page_title: Lockheed AC-130
section_title: Specifications
hierarchical_section_title: Lockheed AC-130 / Specifications
caption_attribution_description: English: An AC-130H gunship from the 16th Special Operations Squadron flies over the Destin, Florida coastline on Aug. 24, 2007, during multi-gunship formation egress training.
context_page_description: The Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily armed, long-endurance, ground-attack variant of the C-130 Hercules transport, fixed-wing aircraft. It carries a wide array of ground attack weapons that are integrated with sophisticated sensors, navigation, and fire-control systems. Unlike other modern military fixed-wing aircraft, the AC-130 relies on visual targeting. Because its large profile and low operating altitudes of approximately 7,000 feet make it an easy target, its close air support missions are usually flown at night.
  The airframe is manufactured by Lockheed Martin, while Boeing is responsible for the conversion into a gunship and for aircraft support. Developed during the Vietnam War as "Project Gunship II", the AC-130 replaced the Douglas AC-47 Spooky, or "Gunship I". The sole operator is the United States Air Force, which uses the AC-130U Spooky and AC-130W Stinger II variants for close air support, air interdiction, and force protection, with the upgraded AC-130J Ghostrider entering service. Close-air-support roles include supporting ground troops, escorting convoys, and urban operations.
context_section_description: Data from USAF AC-130U Fact Sheet, AC-130J Fact Sheet
  General characteristics
  Crew: 13
  Officers: 5 (pilot, copilot, navigator, fire control officer, electronic warfare officer)
  Enlisted: 8 (flight engineer, TV operator, infrared detection set operator, loadmaster, four aerial gunners)
  Length: 97 ft 9 in (29.79 m)
  Wingspan: 132 ft 7 in (40.41 m)
  Height: 38 ft 6 in (11.73 m)
  Wing area: 1,745.5 sq ft (162.16 m²)
  Max takeoff weight: 155,000 lb (70,307 kg)
  Powerplant: 4 × Allison T56-A-15 turboprop engine, 4,300 shp (3,200 kW)  each (AC-130U)
  Powerplant: 4 × Rolls-Royce AE 2100D3 , 4,700 shp (3,500 kW)  each (AC-130J)
  Propellers: 4-bladed constant-speed reversible propellers
  Performance
  Maximum speed: 260 kn (300 mph, 480 km/h)
  Range: 2,200 nmi (2,500 mi, 4,100 km)
  Service ceiling: 39,000 ft (12,000 m)
  Armament
  AC-130A Project Gunship II
  4 × 7.62 mm GAU-2/A miniguns
  4 × 20 mm (0.787 in) M61 Vulcan 6-barrel rotary cannon
  AC-130A Surprise Package, Pave Pronto, AC-130E Pave Spectre
  2× 7.62 mm GAU-2/A miniguns
  2× 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon
  2× 40 mm (1.58 in) L/60 Bofors cannon
  AC-130E Pave Aegis
  2× 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon
  1× 40 mm (1.58 in) L/60 Bofors cannon
  1× 105 mm (4.13 in) M102 howitzer
  AC-130H Spectre
  (Prior to c. 2000)
  2× 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon
  1× 40 mm (1.58 in) L/60 Bofors cannon
  1× 105 mm (4.13 in) M102 howitzer
  (Latest armament)
  1× General Dynamics 25 mm (0.984 in) GAU-12/U Equalizer 5-barreled rotary cannon
  1× 40 mm (1.58 in) L/60 Bofors cannon
  1× 105 mm (4.13 in) M102 howitzer
  AC-130U Spooky II
  1× General Dynamics 25 mm (0.984 in) GAU-12/U Equalizer 5-barreled rotary cannon
  1× 40 mm (1.58 in) L/60 Bofors cannon
  1× 105 mm (4.13 in) M102 howitzer
  AC-130W Stinger II / AC-130J Ghostrider
  1× 30 mm ATK GAU-23/A autocannon
  1× 105 mm M102 howitzer (AC-130J Ghostrider only as of 2017)
  'Gunslinger' weapons system with launch tube for AGM-176 Griffin missiles and/or GBU-44/B Viper Strike munitions (10 round magazines)
  Wing mounted, AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs (SDBs) and/or GBU-53/B SDB IIs (4 per hardpoint on BRU-61/A rack)
  Avionics
  AC-130H Spectre
  Mission systems:
  Northrop Grumman AN/APN-241 multimode navigation radar – derived version of AN/APG-66 radar (formerly used on F-16A Fighting Falcon) consisting of precised navigation and air-to-ground modes including Monopulse Ground Mapping (MGM), Doppler Beam Sharpening (DBS), high resolution synthetic-aperture radar (SAR), Terrain Avoidance/Terrain Following (TA/TF), skin paint (for Station KEeping; SKE), maritime detection, weather/turbulence detection, wind shear alert, and ballistic wind measurement (for precision airdrop)
  Motorola (now General Dynamics) AN/APQ-150 Beacon Tracking Radar (BTR) – side-looking radar designed to search, acquire, and track ground beacon signal (X-band transponder) located at a friendly position from 10 nautical miles, beacon coordinate is used as a reference point for ground troop to give the gunship a bearing and range from the beacon to the desired target (mounted between 40 mm cannon and 105 mm howitzer)
  Cubic Corporation AN/ARS-6 Personnel Locator System (PLS) – radio navigation set
  Raytheon AN/AAQ-26 Infrared Detecting Set (IDS) – long-wave infrared (LWIR) band Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) (mounted forward of the nose landing gear door)
  General Electric (now Lockheed Martin) AN/ASQ-145 Low Light Level Television (LLLTV) – EO fire control system consists of television camera (CCD-TV), AN/AVQ-19 Laser Target Designator/Ranger (LTD/R – 1064 nm laser emitter with permanently preset PRF code) with eyesafe mode (1570 nm laser emitter), AN/AAT-3 Ambient Temperature Illuminator (ATI – wide beam 860 nm laser illuminator), and Infrared Zoom Laser Illuminator Designator (IZLID – airborne version of 860 nm narrow beam laser pointer/marker and illuminator AN/PEQ-18) (mounted in the crew entrance door)
  Navigation systems:
  Teledyne Ryan (now Northrop Grumman) AN/APN-218 radar – doppler navigation radar
  Previously installed systems:
  AN/APN-59 radar – search and weather radar
  AC-130U Spooky II
  Mission systems:
  Raytheon AN/APQ-180 m
caption: AC-130H Spectre over Santa Rosa Island, Northwest Florida coast.
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