Freedom Bird!
It was noisy, it was crowded, it was hot ... I never noticed.
Posted on 08/19/2014 12:27:38 PM PDT by DFG
Tim Nguyen regards the C-130 “Hercules” as a “good friend.” The 60-year-old military aircraft has been the focus of his professional career, and quite possibly saved his life.
During the 1975 Fall of Saigon, Nguyen -- then serving in the South Vietnamese air force -- escaped on the last C-130 out of Vietnam. During a lull in enemy fire, he emerged from a bunker at Tan Son Nhut Air Base to see the last flyable C-130 stopping and going on the taxiway.
The aircraft’s rear ramp was still open, apparently weighed down by the crowd of people standing on it.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Flew from Nam to Japan and then back to Nam in a Herk.
Noisy as heck and not comfortable with your knees between
someone elses. Heck of a bird though.
As a trainer/fighter type who actively avoided flying anything with more than two engines, I’ve always respected the C-130. It’s a great design, and its longevity is proof.
And - we pilots love to pick on the B-52 (which doesn’t fly, it’s so ugly it scares the earth away). However, it also is a magnificent design that’ll most probably still be flying when the original design meets its century birthday. And, it’s not ugly at all. (I’ll never admit I said that.)
60??
doesn’t look a day over 40!
Some machines are built to be legends.
I flew a MAC flight C-130 to Hawaii. It had passenger seats, a box lunch, and the flight over for $10. Noisy, but who cares?
If I had stupid money, I’d buy a ‘Puff the Magic Dragon’ and use it for coyote hunting in Eastern Washington.
They used to put Army recruits down in the stands of a football stadium looking place and then bring in Puff to put a bullet in every square inch of 100 yard football field.
I for, one, was aroused to the core of my being.
If my main don't open wide
I got another one by my side
If that one should fail me too
Look out ground I'm a comin through
If I die on that old drop zone
Box me up and ship me home
Tell my girl I done my best
Bury me in the leaning rest
I'm coming up on the 30th anniversary of the day I left the Army, and I'll never forget that jody! Happy Birthday, Airborne Daddy!
Lockheed has been making them for 60 years and I’ll bet that they will be making versions of them for another 40.
The 60s and 70s were the golden era of military aircraft. Many airframes developed during that era are still flying including:
F-15 Eagle (1972)
F-16 Falcon (1974)
FA-18 Hornet (1978)
SR 71 Blackbird (1969 - semi-retired and still the fastest aircraft ever)
B1 Lancer (1974)
and we MUST list:
F-14 Tomcat (1970 — killed by pure politics)
The 50s were also amazing and brought us these beauties still in operation:
C130 Hercules [of course] (1954)
KC135 [aka Boeing 707] (1957) works with the KC-10 [DC 10] 1980
B-52 Stratofortress (1952)
There are a lot more from the 50s through the 70s but you gt the idea...
(JJ — milcraft ping)
ANG unit flies ‘em out of Mansfield,right over my farm in Ashland county.Very impressive machine when flying at low altitude.
The C-130 is a work of art.
The AC-130 is a Rembrandt.
,,, the date the C-130 made its first flight: August 23, 1954."
As far as the US and US Military is concerned, this is the all-time champ in longevity. While I love the C-47 Gooney, the Herky Bird has done it all, from the arctic regions to the jungles to the sands. From pure cargo to AC-130 attack versions to stealth insertion aircraft. About the only thing I have never seen on a Hercules are pontoons for water landings. However, the design and testing STOL version YMC-130H for the Iran Hostage Rescue was nothing short of WOW!!
C-130 rollin down the strip,
Airborne daddy gonna take a little trip.
Stand up, buckle up, shuffle to the door,
Jump right out and count to four.
If my chute don’t open wide,
I’ll be splattered on the countryside.
If my chute don’t open wide,
I got another one by my side.
If that chute don’t open neither,
I’ll say hi to ol’ St. Peter.
If I die on the combat zone,
Pack me up and ship me home.
Bury me in the front leanin’ rest,
Tell my folks I did my best.
A C-130 from Hurlburt Field, flying over my house around 5 years ago.
Same plane.
The C-123’s big brother?
It is a magnificent machine. I am lucky enough to fly on Fat Albert, the Blue Angels C-130 which is maintained and flown by Marines. Every time I ride on it to do some filming I am in awe at what it can do.
flew on the herky bird from Ton Son Nhut to Da Nang on a PCS. Sounded like a hundred Harleys in there..
Bigger and younger brother. The C-130 was based on the C-123 design. So was the C-5 and the C-141 and the C-17.
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