Fuerza Aérea de Chile (FACh) C-130H CH-02 of Grupo 10.
Algeria
The Al Quwwat Ali Jawwiya al Jaza’eriya (previously Force Aérienne Algerienne) received two C-130H-30 (CT) Combat Talons in July and August Ten C-130Hs and five C-130H-30 (CT)s were delivered between 1982-84 and an eighth C-130H-30 (CT) was delivered in November 1990. The ten C-130Hs and eight C-130H-30 (CT)s are shared between 31, 32, 33 and 35 Escadrilles.
Argentina
Three C-130Es were delivered to the Fuerza Aérea Argentina in 1968. However, TC-62 was lost on 28 August 1975 when a bomb exploded by the side of the runway during take-off from Tucuman; and during the Falklands War in 1982 one C-130E was shot down by a Sea Harrier on 1 June - this was replaced by a former Lockheed L-100-30 demonstrator in December. Five C-130Hs were received between 1971 and 1975, one of which - TC-68 - was used as a bomber in the Falklands War and two KC-130H tankers in 1979. Five ex-USAF C-130Bs were delivered to the FAA between 1992 and 1994. The 1 Escuadrón de Transport, Grupo 1 de Transporte Aero at BAM El Palomar, Buenos Aires, is the FAA Hercules operator.
In February 2014 Argentina’s Defence Ministry announced plans to modernize its Air Force fleet of C-130 Hercules aircraft. The Air Force has five C-130s. ‘Modernizing the fleet of aircraft and making sure they are well-maintained is a high priority’, said Defence Minister Agustín Rossi. The Air Force first obtained C-130 aircraft in 1969. In April 1970 the Air Force used some of the aircraft to provide supplies to the Marambio Antarctic Base, which is the country’s primary military base in the region. The base was founded on 29 October 1969. It is named after famed Air Force Vice Commodore Gustavo Argentino Marambio, who was one of the first pilots to fly over the Antarctic region. Over the years the Air Force has continued to use the C-130 aircraft to supply the base. The aircraft is known for performing well in frigid conditions. Temperatures at the base are often below zero. The modernization will be a cooperative effort between Argentina and the United States. An Argentinean C-130 will be taken to the United States to be modernized, officials at the Defence Ministry said. Once that plane is modernized, it will be brought back to Argentina. The modernized aircraft will serve as a model and the rest of the fleet will be modernized in Argentina. The modernization will cost an estimated $166 million (USD), according to published reports. Once the aircraft are modernized, they should last until at least 2040. The Air Force has used the aircraft primarily to transport supplies. Once the modernization is complete, the Air Force will be able to use the aircraft to conduct search and rescue missions with sophisticated infrared radar; transport paratroopers; and conduct missions at sea.
Air Force officials plan to use the modernized aircraft for different types of missions, said Richard Gadea, an Argentinean military analyst. ‘Argentina’s plans for the refurbished Hercules include supplying deliveries to areas affected by natural disaster, evacuating victims and fighting forest fires,’ Gadea said. The modernized C-130s will be useful in responding to natural disasters in Argentina and in other countries. The Argentinean military has a long tradition of providing humanitarian aid to other countries which are struck by natural disasters, Gadea said. For example, the Argentinean military provided humanitarian assistance to Haiti after that country was struck by a devastating earthquake in January 2010. That 7.0 magnitude earthquake killed between 100,000 and 160,000 people and destroyed or severely damaged 250,000 homes and 30,000 commercial buildings, authorities said. The C-130 aircraft is useful for providing humanitarian aid because it performs well over long distances and requires relatively little maintenance. ‘This is a legendary plane that has made history in Latin America and the world over,’ Gadea said. ‘It is a technological marvel and it has endured through the years in very demanding conditions and all climates.’
Fuerza Aérea de Chile (FACh) C-130H CH-02 of Grupo 10.
Belgium
The Force Aérienne Belge operates twelve C-130Hs, delivered in 1972 and 1973. They are flown by the Smaldeel (Squadron), Groupement de Transport/15 Wing, at Brussels-Melsbroek. These aircraft have been used for United Nations operations and famine relief duties with the Red Cross in Ethiopia and the Sudan and may be seen in overall white or specially marked finishes. The C-130s have also been involved in the Open Skies treaty verification programme.
The FAB played a key role in dropping food in Ethiopia. Having already experimented with such drops without parachutes at low level in 1973-74 during another Sahel country’s drought period, the FAB refined its VLAGES (Very Low Altitude Gravity Extraction System) food-drop technique in Ethiopia in 1985-86. A total of 677 live food drops was made at Mehoni (near Maychew) and Sekota (in Wollo Province). The overall success rate was 96.7 per cent, but during the last drop months, an average loss of less than 2 per cent was recorded due to further refinements in bagging procedures and drop techniques.
Grain is put into 55 or 110lb nylon bags, these are then put into bags of 35 inches in size, which in turn are put into two outer bags of 47inches). When the bags strike the ground, the inner bags generally tend to burst and the contents spread into the larger middle bag; should the middle bag also split, the outer bag will, in most cases, retain the grain. After improving the flying and re-bagging techniques, post-impact damage was reduced in many cases to zero or almost zero losses.
When approaching the drop zone, the speed of the airdrop is 125 knots and the altitude 50 feet radar altimeter. At that moment the nose attitude is higher. At the ‘Green On’ given by the navigator, the retriever will tighten the cable and the knife will cut the straps holding the load. The load starts moving. When the pallets move towards the ramp, the straps running along the tight cables will cut the D ring of the pallets. Bags leave the pallet and fall on the ground.
The Belgian Air Force Hercules’ airdropped food using the VLAGES technique in southern Sudan, flying from Lokichokio in northern Kenya. Although the technique had to be slightly modified again - because of the terrain at the drop zones the delivery altitude had to be changed from 70 to 60 feet agl - the results stayed as successful as before, with an average of only about 2 per cent loss rates. Drop loads ranged from twelve to sixteen tons, in a single pallet row, single passage airdrop.
Bolivia
The Fuerza Aérea Boliviana’s (FAB) Grupo Aéreo de Transporte 71 based at BA General Walter Atze, La Paz operated on a peacetime basis as an internal domestic airline known as Transporte Aéreo Boliviano (TAB). However, it doubles as the main tactical support element of country’s military forces, in which role it is known as the Transporte Aéreo Militar (TAM). Of the eleven ex-USAF C-130As and C-130Bs delivered to FAB as from October 1988 only two C-l 30Bs remain in service. Five C-130A/Bs were withdrawn from use and two were lost in crashes in 1989 and 1994. Two new-build C-130Hs were acquired in 1977 and one L-100-30 in 1979. Of these, C-130H TAM-90/CP-1375 crashed into the water after a night take-off from Panama-Tacumen on 28 September 1979 and L-100-30 TAM 92 was shot down near Malanje, Angola, on 16 March 1991 while on lease to Transafrik.
Brazil
Since 1965 the Forca Aérea Brasileria C-130Es, seven C-130Hs and one KC-130H) at various times. C-130E 4093 crashed on landing with high sink rate on 26 October 1966 and C-130E 4091 was written off on 21 December 1969 at Recife. One C-130E has been put into storage, another (4290) crashed on approach in fog to Santa Maria AB, Brazil on 24 June 1985 and 4293 was destroyed at Formosa, 37 miles north-east of Brasilia on 14 October 1994 when the ammunition load caught fire in the air. Five Es, six C-130Hs (C-130H 4998 having crashed into the sea on approach to Fernando de Noronha Island, Brazil, on 14 December 1987) and the KC-130H remain in service. These are flown by the 1st Esquadrão of the 1st Transport Group ‘Coral’ at Galeão Airport, Rio de Janeiro and the 2nd Esquadrão, 1st Tactical Transport Group ‘Gordo’, at Campos dos Afonsos, Rio de Janeiro. The C-130Hs are tasked with serving the Army’s 1st Parachute Division. Ski-equipped aircraft also support the Brazilian mission in Antarctica.
CC-130H (130330/73-1591 in 435 TRS pictured taking off with JATO rockets was delivered on 16 October 1974. On 29 March 1985 130330; the lead aircraft as part of a mass fly over which included two other C-130s and other Air Force aircraft marking 61 years of the RCAF was involved in a mid-air collision with CC-130H 130331 over CFB Edmonton, Alberta during battle break recovery when hit on the underside by 130331. Ten crewmembers (likely five crew on each aircraft) were killed. The third C-130 (130333) landed safely. The first of 17 new J-model CC-130s began arriving in 2010 to replace the oldest aircraft in the Hercules fleet.
CC-130T 130339 refuels a pair of CF-188s during a Canada to Iceland flight on 4 April 2011 to join a Task Force at Keflavik AB.
Cameroon
Two C-130Hs and one C-130H-30 (4933/TJX-AE, later TJX-CE) have been flown by the l’Armée de l’Air du Cameroon. The aircraft were delivered in August and September 1977 and based at Douala have been used in support of counter-insurgency (COIN) operations from Batouri, Garoua and Yaounde and also for civilian passenger purposes. C-130H 4747 (TJX-AC) burned on the ground at Marseilles in December 1989 and in 1997 was to be shipped to Bordeaux for repairs.
Canada
Four C-130Bs were received in October-November 1960 and issued to 435 Squadron RCAF. 10304 was lost in April 1966 when the forward cargo door opened in flight, striking the port inner propeller which threw it over the fuselage, severing the tail control cables before striking both the starboard propellers. The aircraft belly-landed in a wheat field in Saskatchewan. The three surviving C-130Bs were returned to Lockheed in 1967 and these were acquired in 1969 by the Columbian Air Force (two were later lost). Meanwhile, twenty-four C-130Es had been delivered to the RCAF. These were followed by fourteen C-130H models, diverted from the USAF’s 1973 Appropriations for Tactical Air Command and delivered between October 1974 and February 1975.
During the period 1967 to 1993, five C-130Es have been lost, as have three C-130Hs in 435 Squadron (two of which were involved in a mid-air collision on 29 March 1985). One of the C-130Es and one of the C-130Hs were lost in accidents involving LAPES operations.
The current RCAF transport fleet consists of 26 E’s and H’s and the first of 17 C-130J (CC-130J) tactical aircraft arrived on 4 June 2010. In 1996 two L-100-30 aircraft (5320 and 5307) were modified to C-130H-30 - locally designated as CC-130s; they serve with the following squadrons on strategic and tactical transport, search-and-rescue and training duties: 413 Transport and Rescue, Greenwood, Nova Scotia; 418 (Air Reserve) Transport and Rescue, Namao; 424 Transport and Rescue, Trenton, Ontario; 426 Transport Training, Trenton (no aircraft permanently assigned: it also operates CC-130s for the tactical Air Lift School and Transport Operational Test and Evaluation Facility); 429 Transport, Trenton; 435 Transport and Tanker, Namao; 436 Transport; 437 Transport and Tanker, Trenton.
Chad
This former French colony’s Hercules fleet has been built up as from 1983 when the country became involved in a war with its northern neighbour Libya; it reached a peak of seven aircraft. The former RAAF C-130A (3208, A97-208) was obtained by France’s Securité Civile in November 1983. Four ex-USAF C-130As were acquired during the 1980s, though two of these were lost in crashes in 1986 and 1987 and two more were sold in 1991. Two new-build models, a C-130H and a C-130H-30, were acquired in 1988 and 1989 respectively. These and the surviving C-130A, remain in service with the Force Aérienne Tchadienne at Merino Benitz air base near Santiago.
Chile
The Fuerza Aérea de Chile operates C-130s with Grupo de Aviacon 10 at Santiago-Merino Benitez. The fleet consists of two C-130Hs which were delivered in 1972 and 1973 and four ex-USAF C-130Bs acquired in 1992, the latter retain their former ‘European One’ camouflage.
Fuerza Aérea Colombiana (Colombian Air Force) C-130H (L-382) of the Grupo de Transporte Aéreo 81 at El Dorado, Bogotà at Farnborough in July 2012.
Colombia
In 1969 the Fuerza Aérea Colombiana bought three ex-RCAF C-130Bs, which had been returned to Lockheed in 1967. Two of these were subsequently in August 1969 and October 1982. Eight C-130Bs were also required and of these five remain in service. Two new-build C-130Hs were delivered in 1983. The FAC Hercules’ are operated by the Escuadrón de Transporte at Eldorado Airport, Bogata.
Denmark
The Kongelige Danske Flyveaabnet’s (Royal Danish Air Force, RDAF) escadrille 721 of the Flyvertaktisk Kommando (Tactical Air Command) at Værløse uses three C-130Hs to provide support or the Danish Air Force and Army since delivery during the months April-July 1975. The first of three C-130J transports for the RDAF was delivered to its new home base in northern Jutland on 1 March 2004.
Ecuador
The Fuerza Aérea Ecuatoriana’s (FAE) small Hercules fleet serves with Ala de Transporte II at Quito-Mariscal Sucre. Four ex-USAF C-130Bs were obtained in the 1970s; these were joined by three new-build C-130Hs, the first two being delivered for service with Escuadrilla 11 in July and August 1977. The second of these (4748) was lost when it crashed into the Pinchincha Mountains in Ecuador on 12 July 1978 (4812, a replacement, was delivered in April 1979). The first (4743), also crashed into a mountain, 9 miles from Marisal Sucre airport near Quito on 29 April 1982, during a go-around after a missed approach. An L-100-30 was obtained in July 1981.
Egypt
The Al Quwwat AH Jawwiya Ilmisriya (the Air Force of the Republic of Egypt, EAF) received twenty-three C-130Hs between 1976 and 1982 and three C-130H-30s in 1990. The first six C-130Hs were diverted from the USAF’s 1976 Appropriations and were delivered during December 1976 and January 1977. The first C-130H delivered (SU-BAA/4707) was written off after it had its nose burned out during Egypt’s commando-style assault against terrorist hijackers who had taken a number of Egyptian nationals hostage at Larnaca airport, Cyprus, on 19 February 1978. A second C-130H (SU-BAH, which was carrying a cargo of ammunition) was lost when it hit the ground after take-off from Cairo-West on 29 May 1981. Two of the C-130Hs are now configured as VC-130H VIP transports and two serve as ECM/ELINT platforms or airborne command posts. The other twenty serve in the transport role. Egypt will receive two C-130Js in 2019.
Egyptian Air Force C-130H SU-BAC 1272 (76-1600) delivered in January 1977. On 24 February 2009 it sustained substantial damage during a night time touch-and-go landing.
France
The l’Armée de l’Air has five C-130Hs (including two ex-Zaire Air Force machines which were impounded in February 1982 at Milan-Malpensa) and nine C-130H-30s that were delivered between 1987 and March 1991. All are flown by the Escuadrón de Transport 2/61 at Orléans-Bricy. On 29 January 2016 France placed an order for two C-130J transports and two KC-130Js equipped for in-flight refuelling of helicopters. The first two aircraft will be delivered between the end of 2017 and early2018, with the two refuelling versions due in 2019.
Gabon
The Force Aérienne Gabonaise has just three Hercules (an L-100-30 was sold in 1989): a C-130H, an L-100-20 and an L-100-30 (the presidential aircraft), operated by the Escadrille de Transport at Libreville-Leon M’Ba Airport.
Germany
In January 2017 Germany purchased up to six C-130Js which, together with the C-130J of the French Air Force to form a joint air transport squadron.
Greece
Four C-130Hs were acquired by the Ellinki Aeroporia (Royal Hellenic Air Force) and delivered between September 1975 and June 1976 for service with 356 Mira (Squadron), 112 Ptérix, of Air Materiel Command. Greece withdrew from NATO following Turkey’s invasion of Cyprus and it was not until 1977 that the US export of arms was resumed when eight C-130Hs, diverted from the 1975 USAF Appropriations, were sold to the RHAF. C-130H 4724 crashed into Mount Billiuras during its landing approach to Nea Anchialos on 5 February 1991 and 4729 hit a mountain on approach to Tanagra air base on 20 December 1997 whilst searching for a crashed Ukrainian airliner near Athens. One of the C-130Hs was withdrawn from use in 1997. Meanwhile, in 1992, five ex-USAF C-130Bs were acquired to supplement the Hercules fleet. The fourteen C-130Hs that remain in service continue to be flown by 356 Mira at Eleusis. Some are equipped for fire-fighting missions with the MAFFS system and a few are modified for electronic surveillance duties.
Honduras
During 1986-89 the Fuerza Aérea Hondurena received an ex-USAF C-130D (57-0487) and four ex-USAF C-130As. The C-130D crashed near Wampusirpi, Honduras on 14 August 1986, while one of the C-130As was withdrawn in 1991. The Escadrilla de Transporte operates the three remaining C-130As at Tocontin Airport, Tegucigalpa.
Indonesia
In 1958-59 the Angkatan Udata Republik Indonesia received ten C-130Bs diverted from Tactical Air Command’s production allocation for that year and these entered service with No. 31 Squadron at Jarkarta-Halim, Java. T-1307 was lost on 3 September 1964 when it crashed in Malaya and T-1306 was lost a year later, on 21 September 1965, when it was believed to have been ‘frightened down’ by an RAF Javelin. Two C-130Bs were modified to KC-130B. In September 1980, 32 Squadron received the first stretched C-130H-30 (4864) from the production line. C-130H-MP (TNI-AU/4898) crashed into volcano Sibyak on 21 November 1985. Some of the L-100-30 models were leased or sold to Pelita Air Service. The Tantara Nasional Indonesia-Angkatan Udare (TNI-AU) still operates most of the total of twentyfive Hercules it has received. 31 Squadron at Jakarta-Halim operates the survivors of the sixteen C-130Bs delivered in 1960 and 1961, 1975 and 1979 and also the L-100-30, while 32 Squadron at Malang flies the remaining H and H30 models (TNI-AU/4927 crashed after takeoff from Halim-Perdanakasuma, Jakarta, on 5 October 1991).
On Tuesday 30 June 2015 an Indonesian C-130 was carrying more than 120 people when it crashed near a residential area. Military personnel and their family members, students and other civilians were among those on board the C-130 that went down shortly after takeoff in Medan on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The transport had 122 people aboard 110 passengers and twelve crew members when it took off from Soewondo Air Force Base in Medan, according to Supriatna. No survivors were found. Engine trouble might have been to blame. Major General Fuad Basya, an Indonesian military spokesman said that the aircraft, built in the United States in the 1960s, had been inspected and cleared to fly before it took off from Medan. The plane was carrying people and logistical supplies to bases on other Indonesian islands. It began its multi-stop journey Tuesday in Jakarta, the capital and had made two stops along the way to Medan, in Pekanbaru and Dumai. Sometimes, Indonesian civilians also hitch rides on military flights to get to islands which might otherwise be inaccessible. The C-130 hit a busy road that connects Medan with the highland tourist resort of Brastagi. The crash site is about five kilometres (3 miles) from the air base.
Iran
Beginning in 1962, the Nirou Havai Shahanshahiye Iran (Imperial Iranian Air Force, IIAF) took delivery of four C-130Bs, 28 C-130Es and thirty-two C-130Hs (the last two being delivered in May 1975) making it the third largest user (with 64 aircraft) of the Hercules after the US and the RAF. The C-130Bs were used for about four years with 5 Air Transport Squadron at Mehrabad before being purchased by Pakistan pending delivery of seventeen C-130Es in 1965-66 (eight) and 1968 (nine). C-130E 107/4118 was destroyed following a lightning strike on 18 April 1967. C-130E 5-112/4154 crashed while simulating two-engines out in Shiraz on 7 April 1969. In 1970-71, eleven more C-130Es were delivered. In the mid-1970s, five C-130Es were subsequently disposed of, again to Pakistan. Four IIAF C-130Hs were modified for covert signal monitoring and electronic reconnaissance along the Iranian border with the Soviet Union, as part of the Ibex ELINT-gathering network; the electronic equipment was installed in pods carried outboard of the outer engines. Following the Islamic revolution, the arms embargo imposed on Iran has taken a toll of the remaining fleet and only a handful are believed to be still flyable (since February 1974, seven Iran Air Force C-130s have been lost).
India
On 28 March 2014, Indian Air Force C-130J-30 KC-3803 crashed near Gwalior, India, killing all five personnel aboard. The aircraft was conducting low level penetration training by flying at around 300 feet when it ran into wake turbulence from another aircraft in the formation, which caused it to crash. IAF ordered six 13 C-130Js in early 2008, exercising options to buy six more aircraft in July 2012 and six more on 20 December 2013.
Iraq
The IAF ordered six C-130J-30s in July 2008.
Israel
During 1971-72 the Heyl Ha’Avir (Israeli Defence Force/Air Force, IDAF) acquired twelve C-130Es - all recently disposed of by the 313th, 316th and 516th Tactical Airlift Wings, USAF - and gave them dual military/civil registrations to disguise their military purpose. Starting in October 1971 and ending in September 1976, the IDAF took delivery of ten C-130Hs and two KC-130H tankers. After the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, twelve more ex-USAF C-130Es were delivered.
Ten C-130Hs are still in use on transport duties and are operated by 103 ‘Elephant’ Squadron and 131 ‘Yellow Bird’ Squadron at Nevatim. (4X-FBD) is known to have been lost in a crash at Jebel Halal on 25 November 1975 and others have been placed in storage.
The Israeli Government placed orders for four C-130Js with options for a further five.The Israeli Air Force is to purchase nine C-130J-30s.
C-130H (L-382) of the Jordanian Air Force.
Kōkū Jieitai (Japan Air Self-Defence Force or JASDF) C-130Hs in formation. (JASDF)
Italy
The Aeronautica Militaire Italiana’s 50th Gruppo of the 46 Aerobrigata at Pisa-San Giusto continues to fly the Hercules on strategic airlift duties, using twelve C-130Hs from a batch of fourteen delivered in 1972. In June 1978 three were used on fire-fighting duties. 46-10 (4492) was lost when it flew into Monte Serra 9 miles east of Pisa on 3 March 1977. In 1980, 46-14 was cannibalized for spares (subsequently used for C-130H 46-09) on 23 January 1979 when it jumped its chocks during an engine run-up at Milan-Malpensa and hit a tree. Ten C-130J-30 aircraft were delivered between 2002 and 2005.
Japan
The fifteen C-130Hs of the Koku Jietai (Japan Air Self-Defence Force, JASDF) have been operated since entering service in 1984 by the 401st Hikotai (Squadron) of the 1st Tactical Airlift Group at Komaki AB. Some of the aircraft have been fitted with a locally produced Naval minelaying system.
Jordan
The Al Quwwat Almalakiya (Royal Jordanian Air Force) initially received four ex-USAF C-130Bs in 1973, followed by four C-130Hs acquired in 1978 and an HC-130H (not confirmed). Two of the C-130B models were sold to Singapore and the remaining aircraft are flown by 3 Squadron from Amman-Ling Abdullah.
Kuwait
The Kuwait Air Force originally took delivery of two L-100-20s in 1970; N7954S was destroyed on 5 September 1980 when it crashed near Montelimar in southeast France after a lightning strike and the other (4412) was sold back to Lockheed - it was used as a high technology test bed (HTTB) and was subsequently lost on 3 February 1993 when it crashed during a high-speed ground-test. Four L-100-30s were acquired from 1983; 4949/KAF322 (N4107F) was hit by ground fire at Kuwait City Airport on 2 August 1990 during the Iraqi invasion and flown to Iraq - where it was hit by a bomb which badly damaged the centre fuselage. It was transported by road to Kuwait in March 1995 but was not repaired. 4951/KAF323, 4953/KAF324 and 4955/KAF325 were evacuated to Saudi Arabia on 2 August 1990 and flown by 41 Squadron at Kuwait International Airport. The Kuwait Air Force signed a contract for three KC-130J air refuelling tankers in May 2010 with an option to purchase three more.
Liberia
The former RAAF/Bob Geldof C-130A (N22FV) was briefly registered in Liberia as EL-AJM in April 1986 during varied and frequent changes of ownership, carrying the name Wizard of Oz. The Liberian Air Force was officially declared null and void in 2005.
Libya
Eight of the sixteen C-130Hs ordered for the Libyan Arab Republic Air Force were received between 1970 and 1971, the others being embargoed in 1973 and placed in storage at Marietta. 4401 was destroyed by fire at Entebbe, Uganda on 8 April 1979. Seven of the aircraft remain in service, supplemented by L-100-20s and -30s operated by Libyan Arab Air Cargo. L-100-30 4992 eventually ended up at AFI International Ltd ‘for oil exploration in Benin’ and was delivered to Libya in May 1985. It was hijacked by a Libyan crew to Egypt in March 1987 and was returned to Libya. L-100-30 (5000) was sold to AFI International Ltd, registered to Benin as TY-BBU (not used) and obtained by Jamahiriya Air Transport, Libya in May 1985. The Libyan Air Force has two C-130J-30s on order for the Free Libyan Air Force.
Malaysia
The Tentar Udara Diraja Malaysia (Royal Malaysian Air Force) has received six C-130Hs (FM2401/6), delivered between 1976 and 1980; of these, FM2403/4674 crashed whilst landing at Sibu, Sarawak, on 25 August 1980, while FM2401/4656 was put into storage in April 1997. It also has three C-130H-MPs and six C-130H-30s. Nos. 14 and 4 Squadrons at Kuala Lumpur-Subang Fly the four C-130H and three C-130H-MPs respectively, in joint maritime and transport duties; the latter are distinguished by an overall light grey finish. No. 20 Squadron operates the six C-130H-30s.
Mexico
The Fuerza Aérea Mexicana has received a total of nine ex-USAF C-130As and one RC-130A since 1987 for use by Escuadrón Aéreo Transporte Pesado 302 at Santa Lucia. The RC-130A was briefly operated under a civil registration on Presidential Flight duties. Four of the C-130As were written off in 1997. An L-100-30 was sold to Protexa in September 1994.
Mongolia
The Mongolian Air Force is planning to buy three C-130Js.
Morocco
A total of seventeen C-130H transports were delivered to the Force Aérienne Royal Morocaine (Al Quwwat Ali Jawwiya Almalakiya Marakishiya, Royal Maroc Air Force) in three batches between 1974 and 1981, the last being two C-130Hs (4888 N4162M/CNA-OP and 4892 CNA-OQ) in August 1981 with an SLAR (sideways-looking airborne radar) on the left main undercarriage fairing for use in detecting Polisario infiltrations in the Western Sahara. Two KC-130Hs were also delivered in November-December 1981. Polisario rebels shot down 4537/CNA-OB over the Sahara on 4 December 1976 and 4717/CNA-OH at Guelta Zemmour in West Sahara on 12 October 1981. Several aircraft at Kenitra were fitted with under-wing Chaff and flare pods, two were equipped with an SLAR pod for surveillance work and 4875/CNA-OM has been modified to carry MAFFS equipment for locust spraying. Civilian-style registrations are worn, with the aircraft construction number on the fin.
C-130H (L-382) CNA-OK L-382 of the Royal Moroccan Air Force (RMAF).
Nigerian Air Force C-130-H30 (NAF 918) arriving at Marshalls of Cambridge for overhaul. (Samuel Pilcher)
Netherlands
The Koninklijke Luchtmacht received the first of two C-130H-30s in 1994 (G273 Ben Swagerman and G2775 Joop Mulder), to become the newest European Hercules operator. The aircraft are flown by 334 Squadron at Eindhoven as part of the recently expanded transport office.
Niger
The small Escadrille Nationale du Niger (Force Aérienne Niger) took delivery of two C-130Hs (5U-MBD/4829 and 5U-MBH/4831) at Niamey in 1979. 5U-MBD was put into storage during 1986, but was returned to service in 1988. It was lost on 16 April 1997 when, with two engines on fire, it crashed at the village of Sorei on its approach to Niamey.
Nigeria
The Federal Nigerian Air Force received six C-130Hs delivered in two batches of three between September 1975 and February 1976; also three ‘stretched’ 130H 911/4624 crashed after take-off from Lagos, Nigeria, on 26 September 1992 when three engines failed because of contaminated fuel. The eight remaining aircraft are operated from the base at Lagos-Murtala Muhammed.
Norway
Six C-130Hs were delivered to the Kongelige Norske Lufforsvaret in June and July 1969 and are still flown by Skvadron 335 based at Gardermoen. They are: 68-10952 BW-A Odin; 68-10953 BW-B Tor; 68-10954 BW-C Balder; 68-10955 BW-D Froy; 68-10956 BW-E Ty; and 68-10957 BW-F Brage. Frequently assigned to the United Nations, they consequently often bore prominent ‘UN’ titling. LC-130J 10-5630 (c/n: 382-5630) crashed into the western wall of Mount Kebnekaise on 15 March 2012. The aircraft disappeared from radar over the Kebnekaise mountain range near Kiruna in Sweden. All five on board were killed. It was the last of four acquired by the Norwegian military between 2008 and 2010 and was named Siv. The Royal Norwegian Air Force ordered four C-130J-30s in 2007 to replace six aging C-130Hs in need of additional repairs. One of these was lost in March 2012.
C-130J Super Hercules (5698) for 16 Squadron of the Silāḥ al-Jaww as-Sulṭāniy ‘Umān (Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) conducting a test flight at the Lockheed Martin facility in Marietta, Georgia on 8 August 2012. (Lockheed Martin)
Left; The Royal Norwegian Air Force (Luftforsvaret) C-130Hs are frequently assigned to tasks on behalf of the United Nations and are consequently seen bearing prominent ‘UN’ titling. C-130H (68-10956) Ty is pictured at Sheremetyevo 1 Airport, Moscow, on 14 August 1992. (MWB)
Portuguese Air Force (Força Aérea Portuguesa) or PoAF C-130H 16803, which was delivered in April 1978 and is one of six C-130H/H-30s that equip Esquadra 501 ‘Bisontes’. On September 2004 this C-130H ran off the runway at Kabul Airport, Afghanistan after what was thought to be because of brake failure. No injuries were reported.
Pakistani Air Force C-130E 64-144, specially painted to highlight the sacrifices of Pakistani people and the Armed Forces in Operation ‘Zarbe-Azb’ (during the 2005 Pakistan earthquake) which not surprisingly won the Concours D’ Elegance trophy at Air Tattoo 2016 at RAF Fairford.
Oman
The Sultan of Oman’s Air Force acquired three C-130Hs in 1981 for use by 4 Squadron from their base at Muscat-Seen Airport. Two more C-130s were ordered in August 2010. Oman has ordered three C-130J-30s.
Pakistan
A mixed force of thirteen Hercules remains in service with 35 (Composite) Air Transport Wing of the Pakistan Fiza’ya; this is from a total of thirteen C-130Bs (five of which were ex-USAF and four ex-Imperial Iran Air Force), five C-130Es (all ex-IIAF) and two L-100s (bought by the Pakistan government for PIA, but operated by the PAF) delivered at various times. Seven of the twenty aircraft (five C-130Bs, one C-130E and one L-100) were lost or written off between 1965 and 1988. C-130B 62-3494/PAF 23494 crashed on 17 June 1988 after take-off 4 miles north of Bahawalpur airport, Pakistan, en route to Rawalpindi. President Zia-ul-Haq and many senior officers were killed. The remaining aircraft, which includes the world’s last unmodified L-100, are operated mainly by 6 Tactical Support Squadron at Chaklala AB, Rawalpindi.
Peru
The Fuerza Aérea Peruana (Peruvian Air Force) has operated a total of sixteen Hercules since 1970, having received six ex-USAF C-130Bs, two ex-USAF C-130Ds (both of which were scrapped in August 1993) and eight L-100-20s. Two of the C-130As were converted to tankers, one of which was withdrawn from use in 1997. Only three C-130As remain in service. Of the eight L-100-20s, three were written off in crashes: 4364/FAP394 suffered an engine shutdown on take-off from Tarapoto on 19 February 1978. 4450, delivered to the FAP in April 1972 and coded 396, made an emergency landing at night with no fuel near San Juan on 24 April 1981 and was written off. 4708, delivered in December 1976, crashed at Puerto Maldonado, southern Peru on 9 June 1983. The remaining Hercules in the FAP inventory are operated by Escuadrón 841, Grupo Aéreo de Transporte 8, from Jorge Chavez Airport, Lima.
Philippines
The Philippine Air Force acquired an ex-RAAF C-130A (later sold) and seven ex-USAF C-130Bs, four of which were either withdrawn from use between 1996 and 1997, or were rendered non-operational. L-100 (N1130E), the ex-Lockheed demonstrator, was acquired by the Philippine government in 1973 and issued to the Air Force after long storage in Manila. The Philippine government also acquired four L-100-20s, two of which were for the Air Force. One L-100-20 was withdrawn from use in 1991. Three new-build C-130Hs were acquired in the period 1976-97 and issued to 222 Heavy Airlift Squadron at Mactan. The third aircraft (4761) crashed into Mount Manase 155 miles south-east of Manila on 15 December 1993 during descent towards Naga airport.
Portugal
Força Aérea Portuguesa acquired five C-130Hs, delivered from August 1977 to June 1978. Two were subsequently modified to C-130H-30 configuration. A new-build C-130H-30 was added in October 1991. Esquadra de Transporte 501 at Montijo Air Base Operates all six aircraft, all of which can be equipped with the MAFF system for fire-fighting.
Qatar
Qatar ordered four C-130J-30s in October 2008 for the Qatar Emiri Air Force.
Romania
The Romanian Air Force acquired four ex-USAF C-130Bs, which were delivered from Ogden Air Logistics Center to Romania in 1996-97 and equipped 90 Airlift at Otopeni near Bucharest. In 2004 the former |Italian Air Force C-130H MM61991.
Saudi Arabia
The first Hercules of the Al Quwwat Ali Jawwiya Assa’udiya (Royal Saudi Air Force) were nine C-130Es delivered between 1965 and 1968. Losses were 4128/RSAF453, which suffered and engine fire and crashed taking off from Medina on 14 September 1980 and 4136/RSAF454 which crashed at Le Bourget, Paris, on 1 January 1969. The C-130Es were followed by thirty-seven C-130Hs beginning with two in December 1970 and including eight delivered between October 1991 and March 1992, plus eight KC-130Hs (delivered in 1973-74, 1977 and 1980-81) and two VC-130Hs (delivered in July 1980). One of the KC-130Hs (4872) crashed landing at Riyadh on 24 February 1985. Three of the C-130Hs were modified to hospital aircraft; one was reconfigured as a VC-130H for the royal family, while 4756 and 4754 were lost in crashes on 27 March 1989 and 21 March 1991 respectively. Six L-100-30s were acquired. One (4954) was sold to Sheikh Ibrahim, a Saudi VIP and the other five (4950, 4952 - configured as a dental clinic - 4956/57 and 4960) were modified for use as airborne hospitals and operated by Saudia. In 1992 and 1993 respectively, 4950/HZ-MS05 and 4957/HZ-MS10 were demodified to L-100-30 designation and their hospital equipment was removed. Three C-130H-30s were delivered, the first in 1984 and the other two in 1992; the first of these (4986) being converted to a hospital aircraft and operated by Saudia. The standard transport aircraft are flown by Nos. 4 and 16 Squadrons at Jeddah/Prince Abdullah AB. The single VIP-configured L-100-30 and the three VC-130Hs operate from King Faisal AFB, Riyadh, alongside the three C-130H hospital aircraft and the three medically configured L-100-30s and one medically configured C-130H-30. Two KC-130Js were delivered in 2016
Royal Saudi Air Force C-130H (1623) participating in the airdrop competition over McChord Air Force Base, Washington on 23 July 2007, during ‘Rodeo 2007’, an Air Mobility Command readiness competition with US and international mobility air forces focusing on improving war fighting capabilities and support of the war on terrorism. (USAF)
Singapore
The first Hercules acquired for the Republic of Singapore Air Force were four ex-USAF C-130B models, two of which had also served with the Royal Jordanian Air Force. Delivered in 1977, all were converted to KC-130B transport/ tanker configuration in 1985 and 1986. In 1980 four C-130Hs were delivered, followed by a fifth in 1987, together with a KC-130H (ex-Lockheed tanker demonstrator). All the Hercules serve with 122 Squadron at Paya Lebar.
South Africa
Seven C-130Bs were delivered to the SAAF between 1962 and 1963 for issue to 28 Squadron, Air Transport Command, at Waterkloof, Transvaal, which continues to fly these to this day. A UN arms embargo on sales to South Africa meant that no further Hercules were purchased until 1996-97, when three ex-USN C-HOFs were acquired. In 1997-98, two ex-USAF C-130Bs were added. The nineteen L-100-30s operated by Safair Freighter (Pty) Ltd, Johannesburg at various times (only about six remain), have also been available as a reserve airlift asset.
At the end of May 2013 28 Squadron marked two major milestones – its 70th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of the venerable C-130BZ in service. At AFB Waterkloof, Colonel Jurgens Prinsloo CO, 28 Squadron had responsibility for the nine C-130BZs in the SAAF inventory. The SAAF C-130s were regularly flying to Sudan, the DRC and Uganda to provide logistic support for SA National Defence Force troops deployed on peace support and peacekeeping missions. One of the squadron’s aircraft had gone as far north as Malta to bring home South Africans, including diplomats, rushed out of North African countries during the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings.
Seven C-130B Hercules were acquired in 1963 and when the squadron moved to AFB Waterkloof, it left its Dakotas behind to join 44 Squadron at Swartkop. In February 1968 the VIP flight was reconstituted as 21 Squadron, while the C-160Z Transall was acquired in 1969 and operated with the squadron from January 1970 until they retired in 1993. Three ex-USN C-130F aircraft were acquired in 1996 with a further two ex-USAF C-130B following in 1998. The F models were only flown for a short time before being retired. The squadron continues to fly the nine C-130B Hercules, all having been upgraded to C-130BZ configuration.
South Korea
The Republic of Korea received four C-130H-30s in 1987-88 and two batches of four C-130Hs in 1989 and 1990, for service with its Air Transport Wing at Seoul-Kimpo. The first C-130H-30 (N408M/5006) was used at Pope AFB in June/July 1987 to test LAPES etc with ‘stretched’ aircraft). One aircraft was deployed to serve in the 1991 Gulf War. Four C-130J-30s were delivered in 2014.
Spain
The first four C-130Hs were delivered to the Ejército del Aire Espanol (EdA) in December 1973 and early 1974; initially these were assigned to Escuadrón 301 of the Mando Aviacion Tactica (Tactical Air Command) at Valenzuela-Zaragoza. In Spanish service these were designated T-10s. The first aircraft, 4520/T-10-1, crashed into a mountain in central Gran Canaria while operating from Las Palmas, on 28 May 1980. The third aircraft (4531/T-10-3) had a fortunate escape on 15 November 1988 when it collided with an F-18 near Zaragoza and lost 30 feet of its wing: both aircraft landed safely. In 1976 three KC-130Hs (TK-10s) were delivered; in 1979-80 these were followed by three more C-130Hs and in 1980 by two more KC-130Hs. 5003, a C-130H-30 (TL-10-01) was delivered in 1988. This and all C-130 transport aircraft are flown by Escuadrone 311, Ala de Transporte 31, at Zaragoza. The KC-130Hs (TK-10s) are operated by Escuadrón 312.
Sudan
Six C-130Hs for the Silakh al Jawwiya and known as ‘Sudaniya’ were delivered to Khartoum between January and May 1978. One Aircraft (4766) has occasionally operated as ST-AHR and ST-AIF in the markings of Sudan Airways. The third aircraft (4769/Sudan AFI 102) is the 1,500th Hercules delivered’.
Sweden
The Svenska Flygvapnet became the first European air force to operate the Hercules, leasing C-130E 64-0546/4039 from Lockheed in February 1965 after the aircraft had been sold back before delivery to the USAF. A second C-130E joined this aircraft in Flygflottilj 7 (F7) Transportglyg-divisionen at Satenas and in 1982 both were modified to C-130H configuration. Six additional C-130H models had by then entered service. Designated Tp 84, the aircraft continue to be flown by F7 at Satenas and have been equipped with flare and chaff dispensers and armoured cockpits.
Taiwan
The Republic of China Air Force has received twentyone C-130Hs, the first twelve having been delivered in 1986. One (5067/Taiwanl310) crashed during an attempted go-round at Tiipeh-Sung-Shan in a rainstorm on 10 October 1997. The twenty remaining aircraft (at least one of which is equipped for electronic warfare) are operated by 101 Squadron based at Pingtung AB.
Thailand
The Royal Thai Air Force received its first three C-130Hs in 1980 under the US Military Assistance Program. A C-130H-30 was delivered in 1983, followed by three more in 1988 and 1990. During 1990-92, three C-130Hs were acquired, one going to Cambodia in 1997. In 1992 also, two more C-130H-30s were acquired, one of which is presumed to be used as a VIP aircraft. Most of the Hercules are flown by 601 Squadron, part of 6 Wing at Bangkok-Don Muang.
Tunisia
Seven ex-USAF C-130Bs were acquired for the Tunisian Air Force and these were delivered between 1995 and 1998. Meanwhile, two C-130Hs were purchased in 1985: they serve with the Escadrille de Transport et Communication at Bizerte and wear quasi-civilian markings. Two C-130J-30s were received as of December 2014.
Turkey
Under the US Military Assistance Program (MAP), the Türk Hava Kuvvetleri received eight C-130Es 1964-1974 for service with Air Transport Command at Erkilet. 4100/ETI-949 in 131 Squadron crashed into a mountain during approach to Izmir, Turkey, on 19 October 1968. The Hercules were used to support the 6th Allied Tactical Ait Force of NATO Allied Air Forces Southern Europe and on relief operations. They also took part in the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, which led to an arms-sale embargo on Turkey. Seven ex-USAF C-130Bs were delivered to Turkey during 1991-92, one subsequently returning to the US and being sold to Romania. All Turkish Air Force Hercules are operated by 222 Squadron at Erkilet/Kayseri.
Uganda
L-100-30 (no further details available).
United Arab Emirates
The integrated air forces of Abu Dhabi and Dubai comprise the UAE Air Force. Two C-130Hs (4580 and 4584) delivered to Abu Dhabi in March 1975 were sold back to Lockheed in February 1984 (subsequently being acquired by Canada for the CAF) in exchange for two new C-130Hs (4983 and 4985 respectively). Two other C-130Hs were delivered to Abu Dhabi in 1981. The four C- 130Hs now operate with the Transport Wing of Western Air Command from Bateen AB, Abu Dhabi. An L-100-30 (4834) was delivered to Dubai in 1979 and a C-130H-30 was delivered in 1983. Both fly with the Transport Squadron, Central Air Command, from Minchat AB, Dubai. On 25 February 2009 the UAE placed an order for 12 C-130J-30s to modernize the country’s tactical airlift fleet with an option for four KC-130J tankers.
‘Turkish Stars’ C-130E 73-00991 support aircraft.
United Kingdom
Sixty-six C-130K models were ordered for the RAF in 1965. These were 65-13021/13044, 66-8550/8573 and 66-13533/13550 and they were essentially C-130H airframes powered by 4,508 eshp T56-A-15s with some components made by Scottish Aviation and British electronics. The first aircraft (65-13021/XV176) flew at Marietta, Georgia on 19 October 1966. Known in service as the Hercules C.Mk.1, it was the first to be delivered and was assigned to 242 OCU at Thorney Island, Hampshire in April 1967. Final deliveries to the RAF of the C.Mk.1 were made in 1968. Four aircraft have been lost and twenty-five were provided with in-flight refuelling probes and modified to C.Mk.1P standard. Six more were fitted with the air-refuelling probe and a hose-drum unit in the fuselage and were designated C.Mk.1K Hercules. XV223 was modified by Lockheed as the prototype of the Hercules C.Mk.3. with the fuselage stretched by 15 feet to increase capacity from ninety-two to 129 infantrymen, or from sixty-four to ninety-two paratroops. This aircraft first flew in modified form on 3 December 1979. Twentynine C.Mk.1s were stretched by Marshall Engineering, to be brought up to C.Mk.3 standard.
Following the Falklands War in 1982, Marshalls fitted an in-flight air-refuelling probe to twenty-five aircraft, which became C.Mk.1Ps. Beginning in 1986 they also began fitting in-flight refuelling probes to the thirty C.Mk.3s to convert them to C.Mk.3P configuration. Starting in 1987, C.Mk.1Ps and C.Mk.1Ks began receiving AN/ALQ 157 IR jamming equipment and chaff/flare dispensers. At least five C.Mk.1Ps were fitted with Racal ‘Orange Blossom’ ESM pods beneath their wing-tips to give some degree of surveillance capability.
The RAF has a total of 24 C-130J (C4/C5) aircraft. The C4 is almost the same size as the current C3 aircraft, but with a slightly shorter fuselage, while the C5 is the same size as the C1.
United States of America
The original user of the Hercules in December 1956, the USAF now has a total of 201 C-130E, C-130H and H-30 transports in its inventory, which serve with eleven Airlift squadrons in Air Combat Command (ACC); Air Mobility Command(AMC);USAFE; USAF Special Operations Command; US Pacific Air Forces (PACAF); US Air Education and Training Command (AETC); AFMC (Air Force Materiel CMD); AFRes; ANG; Air Mobility Command (AMC); US Air Combat Command (USACC); US Navy (USN); USMC and the US Coast Guard (USCG). The last named is a key component of the US Armed Forces (USCG district commanders are of USN Rear Admiral rank), with essential wartime/readiness responsibilities under the US Navy Maritime Defense Zone (MARDEZ), it carries out combat and combat support tasks for the USN, which include SAR, port security, harbour defence, antisubmarine warfare (ASW), logistic support and surveillance interdiction. Apart from SAR, the USCG is part of the international ice patrol: in the average year, 200 to 400 icebergs are located and tracked in the 45,000 square miles of North Atlantic sea lanes patrolled by CG C-130s.
HC-130H CG1717 (86-0420) coming into land at CGAS Clearwater, Florida in April 1991. This Coast Guard Hercules was registered N436NA to NASA at Wallops Island on 26 March 2015. (MWB)
EC-130Q BuNo 159469 was delivered to VQ-4 at Patuxent River in July 1975 for airborne communication with USN nuclear submarines. This aircraft was re-designated TC-130Q before being released to AMARC in September 1991. On 10 September 1997 Derco Aerospace sold the aircraft to the Netherlands for spare parts. (Lockheed)
The following roles are becoming increasingly important for the Hercules: enforcement of immigration and sea traffic laws and treaties (ELT), drug-traffic interdiction and also marine environmental protection (MEP) - CG Hercules on offshore and port area surveillance detect oil contamination resulting from offshore drilling operations, tankers, spillage and other sources. Since 1988, Operation ‘Bahamas’, Turks and Caicos Islands (OPBAT), a multi-national effort of law enforcement and military agencies, has stemmed the flow of illegal drugs smuggled into the US through the Caribbean; in 1997, a record year for drug seizures, OPBAT netted 12,163lb of marijuana and more than two tons of cocaine.
USCG aircraft are normally funded through the USN Appropriations; the first four Hercules, ordered under the designation R8V-1G (later SC-130B), were delivered between December 1959 and March 1960. Two more SC-130Bs were delivered from January to Match 1961, by which time the aircraft were redesignated HC-130G. Then three more were delivered to the CG in March and April 1962 and another three (now re-designated as HC-130Bs) between December 1962 and February 1963. All were withdrawn from use in the 1980s.
EC-130E 63-7869 of the 193rd Special Operations Squadron, 193rd Special Operations Group, Pennsylvania ANG over Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on 1 May 1980. Built as a C-130E, 63-7869 was converted to an EC-130E in April 1979 and modified to an EC-130H ‘Commando Solo’ in January 1993.
The ‘Blue Angels’ C-130T BuNo164763 Hercules passing the New York skyline.
The ‘Blue Angels’ C-130T BuNo164763 Hercules taking off with JATO rockets.
The ‘Blue Angels’ Honour Guard takes the salute.(USMC photo by Staff Sergeant Oscar L. Olive)
In August 1966 the CG received its first EC-130E (4158, later redesignated HC-130E) and this was used until the mid-19808. In 1968 three HC-130Hs were delivered and another nine followed, in 1973, 1974 and 1977. One HC-130H (4757) crashed 2.5 miles south of Attu in the Aleutian Islands on 30 July 1982 while trying to land in bad weather. In 1983 and 1984, eleven HC-130H-7s were received and between 1985 and 1987 a further eleven HC-130Hs were added. In 1988 one additional HC-130H (5121) was delivered, to COS Clearwater, Florida and then modified in 1991 to EC-130V; it was transferred to the USAF in 1993. On 24 January 1992, HC-130H-7 CGI706, based at Kodiak, Alaska, lost a propeller in flight and suffered fuselage and wing damage, but managed to land safely. Three months later, on 24 April, HC-130H 1452 (67-7183) was attacked by Peruvian Su-22s while on an anti-drug mission and suffered extensive damage; it was repaired, but was consigned to AMARC in 1993. Thirty CG C-130H and H-7 aircraft and the HC-130J version are in the USCG inventory at the following CG stations: Barbers Point, HI (HC-130H); Borinquen, Puerto Rico (HC-130H); Clearwater, FL (HC-130H); Elizabeth City, North Carolina (HC-130H); Kodiak, Alaska (HC-130H); Sacramento, McClellan AFB, California (HC-130H).
Uruguay
Between 1992 and 1994 the Fuerza Aérea Uruguaya acquired three ex-USAF C-130Bs, although the last (3541) was never used and was withdrawn from use in August 1996. The two remaining aircraft are flown by the Regimento Tactico 1 at Montevideo-Carrasco.
Venezuela
The original order intended for the Fuerza Aérea Venezolana and placed in 1969, was for six C-130Hs for service with Escuadrón de Transporte 1 at Caracas, four to be delivered in 1970 and two in 1975. Four were delivered to the FAV in 1971 for operation by Escuadrón 62 at Matacay-El Libertador and the other two duly arrived in 1975. However, 4408/FAV7772 24 de Julio crashed on night approach to Lajes, Azores, in bad visibility and high winds on 27 August 1976; and 4406/FAV3556 crashed attempting a three-engined take-off from Caracas airport on 4 November 1980. Two further C-130H models were delivered, in December 1978 and 1988, as an attrition replacement for the two crashed aircraft.
Việtnam
As part of Operation ‘Enhance Plus’, thirty-five C-130As were speedily transferred from ANG squadrons in the US and delivered to the Republic of Việtnam Air Force (South Việtnam) in November 1972. By April 1975, when the country was overrun, three C-130As had been lost, nineteen were flown to Thailand, but thirteen were captured in 1975 and entered service with the 918th Regiment, Việtnamese People’s Air Force. Some were kept flying by cannibalizing others and were used as makeshift bombers in the invasion of Kampuchea in 1978. A few may have been given to the former USSR. Attempted sales of surviving airframes in the early 1990s were unsuccessful.
Yemen
In August 1979 the Yemen Arab Republic Air Force received two C-130Hs donated by Saudi Arabia; they are operated by Yemen Airways.
Zaire
Only one (4411/9T-TCA) of the seven C-130Hs which served with the Force Aérienne Zairoise (1971 to 1997, now The Air Force of the Democratic Republic of the Congo) remain in service: with 191 Escadrille of 19 Wing d’Appui Logistique at N’Djili Airport, Kinshasa. Initially, three C-130Hs were delivered in 1971, then three more in 1975 and the seventh (4736/9T-TCG) in 1977. 4422/9T-TCD crashed at Kisangani, Zaire, on 18 August 1974, but all the rest were used during the war of 1977 which followed the invasion of Shaba by foreign mercenaries. Subsequently, 4569/9T-TCE crashed during a three-engined take-off with maximum load from Kindu, Zaire, on 14 September 1980. Then 4736/9T-TCG crashed near Kinshasa, Zaire on 19 April 1990 because a propeller blade broke off. Finally 4416/9T-TCB and 4588/9T-TCF were impounded at Milan-Malpensa airport in October 1994, the latter going on to serve with the French l’Armée de l’Air (as did 4589/9T-TCC after 1995).
Zambia
Though no Hercules has officially served with the Zambian Air Force, five L-100s have been used by the Zambian government and Zambia Air Cargoes and possibly by the air force, too.
Twenty-one USAF C-130J Super Hercules roll down the runway at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas on 21 June 2014 when the aircrews from multiple units flew a large formation. More than 500 manning hours and 200 maintainers in the 317th Airlift Group generated twelve aircraft for the large-scale launch when C-130Hs and Js joined more than fifty other aircraft across 14 other wings and seven major commands to take part in the largest ‘Joint Forcible Entry Exercise’ led by the US Air Force. The 21-ship formation, of both the C-130H Legacy and C-130J Super Hercules models from eight Air Force installations travelled to Nellis AFB, Nevada, in support of the JFE.