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Take a look at the workhorse C-130 cargo plane that the US Air Force is reinventing to fight like a bomber
Take a look at the workhorse C-130 cargo plane that the US Air Force is reinventing to fight like a bomber
Elias ChavezApr 12, 2024, 05:22 IST
The MC 130J Commando aircraft rolls onto the flight line during an arrival ceremony in Middletown, Pennsylvania.US Air National Guard photo by Senior Airman Diana Snyder
The MC-130J Commando II is an upgraded version of the C-130 cargo plane.
The plane assists in infiltration, exfiltration, and resupply for special ops forces.
More than seven decades later, one of the plane's latest models, the MC-130J, is being fitted with a new weapons system that is changing how the US Air Force utilizes its fleet of existing planes.
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The first of its kind
The first C-130 Transport flying back from its early flight paces over California's Mojave Desert.Bettmann/Getty Images
‘The C-130 is whatever is needed’
A soldier loads M-998 multipurpose wheeled vehicles into a C-130E Hercules aircraft.USAF/Getty Images
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First of many
A view of the first production version of the US Air Force's Lockheed C-130A Hercules military transports.Lockheed Aircraft Company/PhotoQuest/Getty Images
Durability
A New Zealand Air Force C130 Hercules lands on the ice runway at Scott Base, an Antarctic New Zealand research station.Micheal Field/AFP via Getty Images
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A habit of making history
Loadmasters from the 9th Special Operations Squadron load a Maritime Craft Aerial Delivery System on an MC-130J Commando II.US Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Matthew Plew
More than just supply drops
Soldiers parachute down to the ground near Günzburg in Bavaria. More than 2,000 paratroopers jumped off from 48 four-engined C-130 "Hercules."Klaus-Dieter Heirler/picture alliance via Getty Images
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A new model of an old plane
An MC-130J Commando II flies over Yokota Air Base, Japan, during a training mission.US Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Samantha White.
Rapid Dragon
A palletized munitions system falls from the cargo hold of an MC-130J Commando II during a live-fire demonstration at Andøya Space Defense Range, Norway.US Air National Guard photo by Tech. Sgt. Brigette Waltermire
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No runway, no problem
An airman conducts preflight operations on an MC-130J Commando II.US Air National Guard photo by Tech. Sgt. Brigette Waltermire
Global impact
A member of the 17th Special Operation Squadron prepares an MC-130J Commando II for takeoff.US Air Force photo by Senior Airman Divine Cox/Released