Airfix 09003 Lockheed C-130 Hercules

The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American medium-range four-engine aircraft. In January 1951, the Tactical Air Command issued a specification for an aircraft intended for tactical transport. It praised a machine capable of carrying 30,000 pounds (13,620 kg) in a theater of operations and 90 soldiers or 72 paratroopers at a range of 2,000 miles (3,380 km). Four companies were invited to design such an aircraft: Boeing, Douglas, Lockheed and Fairchild. Lockheed's L-206 project was the winner. The first serial C-130 was flown on April 7, 1955 at the Dobbins base in Marietta. In the years 1961-1962, the C-130E version was created. The first C-130E flew on August 25, 1961, and the first deliveries of serial aircraft began in April 1962. C-130E - serial transport version with a reinforced center wing and undercarriage, modernized equipment. Although the C-130 Hercules aircraft are mainly used for transport tasks, they also participated in several combat operations such as "Operation Entebbe" in 1976. involving the recovery by Israeli commandos of 103 passengers hijacked by terrorists imprisoned at Entabbe airport in Uganda. In 1965. during the Second Kashmir War between India and Pakistan, the Hercules-equipped Pakistani Air Force used them, with the necessary modifications, as heavy bombers, attacking mainly bridges and concentrated Indian forces with some success. The Pakistani air force used C-130 planes from the world's highest Skardu air base to support operations on the Sjachen Glacier. The AC-130 Hercules is the heaviest and largest aircraft ever to land on an aircraft carrier. In November 1963. a machine of this type landed on the deck of the USS Forrestal aircraft carrier without the help of drag lines. Although the landing was successful, it was decided that the idea of landing such heavy machines on aircraft carriers was too risky, choosing the lighter C-2 Greyhound for the role of fleet supplies. The C-130 is the longest continuously produced aircraft to date in the history of aviation. Almost 2,300 machines of all versions have been built since 1956. Since 2009, the Polish Air Force has also been the user of the C-130 aircraft. Specifications (C-130H): Maximum speed: 592 km / h, rate of climb: 9.3 m / s, maximum ceiling 10,060 m, maximum range: 3,800 km.