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DC-130 Hercules
The Lockheed DC-130 was a variant of the C-130 Hercules, designed for drone control. It could carry four Ryan Firebee drones underneath its wings. Development Origin of the design Since World War I many nations' air forces have investigated different means of remotely controlling aircraft. Spurred by the 1960 U-2 incident, the United States Air Force gained a renewed interest in using unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, to obtain intelligence on the SA-2 Guideline surface-to-air missile system. Under the code names "Lightning Bug" and "Compass Cookie", Firebee target drones were modified for reconnaissance as the Ryan Model 147. The drones were test flown over North Korea and China after the Gulf of Tonkin incident in August 1964. While perfect for reconnaissance, the use of a ground-based radar van for command, track and control limit the combat ability of drones. The team controlling the drones was also limited to a single, stationary recovery area. To improve ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
WikiProject Aircraft
A WikiProject, or Wikiproject, is a Wikimedia movement affinity group for contributors with shared goals. WikiProjects are prevalent within the largest wiki, Wikipedia, and exist to varying degrees within Wikimedia project, sister projects such as Wiktionary, Wikiquote, Wikidata, and Wikisource. They also exist in different languages, and translation of articles is a form of their collaboration. During the COVID-19 pandemic, CBS News noted the role of Wikipedia's WikiProject Medicine in maintaining the accuracy of articles related to the disease. Another WikiProject that has drawn attention is WikiProject Women Scientists, which was profiled by ''Smithsonian Magazine, Smithsonian'' for its efforts to improve coverage of women scientists which the profile noted had "helped increase the number of female scientists on Wikipedia from around 1,600 to over 5,000". On Wikipedia Some Wikipedia WikiProjects are substantial enough to engage in cooperative activities with outside organization ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Range (aeronautics)
The maximal total range is the maximum distance an aircraft can fly between takeoff and landing. Powered aircraft range is limited by the aviation fuel energy storage capacity (chemical or electrical) considering both weight and volume limits. Unpowered aircraft range depends on factors such as cross-country speed and environmental conditions. The range can be seen as the cross-country ground speed multiplied by the maximum time in the air. The fuel time limit for powered aircraft is fixed by the available fuel (considering reserve fuel requirements) and rate of consumption. Some aircraft can gain energy while airborne through the environment (e.g. collecting solar energy or through rising air currents from mechanical or thermal lifting) or from in-flight refueling. These aircraft could theoretically have an infinite range. Ferry range means the maximum range that an aircraft engaged in ferry flying can achieve. This usually means maximum fuel load, optionally with extra fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lockheed Senior Prom
The Lockheed Senior Prom was a classified black project conducted by the United States Air Force in conjunction with the Lockheed Corporation's Skunk Works for the development and testing of a cruise missile using stealth technology. Based on the company's Have Blue demonstrator, the six Senior Prom vehicles proved successful in testing conducted at Area 51 in the late 1970s; despite this, the aircraft was not selected to enter production, and the program was terminated in the early 1980s. Design and development Following the success of the test program for the Lockheed Have Blue stealth technology demonstrator aircraft, the United States Air Force awarded a contract to the Lockheed Advanced Development Projects division—the "Skunk Works"—for the development of an unmanned aerial vehicle, intended to act as the prototype of a cruise missile, that would apply the Have Blue's faceted design in order to reduce the radar cross section of the missile by deflecting electromagne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ryan AQM-91 Firefly
The Ryan AQM-91 Firefly was a developmental drone developed during the Vietnam War to perform long-range reconnaissance, especially into China. Development The Ryan Model 147 Lightning Bug reconnaissance drone was enjoying success in Vietnam in the early 1960s, but it lacked the range to fly deep into China and back out again. In particular, the Chinese nuclear development facility at Lop Nor was far out of reach of the Lightning Bugs, and was barely within reach of the Lockheed U-2 spyplane, which had become far too vulnerable to SAMs. US intelligence thus needed a long-range drone with a high degree of survivability. Such requirements spelled out a completely new design, not a modification of a target drone. Ryan pursued advanced drone concepts on a part-time basis. After discussions with the CIA that went nowhere, Ryan pitched their advanced reconnaissance drone concepts to the Air Force in early 1966. The USAF was interested, and opened up a design competition, with Ry ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Mildenhall
Royal Air Force Mildenhall or RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located near Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as a Royal Air Force station, it primarily supports United States Air Force (USAF) operations, and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing (100 ARW). During the Second World War, RAF Bomber Command used the station for operational combat missions until 1945. Placed on standby status after the war, it was reopened by the Royal Air Force and became a USAF-RAF joint operation base on 11 July 1950. It was assigned to Strategic Air Command (SAC) it became a B-50 Superfortress base in 1951, and a KC-97 Stratofreighter base from 1953 until 1958. The Military Air Transport Service transferred its main United Kingdom terminal to Mildenhall in 1958. In the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s U-2 and SR-71 Blackbird operations took place from the base. On 8 January 2015, the United States Department of Defense announced tha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transport aircraft. The KC-135 was the United States Air Force's first jet-powered refueling tanker and replaced the KC-97 Stratofreighter. The KC-135 was initially tasked with refueling strategic bombers, but it was used extensively in the Vietnam War and later conflicts such as Operation Desert Storm to extend the range and endurance of US tactical fighters and bombers. The KC-135 entered service with the United States Air Force (USAF) in 1957; it is one of nine military fixed-wing aircraft with over 60 years of continuous service with its original operator. The KC-135 is supplemented by the larger McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender. Studies have concluded that many of the aircraft could be flown until 2030, although maintenance costs have g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beale Air Force Base
Beale Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base located approximately east of Marysville, California. It is located outside Linda, about east of the towns of Marysville and Yuba City, and about north of Sacramento. The host unit at Beale is the 9th Reconnaissance Wing (9 RW), assigned to the Sixteenth Air Force, Air Combat Command. The Wing collects intelligence essential for presidential and Congressional decisions critical to the national defense. The Wing flies the USAF fleet of Lockheed U-2 "Dragon Ladies" and Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft, and operates associated ground support equipment. It also maintains a high state of readiness in its combat support and combat service support forces, ready to deploy, if ordered, to carry out military operations. The 940th Air Refueling Wing (940 ARW) is a tenant Air Force Reserve Command wing at Beale AFB flying the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, operationally gained by Air Mobility Command (AMC). ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
The Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" is a long-range, high-altitude, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft developed and manufactured by the American aerospace company Lockheed Corporation. It was operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and NASA. The SR-71 was developed as a black project from the Lockheed A-12 reconnaissance aircraft during the 1960s by Lockheed's Skunk Works division. American aerospace engineer Clarence "Kelly" Johnson was responsible for many of the aircraft's innovative concepts. The shape of the SR-71 was based on that of the A-12, which was one of the first aircraft to be designed with a reduced radar cross-section. Initially, a bomber variant of the A-12 was requested by Curtis LeMay, before the program was focused solely on reconnaissance. Mission equipment for the reconnaissance role included signals intelligence sensors, side looking airborne radar, and a camera; the SR-71 was both longer and heavier than the A-12, allowing it to h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
9th Reconnaissance Wing
The 9th Reconnaissance Wing (9 RW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command and Sixteenth Air Force. It is stationed at Beale Air Force Base, California. The wing is also the host unit at Beale. Its mission is to organize, train and equip the Air Force's fleet of U-2R Dragon Lady, RQ-4 Global Hawk aircraft for peacetime intelligence gathering, contingency operations, conventional war fighting and Emergency War Order support. It is also assigned T-38 Talons for U-2 pilots to maintain flight hours. Its 9th Operations Group is a descendant organization of the 9th Group (Observation), one of the 13 original combat air groups formed by the Army before World War II. During World War II, the 9th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy) was an air combat unit of the United States Army Air Forces. Active for over 60 years, the 9th RW was a component wing of Strategic Air Command's deterrent force throughout the Cold War, performing strategic reconnaissance on a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lockheed U-2
The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed "''Dragon Lady''", is an American single-jet engine, high altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). It provides day and night, high-altitude (), all-weather intelligence gathering. Lockheed Corporation originally proposed it in 1953, it was approved in 1954, and its first test flight was in 1955. It was flown during the Cold War over the Soviet Union, China, Vietnam War, Vietnam, and Cuba. In 1960, Francis Gary Powers, Gary Powers was 1960 U-2 incident, shot down in a CIA U-2C over the Soviet Union by a surface-to-air missile (SAM). Major Rudolf Anderson, Rudolf Anderson Jr. was shot down in a U-2 during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. U-2s have taken part in post-Cold War conflicts in War in Afghanistan (2001–2021), Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq, and supported several multinational NATO operations. The U-2 has also been used for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 June 1992 and its personnel and equipment absorbed by Air Combat Command (ACC). Tactical Air Command was established to provide a balance between strategic, air defense, and tactical forces of the post–World War II U.S. Army Air Forces followed by, in 1947, the U.S. Air Force. In 1948, the Continental Air Command assumed control over air defense, tactical air, and air reserve forces. After two years in a subordinate role, Tactical Air Command (TAC) was established as a major command. In 1992, after assessing the mission of TAC and to accommodate a decision made regarding Strategic Air Command (SAC), Headquarters United States Air Force inactivated TAC and incorporated its resources into the newly created Air Combat Command. History ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
432d Air Expeditionary Wing
The 432nd Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to Air Combat Command at Creech Air Force Base near Indian Springs, Nevada. It flies General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper and RQ-170 Sentinel Unmanned aerial vehicles. The group operates unmanned reconnaissance aircraft which provide real-time reconnaissance, surveillance, and precision attack against fixed and time-critical targets. The 432nd Air Expeditionary Wing is a provisional unit assigned to Air Combat Command and is the designation for components of the 432nd Wing when deployed into combat areas as part of the Global War on Terror. Overview The wing is the first United States Air Force wing dedicated to unmanned aircraft systems: MQ-9 Reaper and RQ-170 Sentinel. The wing stood up 1 May 2007 at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada. The wing has dual reporting responsibilities to Ninth Air Force and U.S. Air Forces Central Command (USAFCENT) (as the 432nd AEW) at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, as well as to Twelfth Ai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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