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Post by pat perry on Feb 28, 2024 2:56:28 GMT 9
Lorin can tell you about this.
Lorin works at Wright-Patterson AFB on Flight Sims, and MA-1 related systems. The Museum of the USAF at Dayton has an AC-130 Gunship named "Azreal Angel of Death".
It was taken out of the Museum and prepared to fly again and was sent to Gulf War 1. It was returned to the Museum later and is still there today.
Here's the video. It's 16 min long but well worth watching if you like Gunships.
Thanks,
Pat P.
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Post by LBer1568 on Feb 28, 2024 5:52:09 GMT 9
A kool fact for us old MA-1 Guys is that the First AC-130 was just like the AC-47 before it. Fixed guns and the pilot had a target image so if he was going the right speed, altitude and left turn he would hit the same spot on ground as displayed on target circle out left cockpit window. Well this wasn't a real good approach. So some Hughes engineers said that the MA-1 IR/Radar along with moveable guns would increase capability. So the took the parts of MA-1 they needed and went to work. We had a group of MA-1 techs go to a quickie school at Lockbourne AFB OH to get schooled on fixing it. The same servo system that drove the missile heads before launch were beefed up and drove the guns to where On-board weapons Officer pinpointed targets. So the fixed flight path at correct altitude, airspeed and flight path was no longer a critical factor. As time went on they kept improving the systems including adding new guns etc. While I was working on base at WPAFB as Contractor I worked logistics and tech data on C-130 and several for AC-130 gunships. I went TDY to Hurlburt Field as part of our TO development. So I got to climb all over the AC-130's. I never saw the newest one but saw progress through the continuous improvements. The newest version has a lot of Newest Technology weapons and systems. One thing not mentioned was adding A-A missiles for self defense. As far as the AC-130 from Air Force Museum, I don't remember it being taken from WPAFB and used in gulf war. That would have required a lot of mods etc to bring it up to the current version at the time. It was used there, but I have to rely on the film maker for his source of info. The one at Warner Robbins as ground display was the one which destroyed so many Iraqi trucks/tanks on the "highway of death" as they tried to get back from Kuwait after we came to rescue the Kuwait people. The AC-130 has both flares and chaff to aid in self defense. When it deploys full flare discharge, they have called that massive bright lights from flares going off as the Angel of Death. Not the old one at WPAFB Museum as they didn't have Counter Measures on older models. www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=YAyfBc%2fD&id=22D27364844CC1A01295F68519F5DB656F6DF439&thid=OIP.YAyfBc_DWaZOmGB3OyjbVgHaEK&mediaurl=https%3a%2f%2fi.ytimg.com%2fvi%2fL6fjAoyuEVs%2fmaxresdefault.jpg&cdnurl=https%3a%2f%2fth.bing.com%2fth%2fid%2fR.600c9f05cfc359a64e9860773b28db56%3frik%3dOfRtb2Xb9RmF9g%26pid%3dImgRaw%26r%3d0&exph=720&expw=1280&q=%2bAzreal+Angel+of+Death+ac-130&simid=608017337969042523&FORM=IRPRST&ck=C1C8D5A41F96216AED1051E58613DADD&selectedIndex=0&itb=0&idpp=overlayview&ajaxhist=0&ajaxserp=0So the film was interesting, mostly true and a good source of data. Was that Pat was asking? lol Lorin |
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Post by pat perry on Feb 28, 2024 14:12:54 GMT 9
A kool fact for us old MA-1 Guys is that the First AC-130 was just like the AC-47 before it. Fixed guns and the pilot had a target image so if he was going the right speed, altitude and left turn he would hit the same spot on ground as displayed on target circle out left cockpit window. Well this wasn't a real good approach. So some Hughes engineers said that the MA-1 IR/Radar along with moveable guns would increase capability. So the took the parts of MA-1 they needed and went to work. We had a group of MA-1 techs go to a quickie school at Lockbourne AFB OH to get schooled on fixing it. The same servo system that drove the missile heads before launch were beefed up and drove the guns to where On-board weapons Officer pinpointed targets. So the fixed flight path at correct altitude, airspeed and flight path was no longer a critical factor. As time went on they kept improving the systems including adding new guns etc. While I was working on base at WPAFB as Contractor I worked logistics and tech data on C-130 and several for AC-130 gunships. I went TDY to Hurlburt Field as part of our TO development. So I got to climb all over the AC-130's. I never saw the newest one but saw progress through the continuous improvements. The newest version has a lot of Newest Technology weapons and systems. One thing not mentioned was adding A-A missiles for self defense. As far as the AC-130 from Air Force Museum, I don't remember it being taken from WPAFB and used in gulf war. That would have required a lot of mods etc to bring it up to the current version at the time. It was used there, but I have to rely on the film maker for his source of info. The one at Warner Robbins as ground display was the one which destroyed so many Iraqi trucks/tanks on the "highway of death" as they tried to get back from Kuwait after we came to rescue the Kuwait people. The AC-130 has both flares and chaff to aid in self defense. When it deploys full flare discharge, they have called that massive bright lights from flares going off as the Angel of Death. Not the old one at WPAFB Museum as they didn't have Counter Measures on older models. www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=YAyfBc%2fD&id=22D27364844CC1A01295F68519F5DB656F6DF439&thid=OIP.YAyfBc_DWaZOmGB3OyjbVgHaEK&mediaurl=https%3a%2f%2fi.ytimg.com%2fvi%2fL6fjAoyuEVs%2fmaxresdefault.jpg&cdnurl=https%3a%2f%2fth.bing.com%2fth%2fid%2fR.600c9f05cfc359a64e9860773b28db56%3frik%3dOfRtb2Xb9RmF9g%26pid%3dImgRaw%26r%3d0&exph=720&expw=1280&q=%2bAzreal+Angel+of+Death+ac-130&simid=608017337969042523&FORM=IRPRST&ck=C1C8D5A41F96216AED1051E58613DADD&selectedIndex=0&itb=0&idpp=overlayview&ajaxhist=0&ajaxserp=0So the film was interesting, mostly true and a good source of data. Was that Pat was asking? lol Lorin Lorin, look at the Camel silhouettes painted on the left door of the Azreal Angel of Death at Wright-Pat. www.bing.com/images/search?q=Angel+of+Death+Airplane&mmreqh=IUyKbXld5yzRlbZZ93i%2b5RDoaaepYCH95sWCfEt4oRQ%3d&FORM=IDINTSI remember when we went on family vacation to the W-P Museum and there was a story board next to the Azreal that said it was at Ubon when I was there in '68. I was with the C-130 Blind Bat aircraft and didn't even know there were AC-130 Gunships at Ubon until after I went to the Wright-Pat Museum and saw Azreal. After Sep 11 I heard they sent the aircraft to Gulf War 1 and brought it back home after the devastating "highway of death". Maybe they just flew it over as a show of force piece along with some later AC-130 Gunships. Thank goodness we had the Gunships, and the enemy didn't! Pat P. |
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Post by LBer1568 on Feb 28, 2024 23:55:25 GMT 9
Pat, I am pasting an article about the night the AC-130A from Duke Field FL attacked the Iraqi convoy now referred to as highway of Death. On Jun. 12, 2014, more than 20 years after ODS, Richard S. “Beef” Haddad, now Major General, and Randal L. Bright, Colonel, boarded the AC-130A Spectre gunship – No. 55-0014 – at the Museum of Aviation at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, where the aircraft is on display for the public to see. The aircraft was the same that took them over the “Highway of Death” that night. theaviationgeekclub.com/spectre-highway-death-ac-130-gunship-action-operation-desert-storm/This is a short statement about the Asreal AC-130a at USAF Museum (WPAFB) "In 1970 it was converted to an AC-130A gunship, deployed to Southeast Asia in 1971 and flew numerous combat missions, returning to the U.S. in June 1975. In 1991 it deployed to the Persian Gulf and participated in Desert Storm combat operations before being retired and flown to the Museum in 1995." During Gulf War many versions of AC-130 were used. The Reserves, at Eglin Field 3 (Duke Field) flew AC-130A and supported USAF AC-130H during First Gulf Was and Both Robbins AFB and WPAFB Museums have an AC-130A which were involved. The one at Robbins flew the Highway of Death. The one at WPAFB flew many combat support missions. The Angel of Death describes the chaff/flares from AC-130 aircraft as it is quite a show after dark. See film of it. The "Angel" is later in film not original views. |
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