The U.S Air Force’s family of AC-130 gunships
long history of delivering critical close air support for ground troops in need.
During Vietnam, AC-130 gunships destroyed more than
10,000 trucks and were credited with many life-saving close air support missions.
But the gunship is expected to be even more deadly
with the addition of a new armament - a laser weapon.
Lockheed Martin has stated that it had completed factory acceptance testing
for the AHEL or Airborne High Energy Laser, and then handed the weapon over to the U.S Air Force.
As per reports, the new weapon will be tested after integration with the AC-130J
Ghostrider, the service’s latest variant of the AC-130 gunship.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes how AC-130J Ghostrider is set to become
more potent with Airborne High Energy Laser? Let's get started.
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The AC-130 is a heavily armed aircraft carrying an array of anti-ground-oriented weapons
that are integrated with sophisticated sensors, navigation, and fire-control systems. It is
capable of delivering precision firepower or area-saturation fire over a target area
for a long period of time, at night, or in adverse weather.
The sole operator is the United States Air Force.
The robust airframe makes the aircraft capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings
The AC-130 primary missions are close air support, air interdiction and armed reconnaissance.
The aircraft has a maximum speed of 300 mph or 480 km/h, a range of
2,500 mi or 4,100 km and a service ceiling of 39,000 ft or 12,000 m.
The advanced sensors allow the gunship to visually
or electronically identify friendly ground forces and targets in most weather conditions.
The gunship is equipped with 30mm and 105mm cannons and can support a range
of guided munitions like AGM-176 Griffin missile or GBU-39 small diameter bomb.
Over the years, the Gunship has been upgraded many times and has become more powerful and efficient.
Rick Cordaro, vice president, Lockheed Martin Advanced Product Solutions said, “Completion
of this milestone is a tremendous accomplishment for our customer. These mission success milestones
are a testament of our partnership with the U.S. Air Force in rapidly achieving important
advances in laser weapon system development. Our technology is ready for fielding today.”
Viewers may note that under a January 2019 contract, Lockheed Martin has been working
to integrate, test, and demonstrate the new directed-energy weapon on the AC-130J,
according to the company press release. It was noted that it’s now "on a rapid
schedule to continue testing this capability."
According to Lt. Gen. Marshall “Brad” Webb, the former commander of Air Force
Special Operations Command, when he described the system in 2017, the
Airborne High Energy Laser (AHEL) is a nonlethal weapon intended for disabling enemy vehicles,
communications, power generation and other equipment.
As per reports, it will be in the 60-kilowatt class.
Webb said, as per his vision, according to National Defense,
“Without the slightest bang, whoosh, thump, explosion, or even aircraft engine hum,
four key targets are permanently disabled. The enemy has no communications, no escape vehicle, no
electrical power and no retaliatory intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capability.
Minutes later, the team emerges from the compound, terrorist mastermind in hand. A successful raid.”
Currently, it is not known if the laser can be used against humans.
According to Sandboxx, the AHEL will let the normally loud
and obtrusive AC-130J start fires and even detonate enemy ammo dumps from miles away,
without anyone knowing for sure what caused it.
Sandboxx stated, “In other words, this weapon
can cause problems for the enemy and even destroy targets without directly implicating U.S. forces.
That can be extremely valuable in the Grey Zone military operations of the modern era.”
Lasers are silent and invisible which makes them very much suitable for use in certain scenrios.
As evident lasers have the advantage of being obscure.
But there are other pluses too. The speed of light enables them to hit
their targets almost instantaneously. Laser weapons also don’t need to carry ammunition
like traditional systems and hence they will be able to take out a much larger number of threats
constrained only by the power supply limit of the platform.
This is pretty significant as traditional weapons can run out of ammunition when
encountering a large number of incoming threats and need to be reloaded amidst a raging battle.
The cost is also expected to be much lesser compared to traditional weapons.
In 2010, the U.S Air Force mounted and fired off a megawatt-class
chemical laser from a modified Boeing 747. Things have changed since then and instead of unstable
chemical lasers used for that experiment, solid-state lasers are now being utilized.
Another test with LaWS or AN/SEQ-3 Laser Weapon System was conducted in 2014.
The efforts are giving back now.
According to reports, the trial will start in the fiscal year 2022.
Soldiers on the ground have come to love the AC-130 gunships.
The important part is that the U.S military seems to be at the forefront
of this technology and is having a lead. AC-130J Ghostrider is a potent platform and
with the inclusion of laser, it will have a new way to inflict pain to the enemies.