Fri. Apr. 9/10 Pace51
Real world facts about the AC/C-119
Manufacturer: Fairchild
Powered by: Twin 2610-kWright R-3350-85 Duplex Cyclone 18-cylinder radial piston engines(All models) and dual 12.6 kN General Electric J85-GE-17 Turbojets(K model).
Speed (Cruising): 391 Km/H
Range: 1565 Km
Armament(AC-119K): 4 Miniguns and 2 M61 Cannons.
This guide focuses on the following three models:
C-119 Flying Boxcar
AC-119G Shadow
AC-119K Stinger
In the 1950’s, the C-119 Boxcar was a useful cargo aircraft with quite the spacious interior. Paratroopers and infantrymen nick-named it the Flying Boxcar. It serviced the US by upholding aerial supply lines. It was a capable cargo aircraft and was used quite frequently in the 50’s. When the Korean War broke out, the large multiple engined propeller driven C-119 was called in to drop supplies. It flew from Japan to Korea and back, delivering valuable supplies. They also drop paratroopers in the Korean war. However, when the Korean war ended, the C-119’s usefulness gradually declined, as faster and better transport aircraft began to emerge. They were returned to their former glory many years after retrieving satellite capsules.
When Vietnam broke out, the army saw how useful converted C-119’s could be. So, they began to convert the C-119 Flying Boxcars into AC-119’s, by adding powerful support armament, transforming the C-119 from a Cargo aircraft into a gunship. In fact, the C-119 was the third transport aircraft to be converted into a gunship. The most notable were the AC-119G “Shadow” and the AC-119K “Stinger”. These modifications extended the lives of the C-119, turning them into powerful and hard hitting gunships. The main difference between the G and K models was that the Stinger model carried two cannon and four miniguns, while the Shadow only carried 4 miniguns. The cannon’s were much more hard hitting then the miniguns, and as the war progressed, more crew opted for cannons to replace their miniguns. While the C-119 used to wear a traditional gray paint scheme, the AC-119’s wore jungle camouflage or green paint schemes.
The Gunship variants were equipped with all sorts of handy equipment, and crewed by a staff of ten(Stinger model). The stinger model had powerful doorway mounted Xenon searchlight, and sensors, as well as searcher radars in the nose. This enabled them to fight in many conditions, and deliver a hard hitting punch. The gunships also had protective armour plating, which saved lives in Vietnam. The AC-119’s were designed for night Op’s, and had a dark underbelly.
One story of an AC-119 surviving against the odds occurred in Laos, a hot zone. After razing a convoy while performing armed surveillance, AA fire pierced the right wing and set it aflame. In about 3 seconds, the aircraft lost 300 Meters of altitude, in a near fatal dive. During this process, the crew pressed the throttle to maximum capacity to get out of the dive. Unfortunately, more throttle means more fuel is used. The fire burned more harshly and the aircraft ran low on fuel. The crew knew they needed to stay at their current height, so they proceeded to pick up everything that wasn’t bolted to the plane, and threw everything they could out the window. The aircraft managed to land at base with the captain making a no-flap approach maneuver, which requires skill. And the crew managed to do this despite the slightly distracting inferno consuming their plane. Upon landing, the aircrew checked the wing, and realized barely one third remained.
In the future, I'll write more facts guides on gunships, and heli's.
Yes thi is a repost. The original got moved and closed, but Kmarion said I could repost this and the F-105
Here are my sources:
American military aircraft: A history of innovation- General Editor Jim Winchester
Real world facts about the AC/C-119
Manufacturer: Fairchild
Powered by: Twin 2610-kWright R-3350-85 Duplex Cyclone 18-cylinder radial piston engines(All models) and dual 12.6 kN General Electric J85-GE-17 Turbojets(K model).
Speed (Cruising): 391 Km/H
Range: 1565 Km
Armament(AC-119K): 4 Miniguns and 2 M61 Cannons.
This guide focuses on the following three models:
C-119 Flying Boxcar
AC-119G Shadow
AC-119K Stinger
In the 1950’s, the C-119 Boxcar was a useful cargo aircraft with quite the spacious interior. Paratroopers and infantrymen nick-named it the Flying Boxcar. It serviced the US by upholding aerial supply lines. It was a capable cargo aircraft and was used quite frequently in the 50’s. When the Korean War broke out, the large multiple engined propeller driven C-119 was called in to drop supplies. It flew from Japan to Korea and back, delivering valuable supplies. They also drop paratroopers in the Korean war. However, when the Korean war ended, the C-119’s usefulness gradually declined, as faster and better transport aircraft began to emerge. They were returned to their former glory many years after retrieving satellite capsules.
When Vietnam broke out, the army saw how useful converted C-119’s could be. So, they began to convert the C-119 Flying Boxcars into AC-119’s, by adding powerful support armament, transforming the C-119 from a Cargo aircraft into a gunship. In fact, the C-119 was the third transport aircraft to be converted into a gunship. The most notable were the AC-119G “Shadow” and the AC-119K “Stinger”. These modifications extended the lives of the C-119, turning them into powerful and hard hitting gunships. The main difference between the G and K models was that the Stinger model carried two cannon and four miniguns, while the Shadow only carried 4 miniguns. The cannon’s were much more hard hitting then the miniguns, and as the war progressed, more crew opted for cannons to replace their miniguns. While the C-119 used to wear a traditional gray paint scheme, the AC-119’s wore jungle camouflage or green paint schemes.
The Gunship variants were equipped with all sorts of handy equipment, and crewed by a staff of ten(Stinger model). The stinger model had powerful doorway mounted Xenon searchlight, and sensors, as well as searcher radars in the nose. This enabled them to fight in many conditions, and deliver a hard hitting punch. The gunships also had protective armour plating, which saved lives in Vietnam. The AC-119’s were designed for night Op’s, and had a dark underbelly.
One story of an AC-119 surviving against the odds occurred in Laos, a hot zone. After razing a convoy while performing armed surveillance, AA fire pierced the right wing and set it aflame. In about 3 seconds, the aircraft lost 300 Meters of altitude, in a near fatal dive. During this process, the crew pressed the throttle to maximum capacity to get out of the dive. Unfortunately, more throttle means more fuel is used. The fire burned more harshly and the aircraft ran low on fuel. The crew knew they needed to stay at their current height, so they proceeded to pick up everything that wasn’t bolted to the plane, and threw everything they could out the window. The aircraft managed to land at base with the captain making a no-flap approach maneuver, which requires skill. And the crew managed to do this despite the slightly distracting inferno consuming their plane. Upon landing, the aircrew checked the wing, and realized barely one third remained.
In the future, I'll write more facts guides on gunships, and heli's.
Yes thi is a repost. The original got moved and closed, but Kmarion said I could repost this and the F-105
Here are my sources:
American military aircraft: A history of innovation- General Editor Jim Winchester
Last edited by pace51 (2010-04-20 11:26:55)
