36 FLYPAST March 2018
VIETNAM AC-130
gave notification by pressing a
button. Then the pilot would ready
the guns by pressing his button. If
the computer agreed that everything
was aligned properly, it was only
then that the guns would fire.
Along with 14 other airmen, Batie
was ‘hard-crewed’ and barring work
as an instructor or being medically
disqualified from a day of flying, he
stayed with his crew for the duration“While foot traffic and even elephants were used to move supplies,
the ubiquitous Soviet-built ZIL 157 six-wheel drive truck was the transport
of choice – and it was also a primary target for the gunships”
alongside three crew members who
monitored sensors and controlled
the fire mission. All of this could
be carried out a matter of feet away
from the guns that fired out of the
port side.
Batie recalled that the EWO: “...
really had three jobs: your primary
function from a gunship point of
view was Black Crow – find targets.
You were also responsible for the
electronic defence of the aircraft, so
you constantly had to be aware ofwhat’s going on with the APR-36.
The third job you had was to change
the video tape. We videotaped all the
engagements. As soon as you pressed
‘consent’ the videotape would start.”
This process of consent made the
AC-130E notable. On board, it was
the fire control computer that shot
the guns – humans merely gave the
computer permission. This even
included the pilot. The engagement
process began when a crewman
centred his sensor on a target andAbove
Detail of the port forward
fuselage of a 16th SOS
AC-130E. The Black Crow
antenna is directly below
the cockpit, the Low-Light
Level TV is in the crew
door, with two 20mm
guns behind, and the
infrared sensor dome
under the forward section
of the main undercarriage
fairing.
Right
A wooden Buddha mascot
posed on the infrared
sensor operator’s position
of a 16th SOS AC-130E.