All language subtitles for Air.Warriors.S06E01.AC-130.WEB.h264-CAFFEiNE[eztv]

Narrator: Big...

Ruthless...

And lethal...

The ac-130 gunship
is made to put bullets...

Where bombs can't go.

[explosion]

Man: Nothing can really
match the firepower

Of the ac-130 gunship.

Narrator: To its friends,
it's a guardian angel.

Man: As long as there's somebody
that needs fire support,

The gunship's going to be there.

Narrator: To its enemies,
it's an angel of death.

Woman: They couldn't believe
what was happening.

And where was this attack
coming from?

Narrator: This is the story
of how this lumbering giant

Was left exposed...

[gunfire]

Man: The iraqi forces
took advantage of it,

And we lost a good crew.

Narrator: Only to find
its strength in darkness.

Man: It was just what
the doctor ordered.

[gunfire]

♪

Narrator: October 3, 2016.

Kunduz city, afghanistan.

[gunfire]

The united states military
and its afghan partners

Struggle to maintain
control of the city.

Reporter: Taliban fighters
have taken control

Of the center of kunduz.

[gunfire]

Narrator: The assault marks
the fourth taliban attack

In just one week.

There'll likely be more.

Man: This is still part
of the fighting season.

The taliban would like
to take population centers.

Narrator: U.S. And afghan forces
work side by side,

Conducting raids
in afghan villages,

Hoping to root out
the taliban

Once and for all.

Watching out for them
from above--

The ac-130.

Sean silva: Behind me
is the ac-130 gunship.

It's the air force's premier
close air support platform.

Narrator: 38 feet tall...

133-foot wingspan...

The ac-130 is hard to miss.

This heavyweight
is in a class of its own.

Silva: Its mass gross payload
of 155,000 pounds

Allows us to carry more weapons,
crew, and ammunition

Than any of the rotary-wing
gunships.

Narrator: When soldiers need
a fist to come down from above,

This is the weapon
they call for.

[gunfire]

Silva: The primary mission
of the ac-130 gunship

Is to support
the guys on the ground,

Keep them safe,

And make sure they are able to
come home after their mission.

Narrator: November 2016.

Afghanistan.

Nearly one month since
the taliban attack on kunduz.

Just north of the city,

Insurgents gather
near a village,

Plotting to make
further attacks.

U.S. Special forces
catch wind of their location

And vow to disrupt them
before it's too late.

Aaron hall: Basically
we wanted to root out

The embedded taliban force
inside the village itself.

Narrator: Major aaron hall
has served on ac-130s

For over fifteen years.

Hall: The special forces team
along with the partner force,

We're going to move in

In an attempt
to capture these folks

And get as much information
as they could.

Narrator: Late at night,
the special operations team

Gathers just outside
the village.

Their plan is to sneak in

And catch insurgents
by surprise.

It's not easy to catch
the taliban off guard.

The ground troops rely
on hall's ac-130

To watch their backs.

Hall: We were overhead
scanning around their position,

Making sure that
there were no enemies

Coming in on their locations.

Man on radio: Let me know
when you see the target area,

And I'll start the gun.

Hall: This was
a large village area,

So multiple structures,

Pretty dense group of buildings.

And as soon as the ground force

Started moving down
in that area,

We started seeing some movement.

Man on radio:
We got a vehicle moving out.

Narrator: Hall's ac-130
flies with 13 crew members--

The largest aircrew
of any combat aircraft

In the air force inventory.

In the cockpit,

Two pilots
and a flight engineer,

Who monitors
the aircraft's systems.

Behind the cockpit,

The heart of the gunship,

Otherwise known as "the booth."

Five crew members
share the space.

Silva: We have
our two sensor operators

Sitting up behind me.

The fire control officer
sits here,

And the navigator
sits next to him.

And then in the back

We have the electronic
warfare officer as well.

Narrator: The sensor operators
scan the ground for threats

And pass the info
to the navigator,

Who validates the target.

Then it's up to
the fire control officer

To select the weapon.

While the others in the booth
run offense,

The electronic warfare officer
is all defense,

Keeping an eye on the ground
for threats.

If the front of the aircraft
is its brains,

The back is all muscle.

Three gunners
load up the weapons

As fast as they can.

Two more look out for threats

From the right and rear
scanner bubbles.

Once the weapons are armed,

It's the sensor operators
who fire.

Silva: What really makes
the gunship the gunship

Is the well-orchestrated
symphony

That happens inside the aircraft

To be able to put those rounds
down on the ground,

Close to the friendlies
when they need it.

Narrator: Over afghanistan,

Major aaron hall keeps watch
on u.S. Special forces

From the booth of his ac-130.

Man on radio: Tracking,
I got the square building,

The rectangle building
to the northwest.

Man: We have a square building

And a rectangle building
to the northwest.

Narrator: 8,000 feet below,

A special ops team
slowly makes its way

Through an insurgent village...

Not knowing
if the people around them

Are friend or foe.

Hall: The assumption is
the taliban probably had

Some other folks
in the rest of the village

Spotting for them as well.

Narrator: The ground team

Cautiously approaches
a gated compound.

Man: Let's go. Roll it in.

Narrator: They suspect

That a taliban fighting cell
is inside.

Suddenly, the sensor operator
in the ac-130

Spots a small group of men
walking just beyond the gate.

Hall: They seemed to be
pretty suspicious.

It did appear that they knew
that the friendly force

Was moving in their direction.

Narrator:
The navigator radios a warning

Down to the ground team.

Man on radio:
People running through...

Copy.

Narrator:
But it's already too late.

One of the men lobs a grenade
over the gate...

And right into the friendlies.

[explosion]

Hall: That's when
all hell broke loose.

As soon as we saw the explosion,
that's when it was game on.

Man: Get up, man. Get up.

Narrator: In a flash,

Dozens of insurgents emerge
from surrounding buildings.

Hall: The friendly forces were
surrounded on three sides.

They were trapped, and there was
no place they could go.

Narrator: Hall and his crew
must respond--fast.

Hall: I immediately
brought up two guns,

And we moved in to engage them.

Narrator: The ac-130.

It's the world's biggest
flying artillery gun.

Its enemies know it
as hell in the sky.

Silva: So the guns are obviously

What make the gunship
the gunship.

We have three
side-firing weapons.

We can shoot two of them
at the same time,

Either at the same target
or at separate targets.

Narrator:
Toward the front of the plane,

The 25-millimeter gatling gun.

Silva: This is the 25-millimeter
gau-12 gatling gun.

We call it the crowd-pleaser.

From the 350-round bursts,

It's just 12 seconds
of a fireball

Coming out the side
of the aircraft.

It's pretty impressive.

Narrator: Behind it is a weapon
in service since world war ii,

The 40-millimeter bofors cannon.

Silva: It can fire off
200 rounds a minute.

This is our
most accurate weapon.

Because of its
low collateral damage,

It's the one we get to
fire the most in combat.

Narrator: In the back
is the gunship's specialty--

The deadly and ferocious 105.

Silva: This is the
105-millimeter howitzer.

[firing]

This is the biggest gun
we have on the gunship.

Its firepower is unmatched
by any other airframe.

Narrator: This massive cannon

Can fire approximately
10 rounds per minute.

It recoils with enough force

To bench-press
over 20,000 pounds.

Silva:
We can put these on vehicles,

Hardened targets, buildings,

Any kind of structure
that we need penetrated.

[explosion]

Narrator: No other gunship puts
more rounds on the ground,

And troops in afghanistan
need every bullet.

In afghanistan,

Major aaron hall's ac-130
circles above a special ops team

Under siege by taliban forces.

Hall: There was a significant
overwhelming force.

The odds were definitely
in the enemy's favor.

Narrator: Hall is
the fire control officer.

It's up to him
to choose the weapons.

He selects the 25-millimeter
and the 40-millimeter

To target
the taliban street fighters.

For insurgents
shooting from the buildings,

He picks the 105.

Moments later,

Sensor operators target
the enemy with the guns...

Man on radio: Moving.

Man on radio:
Get back on those guys.

Here we go.

Narrator: And fire.

[firing]

Man on radio: Yeah.

Hall: We began firing at
anything within 50, 60 meters,

Hitting any of the structures

Where we were seeing
small arms fire.

[firing]

We knew that
we were being effective

Because the special forces team

Were getting
a little bit of relief

And able to
make some ground headway,

Basically moving back
to the north.

[radio chatter]

Narrator: It's enough firepower
to make most fighters turn tail,

But the taliban is determined
not to give up their ground.

Hall: They just kept coming,

And as soon as you'd destroy
or neutralize one target,

Another one would fill its spot.

Narrator: Suddenly, hall's crew
spots a group of insurgents

Closing in
from another direction.

Hall: At this point,
we picked up an enemy

Sneaking around
on the friendly force.

It certainly seemed like
some type of coordinated attack,

Just the way that they were
moving in for the ambush.

Narrator: The enemy is less than
40 feet from the ground forces,

And closing in fast.

Up above, the ac-130 crew
makes a terrible discovery.

They only have one type
of ammunition available:

105 proximity rounds--

Usually used for targets

Far removed
from friendly forces.

Hall: It's going to explode
just above the ground,

And it's going to
basically be like a shotgun.

It's going to spread
fragmentation

In a large, wide area.

Narrator: To take out the enemy
without killing the friendlies,

The ac-130 crew
takes a huge risk.

Just one miscalculation
could be deadly.

Hall: I knew that
that's what we had to do,

But I was just praying,
holding my breath.

If one thing was off,

We'd definitely hit
the friendly force

That we were trying to protect.

Man on radio: Stand by.

Narrator: Over afghanistan,

Major aaron hall's
ac-130 gunship

Prepares to fire
at taliban soldiers.

Man on radio: You're cleared
on the big square building.

Go ahead and level it.

Narrator: His calculations
must be perfect,

Or he risks gunning down
the troops he's sworn to defend.

Hall: You're holding your breath
the entire time,

Just hoping that everything
you've done has been right,

And as soon
as the round went off...

[firing]

[explosion]

The enemy element dropped.

[explosion]

Narrator:
It's a daring action

That saves the lives of
50 american and afghan soldiers.

Hall: If the ac-130
wasn't there that night,

There's no doubt
that those casualty numbers

Would've been
significantly higher.

Narrator: The ac-130.

It's the aircraft
that puts the "close"

In close air support.

But this ultimate battle plane
wasn't inevitable.

It took more than 50 years

For the air force to admit
that it needed a gunship at all.

[explosions]

1914.

World war I begins in europe.

High above the battlefield,

A new source of firepower
enters the scene:

The airplane.

William head:
Before the first world war,

Military aircraft was mostly
used for reconnaissance.

Narrator: Dr. William head
is an air force historian

At robins air force base
in georgia.

Head: After a while,
some very clever airman decided,

Oh, okay, I'm going to take
a rifle with me,

Or I'm going to take
a pistol with me.

And then the powers that be
said, oh, okay,

Well, let's try
to mount some guns.

Narrator: By world war ii,

Nearly every combat aircraft
is equipped with a mounted gun.

Most of them have the gun
pointing forward,

Allowing the pilot to shoot
while he flies.

It's a great design
for airborne targets.

But it doesn't always work
for those on the ground.

Head: The limitations
of the forward-facing fighters

Were that you shoot,

You have to bank, turn,
come around,

And come back and do it again.

And it's not very precise.

Narrator: It takes the battle
to control the atlantic

To inspire a new technique:

Side-fire.

[explosion]

January 1942.

German submarines strike
more than 10 ships

Along the virginia
and north carolina coastline.

Reporter: Undoubtedly,

One of the most formidable
assets of the axis powers

Is the u-boat.

The u-boat must be defeated.

Narrator: The u.S. Army
95th coast artillery corps

Is on high alert.

Army aircraft search
for german submarines

Approaching the atlantic coast.

Should a sub attack,

Pilots need to keep it
under constant fire.

A forward-firing aircraft
won't do the trick.

[firing]

By March, one pilot
has a brainstorm:

Add a side-mounted gun

And fly the aircraft
in a pylon turn.

The pylon turn is a maneuver
that dates back

To some of the earliest days
of flying.

Head: In the '20s and '30s,
there were air races,

And at each end of the course

There were pylons
that were set up.

And they would fly around them,

And they would go
in turns and circles.

And so they called them
pylon turns.

Narrator:
To execute a pylon turn,

The pilot banks left,

Angling the aircraft's left wing
towards the ground.

His speed, altitude,
and turn radius remain constant.

As he turns,

The center of the aircraft
stays pointed

At the same spot
on the surface,

Allowing a side-mounted gun
to always be on target

And deliver continuous fire.

On paper, the idea has promise.

But it never really catches on.

Head: By 1943,

The battle of the atlantic
kind of subsided,

And the military leaders

Didn't see the practical
importance of this

Once the threat
to the coast went away.

Narrator: Combat planners
believe that future wars

Will be won dogfighting
and bombing--

Not flying in circles.

Head: The cold war is beginning,

And our engineers are developing
fast jets and big bombers

To fight the soviet union.

The side-firing gunships
got put in basket purgatory

And lay there
until the need came along.

And that didn't really
come along until the early '60s.

Narrator: September 1961.

U.S. Special forces
are in vietnam.

Their purpose:

Stop the communist insurgents
known as the vietcong.

President kennedy: South vietnam
is already under attack--

Sometimes
by a band of guerrillas,

Recently by full battalions.

Narrator:
Using the jungle as cover,

The vietcong attack u.S. Camps
in the dead of night.

Bill walter: The vietcong
would attack these camps

By the thousands,

Just overwhelming force.

And they were very, very
tactically savvy.

Narrator: Bill walter

Has worked in the u.S. Air force
gunship program

For more than 30 years.

Walter: They knew that the u.S.

Doesn't have a whole lot
of nighttime capability.

We've got all these
modern jet fighters

That are really fast,

They do a really great job
for what they're designed for,

But they're not designed
to go out there at night

And find dismounted troops
on the ground and fire on them.

Now we have this dilemma.

So, the air force says, okay,

Let's throw some ideas
on a table here

And see what we can do.

But whatever it is,
it's got to be quick.

Narrator: 1963.

Wright-patterson
air force base, ohio.

A small team of designers
reignites a radical idea--

The side-firing sub hunter
proposed during world war ii.

Head: They kind of
all get together,

And they start comparing notes.

And they say, wow,
we had this idea all along.

Narrator: The first step--
proof of concept.

Tests with t-28s and c-131s

Show that the pylon turn
can work.

A year later, they try it out
on a c-47 skytrain,

A cargo plane
known as "the gooney bird."

It's been an air force staple
since world war ii.

Walter: The question comes up,
why did they choose the c-47?

And the simple answer is,
and it was available.

It was already in vietnam,

Flown by the first
air commando wing.

So, it made logical sense

To use something
that was already there

Instead of inventing
something new.

Narrator: The c-47s can fly
low and slow enough

To loiter over a firefight
for hours in a pylon turn,

Making it the perfect candidate
for side-fire.

Head: They said,
well, we have this idea.

If we can make it work,
maybe it will solve the problem.

Narrator: Three side-firing
gatling guns

Turn the gooney bird
into a gunship--

Two at the cabin windows
and one at the cabin door.

It carries 2,000 pounds
of ammunition

And fires up to
18,000 rounds per minute.

Head: When it would fire,
it looked like a dragon,

Shooting flame
and smoke coming out.

And so they nicknamed it
"puff the magic dragon."

Narrator:
The wright-patterson team

Has made the gunship a reality.

All they need to do now

Is convince washington
to give it a chance.

To the pentagon's
fighter-bomber generals,

A side-firing gunship
is a tough sell.

Walter: Here somebody comes up
with the concept,

"let's just put a gun
out the side of the airplane

And fly in a pylon turn
and see how that does."

So, you can kind of see

How the conventional mindset
at the time was like,

What, are you crazy?

That's never going to work.

Narrator: The gunship concept

Does have at least
one powerful advocate--

General curtis lemay.

Walter: General lemay
was a very big supporter

Of all capabilities.

He didn't care if it was
bombers, fighters.

Head: And he says, okay,
you get that airplane

And you get over to vietnam
as quick as possible

And try it out.

Narrator: In vietnam,

The ac-47 gunships
change the reality on the ground

Almost immediately.

Walter: Throughout '64, '65,

The ac-47
excelled in its mission

Of defending
special forces camps.

Head: The vietcong
called it "death by night."

And it was just what
the doctor ordered.

Narrator:
The ac-47 is low flying,

Fierce,

And persistent.

Its nighttime capability

Takes away the vietcong's
element of surprise.

Walter: The ac-47
was built essentially

To have not only
a day and night capability,

But to stay over
these special forces camps

For the entire period
of darkness.

Narrator:
For the next four years,

Ac-47s prove a staunch defender.

But the air force wants
an offensive weapon, too.

Walter: It was great
in special forces outposts

Where you had dismounted troops
with small arms.

But the weapons
were not powerful enough

To really do
the levels of damage

That was required
to stop a truck.

The ac-47 has more or less
met its physical limits.

Head: And so
the air force decided,

We need a little bit bigger,
faster, more-range aircraft

That's similar to a 47.

Walter:
Right away, the engineers

And the gunship program office
up at wright-patterson, ohio,

Said, "how about a 130?
Let's do a 130."

Narrator: The c-130 hercules

Is the air force's
transport workhorse.

It can carry
up to 42,000 pounds.

Head: The 130 might not seem
to be the obvious choice.

But the 130 is resilient,

It is more fuel-efficient,

It has four engines.

If one of them goes dead,
you can still fly it.

Narrator: In may 1967,

Engineers load one up with
two 20-millimeter cannons,

And two
7.62-millimeter mini guns.

That's the most firepower
ever mounted on a cargo plane.

Announcer: When on target,

The pilot merely presses
a button on the control column

To fire the guns.

Four short bursts
destroy the target.

Narrator:
They rename it the ac-130.

The "a" stands for attack.

The only drawback: Its size.

Its critics claim

That the gunship will be
a sitting duck.

Head: The size of the plane
left a larger radar signature

So that it made it
a little bit easier to shoot.

Narrator: For its gunfire
to be accurate,

The ac-130
must fly low and slow,

Leaving it even more vulnerable.

The air force
is desperate for a win,

So it gives the plane a chance
to prove itself...

In combat.

September 1967.

The ac-130 arrives in vietnam.

By February, it's in combat.

The destination:

The ho chi minh trail,

A 9,000-mile system of roads

Running through
the dense jungles

Near the vietnamese border.

Each year,
north vietnamese communists

Use it to funnel 80,000 tons
of military supplies.

The ac-130's mission
is to halt them in their tracks.

Bill patterson: We were tasked
to look for truck convoys,

Armored personnel carriers,

And any troops

Moving in large quantities
down the trail.

Narrator: Senior master sergeant
bill patterson

Flew more than 1,200 hours
in vietnam.

Patterson:
Once we would find that,

We would attack it

And destroy it
to the best of our ability.

[firing]

We always said,
every truck that we destroy

Is less ammunition
that's going to be used

Against our guys
down in south vietnam.

Narrator:
In its first nine months alone,

The gunship destroys
228 enemy trucks.

Man on radio:
There, one just blew up. Roger.

Patterson: It got to the point

Where saigon said
we was getting so many kills

That they started having, quote,
"experts" look at them

To see if we was fudging

Or not giving them
the straight stories.

And it proved out

That we was getting so much
destruction on the trail

That it was just unbelievable.

[explosion]
man on radio: We got 'em all.

Narrator: It's exactly
what the air force needs--

A gunship that brings
sheer terror to enemy skies,

Day or night.

Patterson:
We destroyed at 100 percent.

The vietnamese
called it the thud,

Because the guns
would go "thud-thud."

It could really,
really put down a wall of fire.

[explosions]

Walter: They took the vietnamese
completely by surprise,

'cause the vietnamese were like,

Hey, we're operating at night

To avoid these bombers
and fighters.

All of a sudden,
the world lights up around them

And their trucks
started on fire,

And they're like,
what is this?

Narrator: But as the ac-130
finds success,

So does the enemy.

Patterson: The north vietnamese

Were constantly
changing their tactics,

And they learned from us.

They were constantly looking for
new systems to bring into play

To be able to bring us down.

Narrator: The north vietnamese
have a weapon

Much more powerful
than artillery--

A deadly infrared
surface-to-air missile.

It's a shoulder-fired rocket
with a heat-seeking warhead.

Patterson: It's easy to deal
with anti-aircraft guns.

But when a missile
is introduced to the mission,

The threat goes way up.

Narrator: Soon enough,

Patterson will learn just how
vulnerable the ac-130 really is.

Man on radio: Get outta here.

Narrator: June 18, 1972.

Vietnam.

Sergeant bill patterson
and his ac-130 crew

Look for enemy convoys
in the a shau valley.

Patterson: The a shau valley
was historically known

As the most defended valley
in the vietnam war.

[gunfire]

We didn't question

How dangerous it was
or anything else

Because we were there
for a reason.

We were there to save lives
in south vietnam.

Narrator:
Just moments into his flight,

Patterson notices a flash
coming up from the ground.

Patterson: I looked down...

Man on radio: Three o'clock.
Man on radio: Keep on the stick.

Patterson: And here was just
a blue-white ball of fire

Come off the ground

And it's headed
straight for my aircraft.

[explosion]

Man on radio: Get outta here.

Patterson: At that point,

I knew a missile
had been fired at us.

[beeping]

Narrator: Seconds later,

Patterson feels his gunship
take a major hit.

Patterson: And a hot breath
of air hit me,

Shot me out of the airplane,

And I was falling
towards the earth.

Narrator:
Patterson and two other crewmen

Make it to the ground alive.

The rest of the 14-man team
isn't as lucky.

Patterson: Don't really
think about myself too much.

Just thinking about
your friends that died.

Narrator: That same year,

A surface-to-air missile
knocks another gunship down,

And the ac-130's future
hangs in the balance.

Head: Vietnam identified flaws.

They're becoming more vulnerable

To the more and more
sophisticated weaponry.

And so we come back
from the war,

And we have to make a decision.

Are we going to keep doing this,

Or are we going to
get rid of them all?

Narrator: There's talk
of retiring the gunship

And focusing on
more sophisticated war birds.

Over the next few years,

Military planners invest heavily

In high-speed
jet fighters and bombers

More likely to outfox
the enemy's missiles.

But in the '80s,

U.S. Special forces
become embroiled

In small regional wars,

Where the enemy
has limited air defenses.

Once again,
the gunship is in demand.

Walter: That was our stay
of execution at that point.

Wait a second, now.

We really kind of need
these ac-130s

To support
the army special operations.

Narrator: In 1987,

The reprieve becomes permanent.

The pentagon forms
special operations command,

Responsible for all
special operations units

Across each branch
of the military.

They decide to bring the ac-130
along for the ride.

Walter: The gunship
was cited as being

The decisive
air support platform

For the ground force,
the special operations forces.

Narrator: Close air support...

Armed surveillance.

The gunship proves
a promising tool.

But it takes the war in panama
to showcase its worth.

December 20, 1989.

Panama city.

Operation just cause.

U.S. Special forces invade,

Searching for dictator
manuel noriega.

Nine ac-130 gunships
fly in to back them up

And prove that they can
rule the skies.

Head: It was
the perfect environment.

You can see the ground targets,

And you can attack
and take them out

Without hitting civilians,

Without collateral damage--

Places that we didn't really
have to blow up.

Walter: It goes back
to the fundamentals

Of the gunship being able
to stay overhead.

You're sticking with
the ground force

And providing support for three
or four hours at a minimum.

Plus, the precision of ordnance
is relatively small

Compared to fighters who are
dropping bombs or strafing runs.

So, that really was
the right job for the gunship

In the dense urban area
like that.

After about day three or so,
we weren't even shooting at all.

We didn't even have to shoot.

Pretty much the panama
defense force just says,

Gunship comes rolling overhead,

We're done.

Narrator:
It takes less than five days

To win the ground war.

President bush:
At about 8:50 this evening,

General noriega turned himself
in to u.S. Authorities in panama

With the full knowledge
of the panamanian government.

Narrator:
The ac-130's performance

Receives a standing ovation.

Head: General thurman,
who was the overall commander,

Later said
that what won the battle

Was the courage
of the american ground forces

And the ability
of the american gunships.

Narrator: The ac-130

Seems like an unstoppable symbol
of american might.

But just one year later,

The air force
learns what happens

When they push too far.

January 1991.

Six months after saddam hussein

Sends iraqi forces
to invade kuwait,

The u.S. And its allies
declare war.

Hussein won't go down
without a fight.

He hides surface-to-surface
missiles, or scuds,

Throughout the country.

He's not afraid to use them
to intensify the war.

Reporter: Iraqi scud missiles

Streaked over israel
and saudi arabia

And hit ground targets
with deadly force.

Walter: General schwarzkopf
was very concerned

That israel was going
to get pulled into war

And the whole coalition
was going to break apart.

So, gunships were sent in
to look for these scud sites.

Narrator: Three ac-130s
begin the scud hunt.

The iraqis hide them

Near radar-guided
surface-to-air missiles,

Putting the low-flying
gunship at risk.

Walter: Iraq was
a whole different cat.

It wasn't panama.
It wasn't grenada.

They had a very sophisticated
integrated air defense network.

And we were in a 130.

It doesn't matter
if it's got guns on it or not;

It's still a 130.

And we can't really
fly that high,

And we're not really that fast.

And we almost lost two airplanes
in one night scud hunting.

Narrator: The air force
decides to play it safe

And takes the ac-130s
off the mission.

But the gunship's power
is too tempting to waste.

Walter: We sat for about
another week or so,

And then here comes
the battle of khafji.

Narrator: January 29, 1991.

Operation desert storm.

Thirteen days into the war.

Saddam hussein's
republican guard

Invades the saudi arabian city
of khafji,

A bordertown
just south of kuwait.

Paul havel: Saddam, at
this point, was losing badly.

Narrator: Colonel paul havel
logged more than 50 hours

Piloting ac-130s
during operation desert storm.

Havel: He was getting pummeled
by the air,

And he had no ability
to hit back.

And this was his only
opportunity, basically,

To try to engage the enemy
on terms of his choosing.

Narrator: Hussein sends more
than 20 lightly armored vehicles

Towards khafji.

They carry weapons
and hundreds of troops.

Stopping them seems like
a perfect job for the ac-130.

Havel: We needed to actually
engage these armored vehicles

Before they actually
broke out of khafji

And crossed over
into saudi arabia.

Narrator: January 30, 1991.

King fahd airbase, saudi arabia.

Just past sunset.

Havel and his crew
ready their aircraft...

And take off,

Determined
to get to khafji fast.

Havel: We were concerned
about the threat levels.

At this point was
the early stages of the attack,

And we knew that the heavier,
more advanced weaponry

Wouldn't be showing up
until later.

Narrator: The iraqi convoys
don't have missiles,

But a lucky bullet
can be just as deadly

To a low-flying gunship.

Havel: The majority
of what the iraqis had

Was optically guided
anti-aircraft artillery.

Where their
exact locations were,

We did not have
that precise information

Until we arrived overhead
at the scene.

We really didn't know
what we were going to encounter.

You have an idea
of what's going on,

But you're not really sure
until you get there.

Narrator: Havel's gunship
arrives over khafji,

Only to find hussein's troops
ready and waiting.

Havel: When we first rolled in,

A bunch of
enemy anti-aircraft artillery

Was shooting up in the sky
in a barrage fire.

[gunfire]

Narrator: To avoid getting hit,

Havel flies
an unpredictable pattern.

Havel: If I can see tracer
coming up at me,

I can make just a slight pitch
or a slight bank,

And I can actually avoid that
anti-aircraft artillery fire

Quite easily.

But if we're doing an orbit

And they can kind of anticipate,

It makes it very dangerous.

Narrator: Going into
a pylon turn is risky.

But to fire,
havel doesn't have a choice.

Havel: If you have to
constantly bank in and out

To avoid the anti-aircraft fire,

You're not going to be
really effective

At attacking the targets.

We've known from the history

That the gunners
aren't going to run away.

They're going to try
to shoot us down.

[firing]

Narrator: January 1991.

Kuwait.

Just west of khafji.

Ac-130 pilot paul havel
and his crew

Orbit an iraqi convoy
more than 20 vehicles long.

Iraqi anti-aircraft fire
threatens the gunship's safety.

Havel: It was a priority for me

To take those anti-aircraft
defenses out first

In order to protect the lives
of my crew members.

I figured
once we got them suppressed,

We could work the convoy
of trucks at will.

Narrator: Havel lines up
the iraqi anti-aircraft gun

In his pylon turn

And fires.

[gunfire and explosions]

Havel: The gunners all start
running away from their guns

'cause they thought
they were getting hit

With an artillery attack,

Not with an aircraft's 105.

So, effectively,

That ended the anti-aircraft
artillery shooting at us,

Which then, we moved on to
attacking the armored convoy.

Narrator: Havel's gunship
pounds the brigade.

Less than an hour later,

The convoy
is stuck in its tracks.

Havel:
They took such a pounding,

They basically
stopped their advance

And they had to seek shelter.

And a lot of them
abandoned their vehicles.

Narrator: It's a good start...

But more trucks are on the way.

Low on fuel,
havel checks the time.

Almost sunrise.

Havel: It was starting
to get very light,

Which would be a real big threat
to our survival at that time,

Because we figured,

Now heavier equipment
is showing up,

More capable
air-defense systems,

And now we can't hide.

At that point, I made
the decision to return to base.

And I'm glad we did,
because the following day,

Another aircraft operated
in similar conditions

At that time of day,

And they were shot down.

Stevens: A u.S. Air force
ac-130h gunship

Crashed at approximately
7:00 a.M. Local yesterday

In southeast kuwait
during a combat mission.

All 14 crew members
are listed as missing.

Havel: They were in
the exact same area we were.

They were working
the exact same targets,

More towards sunrise,

And unfortunately

The iraqi forces
took advantage of it,

And we lost a good crew.

Narrator:
The tragedy is a wake-up call

For air force leadership.

Operating the ac-130 demands
a different kind of tactic

From other air force planes.

Havel: Remember, the staff
at the time of desert storm,

Most of whom were coming
from a fighter background--

They didn't
really understand us.

Walter: But yet, a lot of this
really wasn't written down

Anywhere outside
of our own community.

So there really wasn't anything

That these fighter planners
could go look at and said,

This is how a gunship operates.

Narrator: The air force
goes back to the books,

Collaborating with
the gunship community

To create
an official tactics manual,

Specifically for the ac-130.

Walter: And it really
paid off well for us,

Because now
it truly is a joint force

Where everybody's
speaking the same language.

Narrator: It's not just
paperwork that's new.

In 1995, the air force
debuts its revamped gunship:

The ac-130u.

They replace
the 20-millimeter gun

With a 25-millimeter,

Making it even deadlier
than before.

Walter: They could do what's
called dual-target attack.

They could actually
track and fire

On two different targets
simultaneously.

It had the right sensors,
it had the right people,

It had the right systems
and equipment and weapons.

It was kick-butt.

Narrator: It's a new fleet

And a new start.

The ac-130s get placed under
special operations control.

In just a few years,

The tricked-out gunship
returns to the middle east

To see if it can finish the job.

October 7, 2001.

Nearly one month since
the September 11th attacks.

A u.S.-Led coalition
vows to punish the people

Responsible for the attacks
on american soil.

President bush: On my orders,
the united states military

Has begun strikes against
the military installations

Of the taliban regime
in afghanistan.

Narrator: U.S. Special forces
quickly deploy to afghanistan.

Their mission:

Hunt down the terrorists
hiding out in the region.

Helping them to do it:

The ac-130s.

Allison black: If they're going
to put forces on the ground,

Why would you not put a gunship
over them to protect them?

Narrator:
Lieutenant colonel allison black

Was an ac-130 navigator during
operation enduring freedom.

Black: The ground forces
were moving constantly,

And we would just fly
and loiter, waiting for...

Like an on-call,
close air support situation.

Narrator: November 2001.

Karshi-khanabad, uzbekistan.

Black and her ac-130 crew
take off just after sunset.

Their destination:

Just north of kunduz,

In taliban-held afghanistan.

Getting there
isn't an easy task.

Black: We had to stay away
from the mountains,

The high mountains
that are higher

Than the airplane
is going to be flying,

And be cognizant of the borders
of the countries,

And get to the team
on the ground.

Narrator: The gunship
carefully picks its way

Through the mountain valleys,

Keeping alert for enemy fire.

It's quiet until
they start to get close.

Black: Our route
down to afghanistan,

It was dark.

There were not a lot of lights
in towns and cities.

As we're getting
closer to kunduz,

We're starting to see
triple-a fire,

Anti-aircraft fire
in the distance.

[radio chatter]

We knew that they had
the potential to get us.

So we needed to be smart.

[radio chatter]

Narrator: Thirty minutes later,
the ac-130 arrives on the scene.

First, they look for
their brothers on the ground.

Black: We get to the area,

We make radio contact
with the ground forces

And their afghan counterparts
that are with them,

And we get a situation report.

Like tell us
what's going on down there.

We see you.
What do you need?

Man on radio: Not a whole lot
going on down here.

It's very quiet.

Man on radio:
Confirm it was 2-44-3.

Narrator: 8,000 feet below,

U.S. Special forces travel
with the northern alliance,

An afghan militia
seeking to topple taliban rule.

It's a useful allegiance,

Especially when
identifying insurgents.

Black: Good information to have

Because we knew when we put
our sensors in the area,

We had the right people.

[radio chatter]

Narrator: The ac-130 slowly
circles the friendlies.

Ground troops call up,

Asking black and her crew
to scan the area for threats.

Black: If you were out,

We were going to take
a good look at you.

As we would find something,

I'd get a grid, a location of
that possible target or activity

And pass it over the radio
to the ground force.

[radio chatter]

Narrator: About a mile away
from the friendlies,

Black's sensors
spot a suspicious truck

Heading straight towards
the ground team.

Man on radio: You see that?
Man on radio: Just west of it.

Narrator: Black quickly
gets on the radios

To let the troops know.

Man on radio:
Confirm it was 2-44-3.

Black:
This is what we're seeing.

What do you think?
Is it good, is it bad?

Are these your guys,
or is this taliban?

Man on radio: We have
enemy qrf approaching...

Black: They replied copy

And cleared us
to shoot that vehicle.

Man on radio: Free to engage
the moving vehicle.

Narrator: Black's pilot
rolls the gunship into orbit

And places the truck
in his sights.

Before they can take a shot,

The truck stops at a building.

It's greeted by dozens of men.

Man on radio: We've got people

Walking out of
the building right now.

Black: Multiple people
were moving around,

And we took the time,

Trying to understand
what was going on there.

Are they good?
Are they bad?

Man on radio: Copy.
Not free to fire

Till we have your permission.

[radio chatter]

Narrator: Black calls down
to the ground,

Where special forces confer
with their afghan allies.

Black:
They came back on the radio

And said,
"those are confirmed taliban.

You're cleared hot."

Narrator: The ac-130 crew

Quickly brings the guns
back online,

Targets the vehicle,

And fires...

Shooting 40-millimeter
and 105-millimeter rounds

At the ground, vehicle,
and building.

[gunfire]

Black: When we started
the engagement,

Hundreds of people
poured out of the building.

It was a complete
surprise to us.

Narrator: The ac-130 crew
keeps firing...

But fears
it's an overwhelming force.

If the gunship crew
can't clear the area,

It risks a massive retaliation

On the very ground forces
it's meant to protect.

November 2001.

Afghanistan.

Lieutenant colonel
allison black's ac-130 gunship

Battles hundreds
of taliban fighters

Less than a mile
from friendly forces.

Black: It wasn't
just five or ten;

There were hundreds.

And because they had the ability

To close that distance
with our guys on the hillside,

We wanted to take them all out
if we could.

We absolutely understood that
if we couldn't accomplish that,

That they could pursue our guys.

Narrator: Inside the gunship,

The crew maintains
intense focus,

Everyone working toward
a single goal.

Black:
And we're all laser-focused,

And we all felt
the responsibility

To each other as a crew,

But then the loyalty
and the responsibility

To the ground forces
to get that mission done.

I'm also, as the navigator,

Relaying what's going on
to the friendly forces.

If we get a detail wrong because
we didn't hear it correctly,

It could lead to disaster.

Man on radio: You're underway.

[explosion]

Man on radio: Clear to fire.

Narrator: Black's gunship shoots
and destroys each target...

One by one.

The taliban has no idea
what hit them.

Four hours later...

Out of ammo and low on fuel,

Black's ac-130
turns back to base,

Leaving the ground team safe

And the taliban defeated.

Black: Who knows
how many lives we saved

On the northern alliance side
and our american side.

And that played such a toll,
that they turned themselves in,

And they were like,
"hey, we're done,

We don't want
any of that anymore."

Narrator: In afghanistan's
close-in war,

The gunship's performance proves

The 50-year-old design
is still unmatched.

Black: The gunships have done
very well in afghanistan.

There's no doubt in my mind

That many americans

Have been able to come home
to their families

Because of gunships.

Narrator: By now,
the ac-130 is a legend,

And the air force
wants to make sure

That the legend lives on.

In 2015, they roll out
the ac-130j ghostrider.

It's an ac-130 on steroids.

Head: The j model is now
the most sophisticated plane

You can imagine.

It comes from
the design for c-130js,

Which have the most
fuel-efficient propeller engine

In the world.

Narrator: Some say
it's more than a gunship;

It's a flying tank with guns.

Head: Its weapons systems
are now the most modern.

It's got the 105,
and it's got 30 millimeters.

So, the planes we've got now
are mean.

[laughing]

And good.

[gunfire]

[explosion]

Narrator:
To supplement the bullets,

The ghostrider can fire

Up to eight laser-guided
hellfire missiles,

Or dish out ten griffin missiles

That drop and automatically fly
to the intended target.

[explosions]

Walter: With the advent
of precision-guided munitions,

Laser-guided munitions

Gps-guided munitions,

We're able to bring forth
a very highly accurate,

Supportable,
and high-technology gunship

That is anticipated to last
for a very long time.

Narrator:
If the air force has its way,

It will even have a laser gun.

Head: It's what we call
a particle beam weapon.

It would shoot a laser beam
down onto the target

And essentially melt it.

Walter: There's all kinds

Of possible
potential weapons systems

That could be installed
on that aircraft.

But right now,
this is the best one we got,

And it's damn good.

Narrator: The ac-130.

It's one of the most feared
and fabled assets

In the entire u.S. Air force,

Owned and operated solely
by the united states.

Patterson:
It's the most tactical

Close air support
piece of weapon

In the air force inventory.

And there's nothing else
out there like it.

♪

Narrator: Big...

Powerful...

And fully loaded.

For ground troops,
it's a game changer.

Walter: As long as there's
somebody on the ground

That needs fire support,

The gunship's going to be there.

Black: There's nothing that
comes close to the gunship.

She's irreplaceable.

Narrator: Devastating...

Destructive...

And legendary.

The ac-130 is a force
to be reckoned with.