces and indigenous units into hostile territory throughout Southeast Asia. Combat Talon crews operated unescorted at low altitudes and at night.
By 1970 twelve Combat Talons were operational in three units of four aircraft each:
- 7th Special Operations Squadron
The 7th Special Operations Squadron is an active flying unit of the United States Air Force. It is a component of the 352d Special Operations Group , United States Special Operations Command, and is currently based at Royal Air Force base RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, eastern England.-Mission:From...
, Ramstein Air BaseRamstein Air Base is a United States Air Force base in the German state of Rheinland-Pfalz. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe and is also a North Atlantic Treaty Organization installation...
, GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
;
- 15th Special Operations Squadron, Nha Trang Air Base, South Vietnam; and
- Detachment 2, 1st Special Operations Wing
The 1st Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, Florida is one of two United States Air Force active duty Special Operations wings and falls under the Air Force Special Operations Command ....
, Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina, (redesignated 318th SOS in 1971 and 8th SOS in 1974).
The 15th SOS was redesignated the 90th SOS on October 23, 1970, relocated to Cam Ranh Bay Air Base, then moved to
Kadena Air Base, is a United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Kadena Air Base is the hub of U.S. airpower in the Pacific, and home to the USAF's 18th Wing and a variety of associate units.-Units:The 18th Wing is the host unit at Kadena...
, Okinawa, in April 1972 as part of the drawdown of U.S. forces in Vietnam. It was again redesignated, becoming the 1st SOS on December 15, 1972, and began transition from the "Clamp" to the "Yank" variant.
Kingpin
Two Combat Talons were employed as navigation escorts and for airborne control during
Operation KingpinOperation Ivory Coast was a failed rescue mission conducted in North Vietnam during the Vietnam War by United States Special Operations Forces and other elements of the U.S. Military....
, the operational phase of the attempted rescue of
prisoners of warA prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
from
Son TaySơn Tây is an urban district and city in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. It was the capital of Son Tay province before merging with Ha Dong province in 1965...
prison camp in North Vietnam on November 21, 1970. 64-0523 was drawn from the 15th SOS at Nha Trang and 64-0558 from Det. 2, 1st SOW at Pope AFB. The aircraft were modified at LAS Ontario with installation of FL-2B
FLIRForward looking infrared cameras, typically used on military aircraft, use an imaging technology that senses infrared radiation.The sensors installed in forward looking infrared cameras, as well as those of other thermal imaging cameras, use detection of infrared radiation, typically emitted from a...
sets borrowed from the
Heavy Chain project to compensate for difficulties in terrain-following created by the slow speeds necessitated by the mixed aircraft force.
24 primary and five backup crew personnel, all
Stray Goose/
Combat Spear veterans detached from 7th SOS (
Combat Arrow) and 1st SOW (
Combat Knife), developed helicopter-fixed wing formation procedures for low level night missions and jointly trained with selected Special Forces volunteers at
Eglin Air Force BaseEglin Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 3 miles southwest of Valparaiso, Florida in Okaloosa County....
, Florida. Between the end of August and September 28, 1970, Talon, helicopter, and
A-1 SkyraiderThe Douglas A-1 Skyraider was an American single-seat attack aircraft that saw service between the late 1940s and early 1980s. It became a piston-powered, propeller-driven anachronism in the jet age, and was nicknamed "Spad", after a French World War I fighter...
crews supervised by Combat Talon Program Manager Lt. Col. Benjamin N. Kraljev rehearsed the flight profile in terrain-following missions over southern
AlabamaAlabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, flying 368 sorties that totalled more than 1,000 hours. A month of intensive joint training with the Special Forces rescue force followed at a replica of the prison camp.
In early November the task force deployed to
Takhli Royal Thai Air Force BaseTakhli Royal Thai Air Force Base is a Royal Thai Air Force facility. It is located in Central Thailand, approximately 144 miles northwest of Bangkok in Takhli district, Nakhon Sawan Province, near the city of Nakhon Sawan.- Units :...
,
ThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. The 24 primary crew members, a 7th SOS crew (
Cherry 01) under Major Irl L. "Leon" Franklin and a 1st SOW crew (
Cherry 02) commanded by Lt Col Albert P. "Friday" Blosch, conducted the mission, which was successfully executed without loss of any personnel. However the operation failed when the prison was found not to contain any prisoners.
Post-Vietnam developments
In 1974 the Combat Talon program was nearly dismantled as the Air Force sought to reverse its Vietnam emphasis on special operations. The 1st Special Operations Wing was redesignated the 834th Tactical Composite Wing and its Combat Talons of the 8th SOS became a
TACTactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 being headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia...
asset. However the use of 1st SOS "Yank" Talons in a sea surveillance role off
North KoreaThe Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
in 1975 revived interest in the Combat Talon, as did the
IsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i
hostage rescue at Entebbe AirportOperation Entebbe was a counter-terrorist hostage-rescue mission carried out by the Special Forces of the Israel Defense Forces at Entebbe Airport in Uganda on 4 July 1976. A week earlier, on 27 June, an Air France plane with 248 passengers was hijacked by Palestinian and German terrorists and...
. However, as late as 1978-1979, AFSOF was still disregarded by many staff planners, who saw it as a drain on resources and not a force enabler, and wanted the entire Talon force transferred to the
Air National GuardThe Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...
.
By November 1979, the Combat Talon force of 14 MC-130Es was divided among three squadrons, the first two of which were operationally deployed, and the third at Hurlburt essentially the force training squadron:
- 1st Special Operations Squadron
The 1st Special Operations Squadron is part of the 353d Special Operations Group at Kadena Air Base, Japan. It operates MC-130 Combat Talon II aircraft providing special operations capability...
, Kadena Air Base, Okinawa - (four MC-130 Yanks);
- 7th Special Operations Squadron, Ramstein Air Base, Germany - (four MC-130 Clamps); and
- 8th Special Operations Squadron
The 8th Special Operations Squadron is part of the 1st Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, Florida. It operates CV-22 Osprey in support of special operations.-Mission:...
, Hurlburt FieldHurlburt Field is a U.S. Air Force installation located in Okaloosa County, Florida, immediately west of the Town of Mary Esther. It is part of the greater Eglin Air Force Base reservation, and is home to Headquarters Air Force Special Operations Command , the 1st Special Operations Wing , the...
, FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
- (six MC-130 Clamps).
Eagle Claw
Following the
seizure of the U.S. embassyThe Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian...
in
TehranTehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
,
IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, on November 4, 1979, training operations for a rescue mission of the 53 hostages began as early as November 7 by Talon crews at Kadena AB, and November 26 by crews at Hurlburt. At that time only seven Combat Talons had the
in-flight refuelingAerial refueling, also called air refueling, in-flight refueling , air-to-air refueling or tanking, is the process of transferring fuel from one aircraft to another during flight....
capability necessary for the mission, which was to be mounted out of either Egypt or
Diego GarciaDiego Garcia is a tropical, footprint-shaped coral atoll located south of the equator in the central Indian Ocean at 7 degrees, 26 minutes south latitude. It is part of the British Indian Ocean Territory [BIOT] and is positioned at 72°23' east longitude....
(
Masirah IslandMasirah is an island off the East coast of Oman, 95 km long north-south, between 12 and 14 km wide, with an area of about 649 km², and a population estimated at 12,000 in 12 villages mainly in the north of the island...
did not become available as a base until April 1980). All were assigned to the operation, a complex two-night plan called
Eagle ClawOperation Eagle Claw was an American military operation ordered by President Jimmy Carter to attempt to put an end to the Iran hostage crisis by rescuing 52 Americans held captive at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran on 24 April 1980...
. Talon crews using
night vision gogglesA night vision device is an optical instrument that allows images to be produced in levels of light approaching total darkness. They are most often used by the military and law enforcement agencies, but are available to civilian users...
practiced blacked-out landings to insert
Delta Force1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta is one of the United States' secretive Tier One counter-terrorism and Special Mission Units. Commonly known as Delta Force, Delta, or The Unit, it was formed under the designation 1st SFOD-D, and is officially referred to by the Department of Defense...
operators and U.S. Army Rangers deep into Iran, and developed several methods for delivering extra fuel for the
RH-53D Sea StallionThe CH-53 Sea Stallion is the most common name for the Sikorsky S-65 family of heavy-lift transport helicopters. Originally developed for use by the United States Marine Corps, it is also in service with Germany, Iran, Israel, and Mexico...
helicopters chosen to carry out the rescued hostages. Four transcontinental, all-component, two-night rehearsals were held between December 1979 and March 1980, including a full-scale rehearsal March 25–26 that involved every element of the final plan except the EC-130s.
The four Talons (including a spare) of the 1st SOS staged to Masirah Island off the coast of
OmanOman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...
on April 19, 1980, to lead the Night One infiltration phase, while the three of the 8th SOS deployed to
Wadi QenaQena is a city in Upper Egypt, and the capital of the Qena Governorate. Situated on the east bank of the Nile, it was known as Kaine during the Greco-Roman period and as Cainepolis in antiquity.- Overview :...
,
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, on April 21 to lead the Night Two exfiltration phase. To establish a "normal" C-130 presence in Egypt, Talons of the 7th SOS (none of which had aerial refueling capability) conducted regular flights using
Military Airlift CommandThe Military Airlift Command is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command of the USAF which was headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. It was constituted on 1 January 1966 and active until the end of the Cold War, when the Air Force table of organization was revised...
call signs in and out of Wadi Qena between January 2 and April 8, 1980. They also used the deception to discreetly pre-position needed equipment, including ammunition for
AC-130 gunshipsThe Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily-armed ground-attack aircraft variant of the C-130 Hercules transport plane. The basic airframe is manufactured by Lockheed, while Boeing is responsible for the conversion into a gunship and for aircraft support...
, at the staging base. The Talon crews also manned three borrowed
EC-130E ABCCCThe Lockheed Martin EC-130 series comprises several slightly different versions of the C-130 that have been and continue to be operated by the U.S. Air Force and, until the 1990s, the U.S...
aircraft configured to carry 18,000 U.S. gallons of jet fuel in six collapsible bladders for refueling the helicopters. After returning to Masirah, three of the 8th SOS Night One crews would be flown to Wadi Qena to carry out the Night Two mission.
The first phase of the rescue mission began the evening of April 24, led by Lt Col Robert L. Brenci of the 8th SOS in Talon 64-0565,
Dragon 1. The 1st SOS Talons successfully secured the forward operating location ("Desert One") in the Iranian Desert, but the helicopter portion of the mission ended in disaster. Although the mission was an embarrassing failure costing eight lives, seven helicopters, and an EC-130E aircraft in a ground accident, the MC-130s performed nearly flawlessly. Planning initiatives for a second rescue attempt, under the project name
Honey Badger, began two weeks after the failed raid and continued through November. Combat Talon participation in
Honey Badger amounted largely to tactics development, but ECM improvements included chaff and
flareA flare is an aerial infrared countermeasure to counter an infrared homing surface-to-air missile or air-to-air missile. Flares are commonly composed of a pyrotechnic composition based on magnesium or another hot-burning metal, with burning temperature equal to or hotter than engine exhaust...
dispensers and new ALR-69 threat receivers that improved its defensive countermeasures capability well beyond that existing prior to
Eagle Claw.
Urgent Fury
Five Combat Talons of the 8th Special Operations Squadron participated in
Operation Urgent Fury, the United States invasion of
GrenadaGrenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
between October 25 and 31, 1983. Unlike previous operations that involved months of planning, training, and reconnaissance, the 8th SOS prepared in less than 72 hours after being alerted. Its assignment was to airland a battalion of the 1st Ranger Battalion at night to capture
Point Salines International AirportMaurice Bishop International Airport , formerly known as Point Salines International Airport, is located in the parish of St. George's. The town of St. George's is about north of the airport and is the capital of the island nation of Grenada...
, defended by both
CubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n and Grenadan troops, in the opening moments of the operation. The five Talons divided into three elements, two of them leading formations of Special Operations Low Level-equipped (SOLL) C-130 transports.
In clouds at 500 ft (152.4 m) above the sea and 20 mi (32.2 km) west of its objective, the lead Talon (64-0562) experienced a complete failure of its APQ-122 radar. Reorganization of the mission formations delayed the airlanding for 30 minutes, during which U.S. Marines made their amphibious landing. To compound the lack of surprise, the U.S. Department of State, apparently in a
good faithIn philosophy, the concept of Good faith—Latin bona fides “good faith”, bona fide “in good faith”—denotes sincere, honest intention or belief, regardless of the outcome of an action; the opposed concepts are bad faith, mala fides and perfidy...
but inept diplomatic gesture, contacted Cuban authorities and compromised the mission, further alerting the defenses, including a dozen
ZU-23-2The ZU-23-2, also known as ZU-23, is a Soviet towed 23 mm anti-aircraft twin-barreled autocannon. ZU stands for Zenitnaya Ustanovka - anti-aircraft mount.-Development history:...
antiaircraft guns. An AC-130 Spectre gunship, directed to observe the main runway for obstructions, reported it blocked by construction equipment and barricades. Loadmasters aboard the inbound Combat Talons reconfigured them for a parachute drop in less than thirty minutes.
Talon 64-0568, flown as
Foxtrot 35 by 8th SOS commander Lt. Col. James L. Hobson and with the commander of the
Twenty-Third Air ForceTwenty-Third Air Force is a Numbered Air Force assigned to United States Air Force Special Operations Command . It is stationed at Hurlburt Field, Florida...
(Maj. Gen. William J. Mall, Jr.) aboard as a passenger, combat-dropped the headquarters section of the 1st Ranger Battalion on the airport, despite being targeted by a searchlight and under heavy AAA fire. Two Spectre gunships suppressed the AAA so that the other Combat Talons and the SOLL C-130s could complete the parachute drop of the Ranger battalion, with the only damage to the Talons being three hits by small arms fire to 64-0572. For his actions, Hobson was awarded the
MacKay TrophyThe Mackay Trophy was established on 27 January 1911 by Clarence Hungerford Mackay, who was then head of the Postal Telegraph-Cable Company and the Commercial Cable Company. Originally, aviators could compete for the trophy annually under rules made each year or the War Department could award the...
in 1984.
Just Cause
Talons supported
Operation Just Cause, the United States invasion of
PanamaPanama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
in December 1989 and January 1990. Three MC-130Es of the 1st Special Operations Wing deployed to Hunter Army Air Field,
GeorgiaGeorgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
within 48 hours of being alerted, then airlanded Rangers of the
2nd Battalion 75th Ranger RegimentThe 75th Ranger Regiment , also known as Rangers, is a Special Operations light infantry unit of the United States Army. The Regiment is headquartered in Fort Benning, Georgia with battalions in Fort Benning, Hunter Army Airfield and Joint Base Lewis-McChord...
into
Rio HatoRío Hato is a town in the Coclé province of Panama.- Sources :* – World-Gazetteer.com...
Military Airfield on December 18, 1989. The operation was conducted under total blackout conditions, using night vision goggles, 35 minutes after the opening parachute assault. One of the MC-130s had an engine disabled by a ground obstruction while taxiing , then made an NVG takeoff on three engines under intense ground fire, earning its pilot the
Distinguished Flying CrossThe Distinguished Flying Cross is a medal awarded to any officer or enlisted member of the United States armed forces who distinguishes himself or herself in support of operations by "heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight, subsequent to November 11, 1918." The...
. The lead Talon, the only MC-130E equipped with the Benson tank refueling system, remained on the airfield as a Forward Area Refueling and Rearming Point (FARRP) for U.S. Army OH-6 helicopters. When Panamanian Gen.
Manuel NoriegaManuel Antonio Noriega Moreno is a Panamanian politician and soldier. He was military dictator of Panama from 1983 to 1989.The 1989 invasion of Panama by the United States removed him from power; he was captured, detained as a prisoner of war, and flown to the United States. Noriega was tried on...
surrendered on January 3, he was immediately flown to Homestead Air Force Base,
FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, by Combat Talon.
Desert Storm
The 1991
invasion of KuwaitThe Invasion of Kuwait, also known as the Iraq-Kuwait War, was a major conflict between the Republic of Iraq and the State of Kuwait, which resulted in the seven-month long Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, which subsequently led to direct military intervention by United States-led forces in the Gulf...
by
IraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
resulted in the deployment of four Combat Talons and six crews of the 8th SOS in August 1990 to
King Fahd International AirportKing Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
in
Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
as a component of
Operation Desert Shield. During
Operation Desert Storm, the combat phase of the
Gulf WarThe Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
in January and February 1991, the Combat Talon performed one-third of all
airdropAn airdrop is a type of airlift, developed during World War II to resupply otherwise inaccessible troops, who themselves may have been airborne forces. In some cases, it is used to refer to the airborne assault itself. Early airdrops were conducted by dropping or pushing padded bundles from...
s during the campaign, and participated in psychological operations, flying 15 leaflet-drop missions before and throughout the war. Combat Talon crews also conducted five
BLU-82BThe BLU-82B/C-130 weapon system, known under program "Commando Vault" and nicknamed "daisy cutter" in Vietnam and in Afghanistan for its ability to flatten a forest into a helicopter landing zone, is a 15,000 pound conventional bomb, delivered from either a C-130 or an MC-130 transport aircraft....
"Daisy Cutter" missions during the two weeks preceding the onset of the ground campaign, dropping 11 bombs on Iraqi positions at night from altitudes between 16000 ft (4,876.8 m) and 21000 ft (6,400.8 m), once in concert with a bombardment by the battleship
USS WisconsinUSS Wisconsin , "Wisky" or "WisKy", is an , the second ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the U.S. state of Wisconsin...
.
Two 7th SOS Talons deployed to
Incirlik Air BaseThe Incirlik Air Base is located in İncirlik, five miles east of Adana, Turkey's fifth largest city, and from the Mediterranean Sea.The U.S...
,
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, as part of
Operation Proven Force. They supported the first
Joint Search and RescueSearch and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
mission over Iraq, attempting to recover the crew of
Corvette 03, a downed
F-15E Strike EagleThe McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle is an all-weather multirole fighter, derived from the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. The F-15E was designed in the 1980s for long-range, high speed interdiction without relying on escort or electronic warfare aircraft. United States Air Force F-15E Strike...
. However permission from the Turkish government to fly the mission was delayed for 24 hours, and the crew was not recovered.
Air Force Reserve Command
On October 6, 1995, the Air Force began shifting the Combat Talon I force to the
Air Force Reserve CommandThe Air Force Reserve Command is a major command of the U.S. Air Force with its headquarters at Robins AFB, Georgia.It stood up as a major command of the Air Force on 17 February 1997....
's
711th Special Operations SquadronThe 711th Special Operations Squadron is part of the 919th Special Operations Wing at Duke Field, Florida. It is an Air Force Reserve Command unit that is operationally-gained by Air Force Special Operations Command .-Mission:...
based at
Duke FieldDuke Field , also known as Eglin AFB Auxiliary Field #3, is a military airport located three miles south of the central business district of Crestview, in Okaloosa County, Florida, United States-Units:...
(Eglin AFB Auxiliary Field #3), Florida, with the transfer of MC-130E 64-0571. Six went to the 711th SOS over the next year for crew training, and the squadron became operational on March 1, 1997. On March 5, 1999, the 8th SOS became the first active force squadron to become an Associate Unit to an Air Reserve Component organization, co-located with the 711th SOS, but without aircraft of its own, flying those of the reserve unit. Ten of the Combat Talon Is were primary assigned aircraft (PAA), two were assigned to crew training, and two were placed in backup inventory aircraft (BIA) storage.
A Combat Talon I was the first aircraft to land at New Orleans International Airport after
Hurricane KatrinaHurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
in August 2005. On July 14, 2006, the 8th SOS flew its last Combat Talon I mission and began conversion to the CV-22 Osprey, ending 41 years of active service for the MC-130E, which continues in service with the Air Force Reserve.
Retirement
The MC-130E Combat Talon I will be replaced by the MC-130J Commando II, which has the capability to complete missions faster and more efficiently than its Combat Talon and Combat Shadow counterparts. Recapitalization is a stated priority of Lt. Gen. Donald C. Wurster, commander of
Air Force Special Operations CommandAir Force Special Operations Command is the Special Operations component of the United States Air Force and the US Air Force component command to the United States Special Operations Command , a unified command located at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida...
. Only ten MC-130E aircraft are still active.
Credible Sport
One of the measures considered for a second hostage rescue attempt in Iran was a project to develop a "Super
STOLSTOL is an acronym for short take-off and landing, a term used to describe aircraft with very short runway requirements.-Definitions:There is no one accepted definition of STOL and many different definitions have been used by different authorities and nations at various times and for a myriad of...
" aircraft, to be flown by Combat Talon crews, that would use a soccer stadium near the US Embassy as an improvised landing field. Called
Credible SportOperation Credible Sport was a joint project of the United States military in the second half of 1980 to prepare for a second rescue attempt of the hostages held in Iran using a Lockheed C-130 Hercules airlifter modified with rocket engines...
, the project acquired three C-130H transports from an airlift unit in late August 1980, one as a test bed and two for the mission, and modified them on an accelerated basis.
Designated as the XFC-130H, the aircraft were modified by the installation of 30 rockets in five sets: eight firing forward to stop the aircraft, eight downward to brake its descent rate, eight rearward for
takeoff assistJATO is an acronym for jet-fuel assisted take off. It is a system for helping overloaded aircraft into the air by providing additional thrust in the form of small rockets....
, four mounted on the wings to stabilize them during takeoff transition, and two at the rear of the tail to prevent it from striking the ground because of over-rotation. Other STOL features included a dorsal and two ventral fins on the rear fuselage, double-slotted
flapsFlaps are normally hinged surfaces mounted on the trailing edges of the wings of a fixed-wing aircraft to reduce the speed an aircraft can be safely flown at and to increase the angle of descent for landing without increasing air speed. They shorten takeoff and landing distances as well as...
and extended
aileronAilerons are hinged flight control surfaces attached to the trailing edge of the wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. The ailerons are used to control the aircraft in roll, which results in a change in heading due to the tilting of the lift vector...
s, a new radome, a
tailhookA tailhook, also arresting hook or arrester hook, is a device attached to the empennage of some military fixed wing aircraft...
for landing aboard an
aircraft carrierAn aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
, and Combat Talon avionics, including a TF/TA radar, a defensive countermeasures suite, and a
Doppler radarA Doppler radar is a specialized radar that makes use of the Doppler effect to produce velocity data about objects at a distance. It does this by beaming a microwave signal towards a desired target and listening for its reflection, then analyzing how the frequency of the returned signal has been...
/GPS tie-in to the aircraft's
inertial navigation systemAn inertial navigation system is a navigation aid that uses a computer, motion sensors and rotation sensors to continuously calculate via dead reckoning the position, orientation, and velocity of a moving object without the need for external references...
.
Of the three aircraft, only one received full modification. The program abruptly ended when one crashed during testing on October 29, 1980, and international events soon after rendered another rescue attempt moot.
Testing and delivery
One of the two surviving
Credible Sport airframes, 74-1686, became the
YMC-130H test bed for the next generation of Combat Talons, under the project name
Credible Sport II. Phase I testing, conducted between August 24 and November 11, 1981, identified design deficiencies in the airframe and determined that the
Credible Sport configuration did not have the safety margins necessary for peacetime operations. Phase II testing began June 15, 1982, continued through October 1982, and determined that the final Combat Talon II configuration, with significant improvements in design, avionics, and equipment, was ready for production.
The initial purchase was authorized in 1982 at 12 aircraft, even though war-fighting requirements were estimated at more than 100, but was cut from funding until 1984. In 1983 USAF Special Operations Forces were transferred to the
Military Airlift CommandThe Military Airlift Command is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command of the USAF which was headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. It was constituted on 1 January 1966 and active until the end of the Cold War, when the Air Force table of organization was revised...
, seen as the another move by USAF to divest itself of its special operations role. Creation of the Twenty-Third Air Force reinforced that perception further when SOF represented less than 35% of its personnel and virtually none of its headquarters staff, dominated by the "rescue community". However the moves did remove the Combat Talon program from three fighter-oriented commands to a single command where promotion cycles were more favorable.
In 1983 MAC established a Special Operations Force Master Plan that called for 21 Combat Talon IIs, including two attrition backups, with Initial Operational Capability in the third quarter of 1987 and full delivery by 1991. The first Combat Talon II, 83-1212, was delivered in June 1984, but an earlier decision by USAF not to equip it with the navigational radar suite of the MC-130E slowed its development for years. In the meantime, Initiative 17, part of the "31 Initiatives" agreement between the Army and Air Force in May 1984, was deferred later that year (and eventually killed) after objections from members of Congress who saw it as a divestiture of the SOF role by the Air Force. As a result, the Air Force cut procurement of new
HH-60D NighthawkThe Sikorsky MH-60G/HH-60G Pave Hawk is a twin turboshaft engine helicopter in service with the United States Air Force. It is a derivative of the UH-60 Black Hawk and incorporates the US Air Force PAVE electronic systems program...
combat rescue aircraft from its budget requests, which further delayed the Combat Talon II program because, for cost control reasons, development of its "
glass cockpitA glass cockpit is an aircraft cockpit that features electronic instrument displays, typically large LCD screens, as opposed to the traditional style of analog dials and gauges...
" and integrated avionics systems had been directly tied to that intended for the HH-60D.
Five Combat Talon IIs were delivered in 1985 but the problem of acquiring a navigation radar had not been resolved (the APQ-122 was no longer being built).
IBMInternational Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
was contracted to develop a new terrain following/avoidance radar, who then subcontracted the task to
Emerson Electric CompanyEmerson Electric Company is a major multinational corporation headquartered in Ferguson, Missouri, United States. This Fortune 500 company manufactures products and provides engineering services for a wide range of industrial, commercial, and consumer markets.Emerson is one of the largest...
. The resulting radar performed so poorly that the Combat Talon II was nearly cancelled, but special operations advocates in Congress kept the program alive. Ultimately the AN/APQ-170(V)8 radar was developed into a system that exceeded specifications, but at a large cost overrun and with a further three year delay in the Combat Talon II becoming operational. Deliveries in 1987, 1988, and 1989 brought the inventory to 18 aircraft, but all were still in modification, testing, or long term storage.
Operations 1993-2000
The first fully operational MC-130H Combat Talon II (87-0024) was received by the 8th SOS on June 29, 1991, with three others delivered over the summer. The official acceptance ceremony for the Talon II was held at Hurlburt in October, and by December 1991 the 8th SOS was equipped with six. The Combat Talon II features a stronger
airframeThe airframe of an aircraft is its mechanical structure. It is typically considered to include fuselage, wings and undercarriage and exclude the propulsion system...
and modifications to the rear and
aftAft, in naval terminology, is an adjective or adverb meaning, towards the stern of the ship, when the frame of reference is within the ship. Example: "Able Seaman Smith; lay aft!". Or; "What's happening aft?"...
cargo doors. The electronics suite has been upgraded, and includes
Global Positioning SystemThe Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
navigation, special radars for navigating in adverse weather, and night vision goggles (NVG) capability. These new technologies allow the Combat Talon II to fly as low as 250 feet (76.2 m) above ground level (AGL) in inclement weather, and make faster, more accurate airdrops. Increases in
automationAutomation is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services. In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization...
also reduce the aircrew by two. Initial Operational capability was reached on June 30, 1993.
Three MC-130H Combat Talon IIs of the 7th SOS were deployed in December 1995 to deliver peacekeeping forces to
TuzlaTuzla is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the time of the 1991 census, it had 83,770 inhabitants, while the municipality 131,318. Taking the influx of refugees into account, the city is currently estimated to have 174,558 inhabitants...
and
SarajevoSarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
,
Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, as part of
Operation Joint Endeavor, during which one Talon was hit by ground fire. The first combat deployment of a Combat Talon II was on April 8, 1996, during
Operation Assured Response. Special operations forces were deployed to
LiberiaLiberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
to assist in the evacuation of 2000 civilians from the American embassy when the country broke down into civil war. However orders to combat drop an 18-man
SEALSeal commonly refers to:* Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals many of which are commonly called seals* Seal , a device which helps prevent leakage, contain pressure, or exclude contamination where two systems join...
team off
MonroviaMonrovia is the capital city of the West African nation of Liberia. Located on the Atlantic Coast at Cape Mesurado, it lies geographically within Montserrado County, but is administered separately...
were rescinded and the mission landed in
Sierra LeoneSierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
. Similar circumstances brought the Combat Talon II to
ZaireThe Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971 and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers".-Self-proclaimed Father of the Nation:In...
in 1997.
Talon II deployments for joint exercises in 1997 included Australia, Guam, Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand. In July 1997, three Talon IIs deployed to
ThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
as part of
Operation Bevel Edge, a proposed rescue of 1000 American citizens trapped in
Phnom PenhPhnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Located on the banks of the Mekong River, Phnom Penh has been the national capital since the French colonized Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's center of economic and industrial activities, as well as the center of security,...
,
CambodiaCambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, by a possible civil war, but the crisis ended when the Cambodian government allowed all non-citizens who desired so to leave by commercial air. A 7th SOS Combat Talon II aircrew,
Whiskey 05, earned the
Mackay TrophyThe Mackay Trophy was established on 27 January 1911 by Clarence Hungerford Mackay, who was then head of the Postal Telegraph-Cable Company and the Commercial Cable Company. Originally, aviators could compete for the trophy annually under rules made each year or the War Department could award the...
for an embassy evacuation mission in the
Republic of the CongoThe Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...
in June 1997. The crew rescued thirty Americans and twenty-six foreign nationals, and logged twenty-one hours of flight time.
Full Operational Capability for the Talon II was reached in February 2000. At that time 24 MC-130Hs were deployed to four squadrons:
- 15th Special Operations Squadron, eleven at Hurlburt Field, Florida;
- 1st Special Operations Squadron, five at Kadena AB, Okinawa;
- 7th Special Operations Squadron, five at RAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force station located at Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as an RAF station, it primarily supports United States Air Force operations and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing...
, U.K.; and
- 550th Special Operations Squadron
The 550th Special Operations Squadron "WOLFPACK" is part of the 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico...
, three at Kirtland AFB, New MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
.
Afghanistan
On the night of October 19–20, 2001, four Combat Talon IIs infiltrated a task force of 199 Rangers of the 3rd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment and tactical PSYOP teams 658 miles inside Taliban-held
AfghanistanAfghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. The force dropped onto
Objective Rhino (30°29′12"N 064°31′32"E), an unused airfield in
Kandahar ProvinceKandahar or Qandahar is one of the largest of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in southern Afghanistan, between Helmand, Oruzgan and Zabul provinces. Its capital is the city of Kandahar, which is located on the Arghandab River. The province has a population of nearly...
110 mi (177 km) southwest of
KandaharKandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
, to secure a landing zone as a temporary operating base for Special Forces units conducting raids in the vicinity.
A month later, two MC-130Hs, flying from Masirah Island, inserted a platoon of
U.S. Navy SEAL Team ThreeThe United States Navy's Sea, Air and Land Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command.The acronym is derived from their...
and four Humvee vehicles to within ten miles of the same airfield on the night of November 20–21. The SEAL platoon was inserted to establish an observation post at the airstrip, then assist two USAF combat controllers inserted by military free fall in preparing a landing zone for the
15th Marine Expeditionary UnitThe 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit is one of seven Marine Expeditionary Units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit is a Marine Air Ground Task Force with a strength of about 2,200 personnel...
. The 15th MEU landed in CH-53 helicopters on November 25, 2001,and established
Camp RhinoForward operating base Rhino, also known as Camp Rhino, was the first US land base established in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. It was located in the Registan Desert, southwest of Kandahar.-History:...
, the first
forward operating baseA forward operating base is any secured forward military position, commonly a military base, that is used to support tactical operations. A FOB may or may not contain an airfield, hospital, or other facilities. The base may be used for an extended period of time. FOBs are traditionally supported...
in Afghanistan for United States forces.
Combat Talon IIs of the 7th SOS, augmented by crews from the 15th and 550th SOSs, flew 13- to 15-hour airdrop and airlanding night resupply missions from Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, to Special Forces Operational Detachments-Alpha (ODAs) in Afghanistan during the opening phase of
Operation Enduring FreedomThe War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
in December 2001. Operating in mountainous terrain, they innovated an airdrop tactic by replicating maximum-effort landing techniques to rapidly descend from 10000 ft (3,048 m) to 500 ft (152.4 m) AGL to ensure accurate gravity drops after clearing high ridgelines into deep valleys.
Iraq
The 7th SOS, commanded by Lt. Col. Mark B. Alsid and part of the
352d Special Operations GroupThe 352d Special Operations Group is an operational unit of the United States Air Force Special Operations Command. It is stationed at RAF Mildenhall, England. Its heritage dates back to 1944 as an air command unit....
, received the
Gallant Unit Citation-Award Description:The Gallant Unit Citation was approved in March 2004 and is awarded to any Air Force unit which distinguishes itself by extraordinary heroism while engaged in armed combat with an enemy force on or after 11 September 2001. The GUC requires a lesser degree of gallantry,...
in 2006 for operations conducted during Operation Iraqi Freedom between February 12 and May 12, 2003. The 7th SOS was tasked to Joint Special Operations Task Force - North, known as
Task Force VikingJoint Special Operations Task Force – North , also known as Task Force Viking was the command responsible for the northern front during Operation Iraqi Freedom Rotation I...
, whose objective was to hold 13 Iraqi Army divisions along the "
Green LineIraqi Kurdistan or Kurdistan Region is an autonomous region of Iraq. It borders Iran to the east, Turkey to the north, Syria to the west and the rest of Iraq to the south. The regional capital is Arbil, known in Kurdish as Hewlêr...
" in northeastern Iraq to prevent those divisions from reinforcing other Iraqi operations against United States forces invading from
KuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
. Forward-based at
ConstanţaConstanța is the oldest extant city in Romania, founded around 600 BC. The city is located in the Dobruja region of Romania, on the Black Sea coast. It is the capital of Constanța County and the largest city in the region....
,
RomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, its primary mission was to infiltrate the 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the Army's 10th Special Forces Group and the 3rd Battalion of the 3rd Special Forces Group into
KurdishThe Kurdistan Regional Government , , is the official ruling body of the predominantly Kurds-populated Kurdistan Region in Northern Iraq...
-held territory in preparation for
Operation Northern DelayOn March 26, 2003, during Operation Iraqi Freedom, C-17s of the 62d Airlift Wing, 315th Airlift Wing, 437th Airlift Wing, and 446th Airlift Wing dropped SETAF's 173rd Airborne Brigade into Northern Iraq. More than 1,000 paratroopers jumped into Bashur Airfield...
. Denied permission by Turkey to fly into Iraq from its airspace, the 7th SOS flew the first 280 troops on a circuitous path around
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
to a base in
JordanJordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
on March 20–21, 2003.
On March 22, six Combat Talon IIs (four from the 7th SOS) infiltrated 16 ODAs, four ODBs, battalion command elements, and Air Force Combat Control Teams to complete the fifteen-hour mission, the longest in U.S. Special Operations history. The insertion profile consisted of a four and one-half hour low level flight at night through western and northern Iraq to
BashurArbil / Hewlêr is the fourth largest city in Iraq after Baghdad, Basra and Mosul...
and
SulaymaniyahSulaymaniyah is a city in Iraqi Kurdistan, Iraq. It is the capital of Sulaymaniyah Governorate. Sulaymaniyah is surrounded by the Azmar Range, Goizja Range and the Qaiwan Range in the north east, Baranan Mountain in the south and the Tasluje Hills in the west. The city has a semi-arid climate with...
airfields, often taking heavy ground fire from the integrated air defenses. The Talon IIs, at emergency gross weight limits, operated blacked-out, employed chaff and
electronic countermeasuresAn electronic countermeasure is an electrical or electronic device designed to trick or deceive radar, sonar or other detection systems, like infrared or lasers. It may be used both offensively and defensively to deny targeting information to an enemy...
, flew as low as 100 ft (30.5 m) AGL, and carried their troops tethered to the floor of the cargo holds. Three of the Talons were battle-damaged, with one forced to seek permission to land at
Incirlik Air BaseThe Incirlik Air Base is located in İncirlik, five miles east of Adana, Turkey's fifth largest city, and from the Mediterranean Sea.The U.S...
. The operation became known informally as "Operation Ugly Baby". Major Jason L. Hanover was individually honored for commanding a mission that seized two austere airstrips during the operation. After airlanding their troops, the Talon IIs then had to fly back through the alerted defenses to recover to their launching point.
Overflight permission was granted by Turkey on March 23, and the Combat Talon IIs delivered a total of 50 ODAs into Iraq. The Talon IIs then resupplied Task Force Viking, assisted in operations to capture Kirkut and
MosulMosul , is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of the Ninawa Governorate, some northwest of Baghdad. The original city stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial...
, airlanded supplies at remote outposts using Internal Airlift Slingable Container Units (ISUs), and acted as
pathfinderThe Pathfinders were elite squadrons in RAF Bomber Command during World War II. They located and marked targets with flares, which a main bomber force could aim at, increasing the accuracy of their bombing...
s for conventional C-130 airlift missions.
Status
Twenty MC-130H Combat Talon II aircraft are operational with
Air Force Special Operations CommandAir Force Special Operations Command is the Special Operations component of the United States Air Force and the US Air Force component command to the United States Special Operations Command , a unified command located at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida...
. They will eventually be replaced by the MC-130J Combat Shadow II.
MC-130P Combat Shadow
The MC-130P series of aircraft entered service during the
Vietnam WarThe Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
as the HC-130P
SARSearch and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
command and control/aerial refueling aircraft. Combat Shadows have been part of the Air Force special operations force since 1986. In February 1996, AFSOC's 28-aircraft tanker fleet was redesignated the
MC-130P, aligning the variant with other M-series special operations mission aircraft.
Combat Shadows provided air refueling support in Panama to Army and Air Force helicopters during
Operation Just Cause. In 1990, four Combat Shadows of the
9th Special Operations SquadronThe 9th Special Operations Squadron is part of the 1st Special Operations Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. The squadron operates MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft in support of special operations. The 9th SOS specializes in the use of night vision goggles and close interval formation tactics...
deployed to
King Fahd International AirportKing Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
, Saudi Arabia for
Desert Storm, and three of the
67th Special Operations SquadronThe 67th Special Operation Squadron is an active unit within the 352d Special Operations Group , United States Air Force, United States European Command, and is currently based at Royal Air Force base RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, eastern England....
to
Batman Air Base-Airlines and destinations:- Traffic Statistics :Source: DHMI.gov.tr-External links:*...
, Turkey for
Proven Force. Since the Gulf War, the MC-130P has been involved in numerous operations, including
Northern Watch and
Southern Watch (Iraq),
Deny Flight (Yugoslavia),
Restore Democracy and
Uphold Democracy (Haiti),
Deliberate Force and
Joint Endeavor (Bosnia),
Assured Response (Liberia),
Guardian Retrieval (Zaire),
Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and
Iraqi Freedom.
The Combat Shadow flies single or multi-ship low-level air refueling missions for special operations helicopters conducting infiltration, exfiltration, and supply missions, with command and control capability in limited situations. The primary emphasis for Combat Shadows is on night operations, using NVGs to reduce probability of visual acquisition and intercept by airborne threats.
AFSOC operates 23 MC-130P Combat Shadows in three squadrons:
- 9th Special Operations Squadron, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida;
- 17th Special Operations Squadron
The 17th Special Operations Squadron is part of the 353d Special Operations Group at Kadena Air Base, Japan. It operates MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft providing special operations capability...
, Kadena Air Base, Okinawa; and
- 67th Special Operations Squadron
The 67th Special Operation Squadron is an active unit within the 352d Special Operations Group , United States Air Force, United States European Command, and is currently based at Royal Air Force base RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, eastern England....
, RAF Mildenhall, England
Air Education and Training CommandAir Education and Training Command was established July 1, 1993, with the realignment of Air Training Command and Air University. It is one of the U.S. Air Force's ten major commands and reports to Headquarters, United States Air Force....
operates the MC-130P at the Formal Training Unit:
- 550th Special Operations Squadron
The 550th Special Operations Squadron "WOLFPACK" is part of the 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico...
, Kirtland AFB, Albuquerque New MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
The
Air National GuardThe Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...
operates four MC-130P Combat Shadows embedded in the
129th Rescue WingThe 129th Rescue Wing is an Air National Guard combat search and rescue unit operationally gained by the Air Combat Command . The unit's history dates to April 1955, when it was activated as the 129th Air Resupply Group of the California Air National Guard...
:
- 130th Rescue Squadron
The 130th Rescue Squadron is a unit of the California Air National Guard. It currently flies the HH-60G Pavehawk and MC-130P Combat Shadow for its missions. Its parent unit is the 129th Rescue Wing.-Mission:...
(California Air National GuardThe California Air National Guard is the air component of the California National Guard. The California Air National Guard is headquartered at Sacramento, California.One of the duties of the California Air National Guard is defense of the United States...
), Moffett Federal AirfieldMoffett Federal Airfield , also known as Moffett Field, is a joint civil-military airport located between northern Mountain View and northern Sunnyvale, California, USA. The airport is near the south end of San Francisco Bay, northwest of San Jose. Formerly a United States Navy facility, the former...
, California
In 2008, the Air Force announced that it would replace the MC-130P fleet with a new aircraft based on the C-130J airframe. The MC-130J Combat Shadow II has the capability to complete missions faster and more efficiently than its Combat Talon and Combat Shadow counterparts. Recapitalization is a stated priority of Lt. Gen. Donald C. Wurster, commander of
Air Force Special Operations CommandAir Force Special Operations Command is the Special Operations component of the United States Air Force and the US Air Force component command to the United States Special Operations Command , a unified command located at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida...
.
MC-130W Combat Spear
The MC-130W Combat Spear, unofficially and facetiously nicknamed the "Combat Wombat", performs clandestine or low visibility missions into denied areas to provide aerial refueling to SOF helicopters or to air drop small SOF teams and supply bundles.
The first of 12 MC-130Ws, 87-9286, was presented to Air Force Special Operations Command on June 28, 2006. The aircraft was developed to supplement the MC-130 Combat Talon and Combat Shadow forces as an interim measure after several training accidents and contingency losses in supporting the Global War on Terrorism. The program modified C-130H-2 airframes from the 1987-1990 production run, acquired from airlift units in the
Air Force Reserve CommandThe Air Force Reserve Command is a major command of the U.S. Air Force with its headquarters at Robins AFB, Georgia.It stood up as a major command of the Air Force on 17 February 1997....
and
Air National GuardThe Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...
. Use of the H-2 airframe allowed installation of SOF systems already configured for Combat Talons without expensive and time-consuming development that would be required of new production C-130J aircraft, reducing the flyaway cost of the Spear to $60 million per aircraft. The Combat Spears, however, do not have a Terrain Following/Terrain Avoidance capability.
A standard system of special forces avionics equips the MC-130W: a fully integrated
Global Positioning SystemThe Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
and
Inertial Navigation SystemAn inertial navigation system is a navigation aid that uses a computer, motion sensors and rotation sensors to continuously calculate via dead reckoning the position, orientation, and velocity of a moving object without the need for external references...
, an AN/APN-241 Low Power Color weather/navigation radar; interior and exterior NVG-compatible lighting; advanced threat detection and automated countermeasures, including active infrared countermeasures as well as chaff and flares; upgraded communication suites, including include dual satellite communications using data burst transmission to make trackback difficult; aerial refueling capability; and the ability to act as an aerial tanker for helicopters and CV-22 Osprey aircraft using Mk 32B-902E refueling pods.
The MC-130Ws are assigned to the 73rd Special Operations Squadron at
Cannon Air Force BaseCannon Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base, located approximately southwest of Clovis, New Mexico. It is under the jurisdiction of Air Force Special Operations Command ....
,
New MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, with all twelve to be operational by 2010. Initially nicknamed the "Whiskey" (NATO phonetic for the "W" modifier), the MC-130W was officially dubbed the Combat Spear in May 2007 to honor the historical legacy of the Combat Talons in Vietnam.
MC-130W Dragon Spear
In May 2009, following a lapse of plans to acquire and develop an AC-27J "gunship light" to replace the aging, operations-stressed
AC-130The Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily-armed ground-attack aircraft variant of the C-130 Hercules transport plane. The basic airframe is manufactured by Lockheed, while Boeing is responsible for the conversion into a gunship and for aircraft support...
inventory, the Air Force began exploring an option of converting MC-130Ws into interim gunships. The Dragon Spears are equipped with a
Bushmaster II GAU-23/A 30mm gunThe Mk44 Bushmaster II is a 30 mm chain gun manufactured by Alliant Techsystems. It is a derivative of the 25 mm M242 Bushmaster, and uses some 70% of the same parts as the M242 while increasing the firepower by as much as 50% with the 20% increase in caliber size. The barrel is chromium-plated...
(an improved version of the MK44 MOD0 30mm gun), sensors, communications systems, and
precision-guided munitionA precision-guided munition is a guided munition intended to precisely hit a specific target, and to minimize damage to things other than the target....
s in the Precision Strike Package. The PGMs are to be in the form of the Gunslinger weapons system, a launch tube designed to deploy up to ten GBU-44/B Viper Strike or
Griffin (missile)The Griffin is a short-range air-to-surface missile developed by Raytheon for UAVs. It is tube-launched, with a 5.5 inches diameter, weighs 45 pounds, and has a semi-active laser seeker. It has a 13-lb warhead, smaller than the Hellfire typically used by armed UAVs, which has the effect of reducing...
small standoff munitions in quick succession. Initial supplemental funds to the 2010 Defense Authorization Bill were for two kits to be installed in 2010. On November 17, 2009, a contract was awarded to
Alliant TechsystemsAlliant Techsystems Inc., most commonly known by its ticker symbol, ', is one of the largest aerospace and defense companies in the United States with more than 18,000 employees in 22 states, Puerto Rico and internationally, and 2010 revenues in excess of an estimated...
to produce 30mm ammunition for use by the Dragon Spear.
In September 2010, The Air Force awarded
L-3 CommunicationsL-3 Communications Holdings, Inc. is a company that supplies command and control, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems and products, avionics, ocean products, training devices and services, instrumentation, space, and navigation products. Its customers include...
a $61 million contract to convert eight MC-130W Combat Spear special-mission aircraft to give them a gunship-like attack capability. Under the terms of the deal, L-3 will perform modifications that will allow the aircraft to take the weapons kits, which are called "precision strike packages". MC-130Ws fitted with the weapons will be known as
Dragon Spears. Air Force Special Operations Command is converting all 12 MC-130W aircraft to Dragon Spears in order to relieve the relentless operational demands on its regular AC-130 gunships until new AC-130Js enter the fleet.
The MC-130W Dragon Spear went from concept to flying with a minimum capability in less than 90 days, and from concept to deployment in 18 months. Its success led to the William J. Perry Award, and it will be the model for the AC-130J gunship program.
MC-130J Combat Shadow II
Beginning in 1997, studies of the vulnerability of the non-stealthy MC-130 force reflected concerns about its viability in modern high-threat environments, including the prevalence of man-portable air-defense systems ("MANPADs") in
asymmetric conflictsAsymmetric warfare is war between belligerents whose relative military power differs significantly, or whose strategy or tactics differ significantly....
. At least two studies were conducted or proposed to explore the prospect of a replacement aircraft (known variously as "MC-X" or "M-X"), with USAF at that time hoping for an Initial Operating Capability date of 2018. One analyst questioned the survivability of slow non-stealthy platforms such as the MC-130 in future threat environments in a 2007 presentation to the
Center for Strategic and International StudiesThe Center for Strategic and International Studies is a bipartisan Washington, D.C., foreign policy think tank. The center was founded in 1962 by Admiral Arleigh Burke and Ambassador David Manker Abshire, originally as part of Georgetown University...
, and stated his opinion that development of a stealthy replacement for the MC-130 is a "strategic priority". The
U.S. Department of Defense'sThe United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
2006 Quadrennial Defense ReviewThe Quadrennial Defense Review is a study by the United States Department of Defense that analyzes strategic objectives and potential military threats. The Quadrennial Defense Review Report is the main public document describing the United States's military doctrine.As stipulated in the 1997...
Report also recognized the concern, asserting DoD's intention to "enhance capabilities to support SOF insertion and extraction into denied areas from strategic distances."
Despite these concerns, the USAF decided to proceed with modernization of the current force. The Air Force has stated it desires 37 MC-130Js to replace its MC-130Es and MC-130Ps, which are 40 or more years old. Based on the KC-130J tanker operated by the United States Marines Corps, the new MC-130J has added features for both combat search and rescue and special operations missions. The HC-130J and MC-130J both use the KC-130J tanker as a baseline, but with major modifications to the Block 6.5 KC-130J. The MC-130J adds an Enhanced Service Life Wing, an Enhanced Cargo Handling System, a Universal Aerial Refueling Receptacle Slipway Installation (UARRSI) boom refueling receptacle, more powerful electrical generators, an electro-optical/infrared sensor, a combat systems operator station on the flight deck, provisions for the Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures System, and armor.
Production of the first MC-130J Hercules aircraft was started at
Lockheed MartinLockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....
’s facility in Marietta, Georgia, on October 5, 2009. Lockheed Martin will build an MC-130J tanker version for Air Force Special Operations Command on its standard C-130J production line. The MC-130J Combat Shadow II is the first C-130 specifically built for special operations, making it lighter and more efficient. Most special operations aircraft are modified after production to accommodate special operations missions.
The first production aircraft will be an HC-130J SAR/tanker variant, but ten MC-130Js will be built in 2011. The first MC-130J is expected to be delivered in early 2011. It has been designated as the MC-130J Combat Shadow II.
The
Air Force Special Operations Training CenterThe United States Air Force Special Operations Training Center is located at Hurlburt Field, Florida. It works under the supervision of the Air Force Special Operations Command ; Its primary function is to train the Air Force's elite pilots and warriors before being assigned to their respective...
has begun the MC-130J training program in conjunction with the 193rd Special Operations Wing. The J-model has a 5-member crew, a major reduction in size from the standard 8-member MC-130P Combat Shadow crew, thus requiring additional coordination among crewmembers. The MC-130J will begin replacing aging MC-130E Combat Talon I and MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft after a period of testing and evaluation. The Combat Shadow II will fly clandestine, low-level aerial refueling missions as well as infiltration, exfiltration and resupply missions.
The 522nd Special Operations Squadron will be the first to operate the MC-130J Combat Shadow II. It is expected to achieve Initial Operational Capability in 2012. The first MC-130J (09-6207) undertook its first test flight on 22 April 2011.
A total of 69 MC-130J aircraft are planned, which will eventually replace all other MC-130 variants.
Operational losses
Between 1967 and 2005, nine MC-130 special operations aircraft have been destroyed in operations, two of them in combat in the Vietnam War, resulting in the deaths of 68 crewmen and passengers:
- C-130E(I) / MC-130E Combat Talon I - four
- MC-130H Combat Talon II - four
- MC-130P Combat Shadow - one
Combat Talon I losses
Two of the four aircraft assigned to Project
Stray Goose were lost in combat: 64-0563 was destroyed on November 25, 1967, by a direct hit of a mortar round while parked on the Nha Trang flightline. The aircraft had been scheduled for a mission and had just completed preflight of the exterior when the mission was cancelled. Soon after the crew left the ramp, the aircraft was hit and destroyed by fire.
64-0547 was
missing-in-actionMissing in action is a casualty Category assigned under the Status of Missing to armed services personnel who are reported missing during active service. They may have been killed, wounded, become a prisoner of war, or deserted. If deceased, neither their remains nor grave can be positively...
with its entire 11-man crew on December 29, 1967, on a mission to drop leaflets inside North Vietnam. The Blackbird had completed its leaflet drop leg of the mission at 30000 ft (9,144 m) and begun its descent to its terrain-following exit altitude. Communication was lost without the Blackbird reporting any threats detected. SOF commanders at the time discounted the possibility of its being shot down because the flight, conducted by an inexperienced aircraft commander under new moon conditions, was not claimed as such by North Vietnam. In November 1992 the wreckage was located near the peak of a mountain 32 mi (51.5 km) northeast of
Dien Bien PhuĐiện Biên Phủ is a city in northwestern Vietnam. It is the capital of Dien Bien province, and is known for the events there during the First Indochina War, the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, during which the region was a breadbasket for the Việt Minh.-Population:...
, and it was surmised that its descent was too steep for its TF/TA radar to stabilize. 64-0547 was the only special operations MC-130 lost on a combat mission over hostile terrain in the history of the program.
64-0558 was lost in a mid-air collision during a night training exercise 15 miles north of
Conway, South CarolinaConway is a city in Horry County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 16,317 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Horry County and is part of the Myrtle Beach metropolitan area. It is the home of Coastal Carolina University....
on December 5, 1972. An
F-102 Delta DaggerThe Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was a US interceptor aircraft built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s. Entering service in 1956, its main purpose was to intercept invading Soviet bomber fleets...
of the
South Carolina Air National GuardThe South Carolina Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is, along with the South Carolina Army National Guard, an element of the South Carolina National Guard...
, attempting a night intercept of the Talon, flew into the fuel
drop tankIn aeronautics, a drop tank is used to describe auxiliary fuel tanks externally carried by aircraft. A drop tank is expendable and often jettisonable...
on the its right wing, with the loss of both aircraft, killing all 12 aboard the C-130. 64-0558 had been one of the two Talons assigned to the Son Tay POW camp rescue mission.
Former
Heavy Chain and Desert One veteran 64-0564 crashed into the ocean shortly after a pre-dawn takeoff from NAS Cubi Point,
PhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, on February 26, 1981, killing 15 passengers and eight of nine crewmen. The Talon was taking part in
Special Warfare Exercise 81 and had flown 12 missions in the preceding 16 days. Following an administrative flight the day before, the crew was scheduled for its last mission, a night exercise that was set back from 01:00 local time to 04:30. The flight profile consisted of a normal takeoff, a tactical landing a half hour later to onload 15 Navy SEALs, followed by a tactical takeoff. The Talon reported normal flight conditions six minutes after the tactical takeoff, but crashed nine minutes later. No cause was determined, but investigators found that the likely causes were either crew fatigue from operations tempo, or failure of the terrain following radar to enter "override" mode while over water.
Combat Shadow/Talon II losses
Combat Shadow 66-0213 was lost when it flew into the ground in eastern
AfghanistanAfghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
on February 13, 2002. Assigned to the 9th SOS, the aircraft made an emergency climb in poor visibility to avoid a hill but crash landed wheels up in deep snow. The aircraft was a total loss but the crew of eight survived.
Combat Talon II 84-0475, assigned to the 15th SOS, was lost in a takeoff crash on June 12, 2002, near Gardez, Afghanistan. During a night exfiltration mission of two Special Forces soldiers from a landing strip at the
Sardeh Band damSardeh Band Airport is located near the village of Sardeh Band and about 1 km north of the Russian-built dam called Band E Sardeh Dam. It is 18 miles southeast of Ghazni city in the Ghazni province of Afghanistan. The airfield lies in a valley 2 miles northwest of lake Mota Khan...
, the Talon crashed less than three miles from the airstrip shortly after takeoff. Conflicting reports point to overweight cargo and windshear as possible causes. The Talon's two loadmasters and a passenger were killed.
Combat Talon II 90-0161, also of the 15th SOS, crashed into Monte Perucho, south of
Caguas, Puerto RicoCaguas , founded in 1775, is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey....
, during a training mission on August 7, 2002, killing all ten aboard. The Talon was flying a terrain following night mission in blowing rain and fog, along a low level route commonly used by the
Puerto Rico Air National GuardThe Puerto Rico Air National Guard is the air force militia of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. It is, along with the Puerto Rico Army National Guard, an element of the Puerto Rico National Guard.History=...
. The crew misinterpreted and disregarded terrain obstacle warnings.
Combat Talon II 85-0012 was severely damaged during a landing accident at
MosulMosul , is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of the Ninawa Governorate, some northwest of Baghdad. The original city stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial...
,
IraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, on December 29, 2004. The 15th SOS aircraft was on a resupply mission and struck a trench dug into the runway while still at 80 knots, shearing off part of its landing gear and partially separating its left wing from the fuselage. The trench was part of a U.S. Army construction project and a warning Notice To Airmen (
NOTAMNOTAM or NoTAM is the quasi-acronym for a "Notice To Airmen". NOTAMs are created and transmitted by government agencies and airport operators under guidelines specified by Annex 15: Aeronautical Information Services of the Convention on International Civil Aviation...
) had not been filed or disseminated to the aircrew, despite a safety hazard report filed in the week previous by another aircrew. No fatalities occurred but the aircraft was destroyed by explosive demolition to prevent its classified equipment from being compromised.
A Combat Talon II of the 7th SOS, 87-0127 (
Wrath 11), crashed during a terrain-following-and-avoidance night training exercise on March 31, 2005, near
RovieMoglicë is a municipality in the Korçë District, Korçë County, southeastern Albania. The municipality consists of the villages Moglicë, Gopesh, Dobërçan, Maliq-Opar, Gurkuq, Bardhas, Zerec, Dushar, Torovec, Shpatmal, Peshtan, Lumaj, Protopapë, Osojë, Gurshqipe, Kucakë and Nikollarë....
, in the Drizez Mountains in southeast
AlbaniaAlbania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, 60 miles southeast of
TiranaTirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...
. The Talon had taken off from Tirana-Rinas Airport 20 minutes before and was one of two flying at 300 ft (91.4 m) AGL at a reduced power setting. The aircraft was lost when it stalled attempting to clear terrain killing all nine crew members.
Specifications (MC-130H Combat Talon II)
See also
External links