The past XX century, without exaggeration, became the century of aviation. The path that aircraft have traveled from the simplest gliders to the most complex supersonic machines cannot but arouse admiration. As has always been the case in the history of mankind, any efficient technology was immediately used for war. And planes are not only not an exception here. They are the best illustration of how a digging stick quickly turns into a club. During the Cold War, the Americans paid close attention to the "flying clubs".
Today we will talk about the Lockheed AC-130 Specter aircraft. The name "Spectre" is translated from English as "ghost", and also as "bad feeling". The AC-130 fully justifies its name, since in fact it is a poorly accessible flying fire support battery for ground forces. The development of a support aircraft began in the early 1960s on the basis of the C-130 Hercules transport vehicle from the American company Lockheed.
The flying battery made its first flight on June 6, 1967. The American military immediately liked the car, and already in 1968 the aircraft was officially put into service. Almost all of these flying machines are in the department of the US Air Force Special Operations Command. The battery is intended not only to support ground forces, but also air patrols terrain, disrupting enemy communications, protecting their own ground facilities and destroying enemy.
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The aircraft has a rather specific layout: all weapons are shifted to the left side, which is why the aircraft is forced to constantly move during shelling, making a left turn around the target. Inside the Spektr are several 105 mm M102 artillery pieces, 40 mm L60 cannons, and M61 Vulcan machine guns. On board there are computerized search and aiming systems, radar, television and thermal sights. All this allows you to effectively use the AC-130 in a variety of conditions, including bad weather and at night.
To date, the aircraft is no longer produced. However, all remaining from the Cold War "Spectra" in the amount of 47 copies continue to keep watch in the US Air Force and are regularly used in hot spots. Aircraft are presented in 6 modifications, which differ in the set of weapons and computer equipment.
If you want to know even more interesting things, then you should read about how the USSR helped to create a better American reconnaissance aircraft SR-71 Blackbird.
Source: https://novate.ru/blogs/180222/62192/