internal auxiliary fuel tanks. Additionally,
the UARRSI receptacle permits both
variants to be refueled in ight via boom-
equipped tankers.
The HC-130P/Ns were operated by a
crew of seven, but the HC/MC-130J crew
is reduced to just ve by the removal of
the ight engineer and navigator and
is comprised of a pilot, co-pilot, combat
system o cer and two loadmasters.The HC-130J rst ew on July 29, 2010,
and the initial MC-130J ight followed
on April 20, 2011. The initial examples of
the HC-130J and MC-130J were delivered
to the 415th SOS on September 29 and
October 9, 2011, respectively. The HC-
130Js began replacing HC-130Ps assigned
to the 563rd Rescue Group’s (RQG) 79th
RQS at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, on
November 15, 2012.The 79th had been activated as part of
an expansion of ACC’s CSAR capabilities
in March 2003. Its activation was planned
to ease the deployment burden placed
on the command’s limited active-duty
CSAR assets. At that time, the CSAR
community included just two rescue
squadrons equipped with Sikorsky
HH-60G helicopters and a third that
operated HC-130Ps.
Phase-out of the earlier models began
in earnest as the new special mission
Super Hercules were rolled out. AFSOC
began replacing its MC-130Ps with new
MC-130Js at Cannon AFB, New Mexico,
on September 29, 2011. The 67th SOS
at RAF Mildenhall, UK, ew its nal
operational mission on January 24, 2014,
as its MC-130Ps were retired. The phase-
out of the MC-130Ps of the 17th SOS at
Kadena began in July 2013 and the unit
welcomed its rst MC-130J to Okinawa on
December 21, 2014.
AFSOC’s nal pair of Combat Shadows
was retired at Hurlburt Field on May 15,
2015 as serials 66-0217 and 69-5819
bowed out. The last two HC-130PsLeft: An HC-130J
Combat King
II of the 71st
Rescue Squadron
on exercise in
Arizona. USAF/
Amn Nathan H.
Barbour
This image: Fo r
the D-Day 75th
anniversary
in June, the
67th Special
Operations
Squadron ‘Night
Owls’ from RAF
Mildenhall fl ew
an impressive
six-ship formation
of MC-130J
Commando IIs.
The unit is seen
here practicing
low-level
formation work in
May ahead of the
D-Day fl ypasts.
Tony WallbankNEW
GENERATION
THE
TYPE REPORT // HC-130N/P
76 August 2019 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net
68-77 MC-130 C.indd 76 20/06/2019 22:38