Combat Aircraft – August 2019

Right: HC-130P

serial 65-0222

of the 106th

RQW landing at

Gabreski Airport,

New York, on

October 24,

1995. This was
      to become the
      USAF’s last HC-
      130P in service.
      Tom Kaminski
      Below: HC-130P
      serial 66-0221
      of the 129th ARG
      operates near
      its home base
      at NAS Moffett
      Field, California,
      on May 28, 1991.
      The aircraft
      was retired to
      AMARG on March
      30, 2017. Rene
      Francillon via Tom
      Kaminski

Field, Florida, the 39th SOW’s 67th SOS at

RAF Woodbridge and later RAF Mildenhall,

and the 353rd SOW’s 17th SOS at Kadena

Air Base, Okinawa, Japan.

Non-special-ops HC-130s of the ARS

moved to Air Mobility Command (AMC)

upon its activation on June 1, 1992,

then to Air Combat Command (ACC) on

February 1, 1993. At that time its assets

were divided between ACC, Paci c Air

Forces (PACAF), and US Air Forces Europe

(USAFE) — with the Air Rescue Squadrons

being redesignated as Rescue Squadrons

(RQS). The ARS itself became the USAF

Combat Rescue School and was assigned

to the 57th Wing at Nellis AFB, Nevada, on

July 2, 1993.

CONUS-based rescue wings were once

again realigned in May 2003 to the control

of AFSOC. This served to consolidate

missions, with CSAR seen as a secondary

AFSOC commitment when dedicated

forces were not available. However, the

change was short-lived and the personnel

recovery mission and control of the

rescue units reverted back to ACC on

April 3, 2006.

An AFSOC reorganization resulted in the

California ANG exchanging its HC-130Ps

for MC-130Ps during 2000. Four MC-130Ps

were eventually assigned to the 129th

Rescue Wing’s (RQW) 130th RQS at Mo ett

Federal Airport in Sunnyvale, California.

More modifications

In July 2003, a program to convert four

EC-130Es and six WC-130Hs to HC-130P

con guration was initiated by AFSOC.

The EC-130Es had been retired from

the Airborne Battle eld Command

major command status as Air Force Special

Operations Command (AFSOC) on May

22, 1990, and therefore it assumed control

of the 28 HC-130Ps and 11 HC-130Ns that

were supporting the special operations

mission at that time.

Special ops

Beginning in 1993, AFSOC HC-130s

were modi ed for a penetrating tanker

mission under the Special Operations

Forces Improvements (SOF-I) program.

This meant retro tting some advanced

navigation systems, an AN/AAQ-38 infra-

red detection system (IDS) turret under

the nose, an impressive self-protection

defensive aids suite, and the Northrop

Grumman AN/APN-241 color weather

radar. Additionally, their range was

increased through the installation of a

Universal Aerial Refueling Receptacle

Slipway Installation (UARRSI) that allowed

them to be refueled in- ight by boom-

equipped tankers. The  rst upgraded

SOF-I aircraft (serial 66-0217) was delivered

to the 9th Special Operations Squadron

(SOS) at Eglin AFB for operational testing

in late 1993.

These modi ed aircraft were renamed

as MC-130P Combat Shadows and,

rather than CSAR, they were tasked to

conduct clandestine, low-level in ltration/

ex ltration missions into hostile or

politically sensitive territory and to provide

air refueling for the command’s growing

 eet of special operations helicopters.

MC-130Ps were assigned respectively to

the 1st Special Operations Wing’s (SOW)

9th SOS at Eglin AFB and later Hurlburt

TYPE REPORT // HC-130N/P

72 August 2019 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net

68-77 MC-130 C.indd 72 20/06/2019 22:37