I had 17 "good" years in the USAR between 1984 and my retirement in 2003. I worked in the dairy industry since graduating from Cornell in 1973. First in research and farm management for Cornell; in 1987 I began a career as an artificial insemination technician for (then) Eastern AI Cooperative; I retired from that job in 2008 and worked as a herdsman on a custom heifer raising operation, caring for just shy of 3000 animals. I am currently in the process of getting my retirement life in order.
Aircraft/Missile Information
The C-130 series began as a 1951 requirement for a military transport with Short Take-Off and Landing capabilities. The series was born as the YC-130 and performed well in the latter part of 1954 with its Allison three-bladed turboprop engines. With successes encountered throughout the war in Vietnam and furthermore in peacetime, the C-130 Hercules spawned a plethora of variants that would include special forces insertion, arctic patrol, meteorological research, communications, close-support and modernized variants of the base transport.
Model Lockheed C-130H Hercules Length 97.77 ft | 29.80 m Width 132.55 ft | 40.40 m Height 37.40 ft | 11.40 m Engine(s) 4 x Allison T56-A-15LFE turboprop engines generating 4,508hp each. Empty Weight 76,505 lbs | 34,702 kg MTOW 175,003 lbs | 79,380 kg Max Speed 386 mph | 621 km/h | 335 kts Max Range 2,237 miles | 3,600 km Ceiling 33,005 ft | 10,060 m | 6.3 miles Climb Rate Not Available Hardpoints 0 Armament None. Internal payload of up to 42,637lbs of supplies, personnel and vehicles. Accommodations 4 + 92 Operators Australia, Brazil, Canada, Israel, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom and the United States of America among others (about 60 in all).
