Jets & Planes but no UAV's here.

[Suhiir]

Originally Posted by WilliamB

From the August issue of AirForces magazine. The U.S. Air Force has retired their last four AC-130U gunships (unit 786). A farewell fly past took place at Hurlburt AFB in Florida on June 3rd and the last AC-130U left Hurlburt for the storage facility at Davis-Monthan AFB on June 26. Nothing in the article about a replacement aircraft.

The AC-130W Stinger II was introduced in Nov 2010 and is armed with even better targeting systems, a single 30mm gattling gun, and precision guided munitions (SDBs, presumably Hellfires, and such).

[FASTBOAT TOUGH]

I know somewhere in here I covered some of this ground already to include the retirement of the AC-130H SPECTRE.

Some of the refs below I know are "recalled" from the past/or from my files that I just never acted on for various reasons to be covered at the end, many are not.

So lets begin by ref date order...
First the overview.
http://www.military-today.com/aircraft/ac_130.htm

AC-130U SPOOKY...

First "GUNSHIP" retires...
https://www.afsoc.af.mil/News/Articl...pooky-retires/

USAF Factsheet...
https://www.hurlburt.af.mil/About-Us...pooky-gunship/

Final Combat Deployment...
https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Disp...at-deployment/

Last ARMED GUNSHIP retired on 19 August 2019...
https://www.dm.af.mil/Media/News/Art...to-retirement/

How they served (This crew is not an exception, but represent the whole.) and part of the reason operationally for my comments below...
https://www.mildenhall.af.mil/News/A...istan-mission/

Major USAF (Those that served in the USAF will understand better probably.) milestone achieved...
https://www.hurlburt.af.mil/News/Art...-with-ac-130u/

CINCLANTHOME has informed me that my time is limited (Lunch/Shower/work/TGIF.

Interim AC 130 Gunship that I believe might still be in service and also to be replaced by the AC-130J GHOSTRIDER (Which might have to wait until EARLY tomorrow morning.)

AC-130W STINGER...
https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-She...0w-stinger-ii/
http://www.americanspecialops.com/us...-dragon-spear/

The above are the EARLY models the 30mm GAU would be kept, the 25mm would replaced by the 105mm due to technical issues to include gun targeting issues. Below are for current version...
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...perately-needs
https://www.popularmechanics.com/mil...owitzer-video/
https://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/th...omb-1584518199
https://www.airforce-technology.com/...er-ii-gunship/

Just got informed of the time-GOTTA RUN!!

Regards,
Pat