The AC-5

[Raellus]

I find the idea of an AC-5 "Gun Galaxy" highly implausible. Compared to your RL AC-130, a C-5 is huge target, a real gas guzzler, and needs a relatively long, well-maintained conventional runway in order to operate. In a T2K setting these traits were become major weaknesses.

When I was a teenager living in Quito, Ecuador c.1988, American C-130s, C-141s, and C-5s would routinely land at the airport. My kid brother could identify any aircraft, civilian and/or military, coming in to land just by the sound of its engines. It was uncanny and quite impressive. The C-5 was by far the loudest of all them (even louder than the occasional 747 that would visit Quito) and could be heard well earlier too- even I could tell when it was coming. In a war zone, the red force could hear it coming from miles away, giving them time to ready their MANPADs and AAA. In such a hostile environment, a huge, loud, slow-moving AC-5 wouldn't last long.

[pmulcahy11b]

You know, one I've always thought would make a good gunship conversion: the G.222 (Alenia, IIRC).

[Tegyrius]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

You know, one I've always thought would make a good gunship conversion: the G.222 (Alenia, IIRC).

I think AFSOC briefly looked at that under the AC-27J designation.

- C.

[JHart]

My Wingman books are packed away at the moment, but I recall that there were two versions of the AC-5. Everything that follows is from memory and may not be correct.

They had the nicknames of "Nozo" and "Bozo". One was armed with 21 GAU-8s, the same gun mounted on A-10s. The other had a mix of guns, ranging from 20mm to 120mm M1 tank guns.

There is of course so many things wrong it is hard to know where to start.


In the computer game Command and Conquer Generals, there is an air support ability that has a jet powered gunship that appeared to be related to a C-17

[Raellus]

Were they crewed by little people from the magical land of Oz?

IIRC, firing the GAU-8 reduces the airspeed of the A-10. Imagine what firing 21 of them, sideways, would do, even to a big bird like the C-5.

[Olefin]

like to know what the heck they were going up against that they needed 21 GAU-8's in a gunship!

[cavtroop]

Originally Posted by Raellus

Were they crewed by little people from the magical land of Oz?

IIRC, firing the GAU-8 reduces the airspeed of the A-10. Imagine what firing 21 of them, sideways, would do, even to a big bird like the C-5.

No, this is just a rumor, the mass that they're firing out of the gun (couple hundred KG, maybe, in a few seconds) is nothing compared to the mass and velocity of the A10, so it doesn't slow down at all (maybe on the microsecond level, but nothing measurable by normal means )

http://www.stripes.com/blogs/the-rum...fired-1.152557

Now, a big gun, say the 105 mounted on an AC130, may skew the plane sideways a bit, but wouldn't affect it's forward velocity either I imagine.

[pmulcahy11b]

Originally Posted by Raellus

I find the idea of an AC-5 "Gun Galaxy" highly implausible. Compared to your RL AC-130, a C-5 is huge target, a real gas guzzler, and needs a relatively long, well-maintained conventional runway in order to operate. In a T2K setting these traits were become major weaknesses.

Oh, I know the size and noise of the C-5. They're overhead all the time -- one tip that something is going on in the world is that the military transport comings and goings ramp up dramatically.

The first time a C-5 went over (at an illegally-low altitude, my guess would be), my then-puppy Shadow was in the backyard absolutely hugged the ground!