How Air Force Pilots Fly The $165 Million Ghostrider - the "Ultimate Battle Plane" | Boot Camp

The AC-130J Ghostrider gunship is the newest version of the historic AC-130 aircraft. which dates back to the Vietnam War. Unlike C-130s that are meant to carry cargo and troops, the AC-130, the attack variant. It's retrofitted with a precision weapons package and is able to aid in missions like close air support, air interdiction, and armed reconnaissance.
Insider visited Cannon Air Force Base in Clovis, New Mexico to learn more about the AC-130J and meet the pilots and crews that are being trained to fly it.
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How Air Force Pilots Fly The $165 Million Ghostrider - the "Ultimate Battle Plane" | Boot Camp

[@CUL8TR]

Imagine walking around and looking up to see one of these flying above you, *then it turns to aim at you since the crew designated you as a fictional target* .

[@TriangleEscape]

That would be kind of cool to see

[@LPM147]

I was wondering about that too. Were they just circling around a civilian area for their mock engagement? Was also wondering, how this plane defends itself considering that it's such an obvious target just slowly circling around.

[@CUL8TR]

@@LPM147 For the first question, they had to do it since their live fire range had some problems so they couldn’t use it (unsure when was it said, but they said it in the video). For the second question, the plane itself only has RF and Infrared countermeasures if I remember correctly. Friendly fighters in the area are supposed to be the one to defend these planes. What you said is correct, the plane is basically a big target circling an area, and that’s why air superiority must be achieved first; something quite easily done in the Middle East since the militias, despite usage some anti-aircraft weaponry, were virtually unable to fight for air superiority.

[@radjadawamindra697]

"ENEMY AC-130 ABOVE!!"

[@kani6855]

Cute comment 😭😭😭 ur imagination is wild

[@Joshua-jo1gk]

Dang insider is in the marines, Air Force, army , coast guard, navy, navy seals, and secret service. Crazy service, truly we should be thanking the cameraman for his service

[@jdduke8910]

“We have a microwave & a coffee maker” screams in confused Marine

[@northamericanintercontinen3207]

HOORAH ?!

[@ChiefCrewin]

Fun fact, we have to do radiation tests every so often. A few of the planes failed the test, so we pull the circuit breaker and the crew can't use them.

[@sergiothegrower]

Heads up micro waves destroy the nutrients in food

[@rudykurniawan5520]

Here, a crayon

[@BlahBlah-em2ed]

USMC KC-130s have the same microwave, coffee maker, and shitter.

[@piplup10203854]

It is good to see how much detail goes into the entire operation both pre and post operation. Great stuff.

[@24karatjay]

So much respect for our CAS guys! Keeping our boys safe!

[@ftboomer1]

AC-130 is the ultimate expression of the bravery of being out of range. Gunships can't be used against Russia, China or even Iran. They are only used where the US is stealing resources of people that can't shoot back at the planes.

[@xFlow777]

In Iraq? US airforce needs to stop funding this project as soon as possible, this thing would get shot down within a day if this was Russia for example, not Iraq. Big ass flying plane with a sign 'shoot me' on it.

[@longsleevethong1457]

I live in the Florida panhandle. These dudes are stationed at hurlbert field right down the road. They fly over our beaches all the time.

[@paterson90]

"ENEMY AC-130 ABOVE!!!"

[@nerd26373]

These pilots dedicate their all when it comes to their careers. We wish them the absolute bests no matter what.

[@x-gennesis]

one of my personal favorites and an amazing piece of modern technology. would love to ride one someday.....

[@mbogucki1]

Some guys dream of flying an F22 or A10 and others an Apache or Cobra. Me? I always dreamt of flying this baby. What a concept.

[@shaunmcdaniels2460]

Very good video about an exceptional aircraft and crew!!!! I never want to find myself on the wrong end of that weapons system!!!

[@gabrielpalmones3980]

Curious to see how this system would be used in a conventional conflict. Like how SEAD and electronic warfare aircraft play their roles in protecting this aircraft.

[@trob0914]

In an earlier version, firing off this “105” or even firing the old 40mm Bofors was a kick!!

[@brianclay3315]

I've been on the ground in Afghanistan when these rain down the pain... you definitely DO NOT want to be on the receiving end.. we've done battle damage assessment afterwords...it isn't pretty. We would be told to turn on our IR beacons so we knew what was coming down in the darkness.

[@JF238xLearning]

When you call in air support…that’s what I expect to see 💯😤💪🏼

[@KYLOWW]

Definitely my favorite version of the C-130 whooo

[@joaquinfabrega]

During Operation Just Cause, the invasion of my country, I could see the AC-130 circling the PDF headquarter, it was an amazing and scare feeling.

[@CentralStateMower]

Imagine coming out of Lowe's with a piece of plumbing pipe and an AC-130J puts a "red dot" on your forehead! :O Lol!

[@stephenzepp6536]

Great to see the 17th back in service--I was at Kadena 91-93 in the HC-130P/N days, and was sad to hear when they stood the squadron down. Not sure I like the new camo version of the patch, but the pure color one still looks great!

[@ChiefCrewin]

All of our squadron patches have an FDE version, we have a flag too. The spectres across the street have a similar one.

[@stephenzepp6536]

@@ChiefCrewin Right--so did we. I'm just not sure I like the changes they made to the original version....the red background instead of dark blue just doesn't feel as cool to me ;) At least you kept Jakal : coolest callsign I ever had in my years as a pilot!

[@MyBelch]

Still missing the comma. No mission, too demanding. (SOG 99-05)

[@stephenzepp6536]

@@MyBelch or the just as loved alternate: No mission too demeaning

[@billb89]

Did you ever try the Habu Saki?

[@A38]

Hope all your training is never necessary, y'all. Thanks for keeping it professional and tight up there, and all the best to each of you.

[@freestyla101]

I remember gunning in a bunch of these. Awesome machine.

[@ianray8823]

When you point your laser at the boom plane and it starts circling left...😊

[@williamsillivent6859]

This is a KOOL video! Wouldn't want to be on the receiving end! 🇺🇲

[@thirty9648]

Was looking exactly for a video on the c130 like this

[@brucedownunda7054]

" War is a Racket " Gen Smedley Butler

[@horus8296]

At least I could have ridden this beauty in CoD4 and BF4

[@CAPEjkg]

Miss the twin 20mm vulcans and twin 40s, just looked meaner

[@alexanderguerrero7286]

Brining it back to the then MW2 days!

[@TomTheDutchy]

The calculations to adjust for the speed and angle of the plane when shooting are pretty insane i guess.

[@vincentmiller420]

Cool amenities but where's the Sauna and the cold plunge at!?! Needs at least a heated/cooled massage chair. IMO

[@TundeEszlari]

Good video.

[@SFS_PRO956]

This is the coolest plane

[@Kevin-pb6yt]

We need a video on USAF CCT/PJ🎉🎉🎉🎉🔥🔥

[@bklwealth1132]

FEEENEEEY!

[@onemoreguyonline7878]

They have an actual HUD...hahaha thats awesome

[@adriaanboogaard8571]

Old Idea that was used in the C47 in the 1960's and 1970's New and Improved. Good ideas last as long as you learn from and improve on them. If it isn't broken don't fix it just make it better.

[@jokwonpope1561]

25% longer and 25% further are the same unit of measurement in this context 4:45

[@oscardorado955]

Necesito 3 de estos para México 🇲🇽 👍👌

[@brianskinner5212]

It would be fun flying that thing

[@blitzking7855]

It is indeed fun to fly

[@dimitarmargaritov]

I would love to be involved in such trainings on regular basis but obviously without having to go into actual combat.

[@TeeVee-ww2dt]

Warm burritos 😂 Tornadoes really fuel the Air Force

[@tre_tha_beast6848]

Nice to know that within days this video will rack up over 2 million views

[@brianschneider5292]

Nascar of the air, LOL. Circles.

[@Khemtime]

Sucks being stationed at Cannon AFB. Don't worry. It's not forever.

[@chrisherd991]

The proper toilet is a major upgrade compared to the hercs I flew on. 😊

[@McRocket]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hercules with guns. (Versions have) been around for generations. What else you got? ☮

[@hakeemtarpley2998]

These dudes up in the air playing video games

[@gravestone9831]

Dude I just left cannon AFB april of last year and NOW they decide to start doing videos of the gunship there??

[@Johntheblack99]

ENEMY AC130 ABOVE

[@stevenagy7152]

Giant nothing less than a wholly sanitized air space, it is a SAM sponge.

[@user-gf2yr6yh3o]

When you call in air support…that’s what I expect to see . “We have a microwave & a coffee maker” screams in confused Marine.

[@LadiesMann024]

AFSOC!!!

[@juncondoonflanjacontose7399]

What happened to the 3rd weapons system? The 20mm ???

[@GamePlayer775]

Should be Insider Military.

[@spookerredmenace3950]

FEEEEEEEEEEEEANHA!! OOOH!!! FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEANAH!! hahahahaha ah boy meets world!

[@andrewbarlow8937]

I assembled those toilets on the C-130. May seem insignificant, try to assemble that yourself. Geez ! That was quite complicated. I did that for the flight crew and for the purpose of paying my mortgage.

[@jawedmanowar657]

This Plane is only Good for where there isnt any Anti aircraft Manpads or Airforce Its can only used against limited grps or Armed fraction only

[@brianskinner5212]

I bet very soon it will have laser defense pods

[@prophecyrat2965]

@@brianskinner5212drone drop pods

[@alecvonlipsey2064]

Yay i wanted this one the rest of the videos about training for the A-C130 aren’t as good

[@hunkenbunken7578]

dont forget its use against medics without borders

[@mrmister385]

LOL @165 I had my name on C 130s twice that price. The EC 130s in the 90s.

[@Alex-ye1br]

War is hell.

[@Ngaihawma420]

They really talk about consent when nobody gonna give consent to get rekt by an AC-130 lol

[@user-hi5xe1ok6r]

I always thought that their nickname was, SPOOKY because they flew operations at night.

[@elijahauer]

“And it works just like a normal toilet”

[@conantheagrarian]

omfg who painted that wall in the conference room

[@Shibe_X]

So your telling me that I am potentially being tracked by an AC-130 gunner when I see one in the air on my way home from school💀💀💀

[@mgbeck98]

SA = Situational Awareness

[@Husker5454]

This is freaking nuts . Look at how advanced the interior is , its got super wide monitors with some of the best resolution camaras i have ever seen . Whats painful for me is this is a very neiche vehicle that cant be deployed to alot of modern combat theaters its really only suited to few tasks because of its vulnerability , yet its more modern than half of the royal airforces entire stock of aircraft ... wtf

[@dianapennepacker6854]

Yeah maybe it is classified but I thought they were testing lasers on it. Guess that was just all bogus information but there were definitely articles saying this one had much more capabilities. Short of the engine upgrade I'm not sure what else is updated outside of the system it's self. They really didn't go into much detail as the weapons seem similar. I'm suprised there isn't a third station with a WSO for drone control to be honest. I'm a little confused too about the precision... Thought the AC-130 gunships were always notorious for precise firing even back during Vietnam due to the maneuver they do while firing.

[@ChiefCrewin]

In Vietnam they fired between 3500 and 9500 ft, depending on the ground threats at the time (AAA or SAMs). There's plenty of classified defensive measures, suffice to say, our gunships are perfectly safe as long as air superiority is achieved. In a theoretical war against China, they'd be perfect for base defense or surgical strikes.

[@Husker5454]

@@ChiefCrewin Theres a problem you haven't mentioned tho . Air superiority and supremacy are two totally different things and this cant operate within a zone of air superiority , it needs supremacy to operate safely . Supremacy would mean all GBAD has been destroyed bar manpads , the only things remaining would be hardened defensive lines something that the aircraft achieving air supremacy in the first place would have no problems dealing with , this is a counter insurgency shock and awe weapon it would get absolutely bodied or pose little use in a modern theater . as much as i love it and respect the US updating it to such a modern standard its hardly an effective unit up against china . Source : i'm an air defense specialist

[@adityasane]

@@Husker5454 Thanks for the commentary I was going to say that engaging China will be beyond the capabilities of this weapons platform

[@sup714]

I’m 16 and when I turn 17 I want to join the Air Force and to be trained on the ac-130 in Florida I live in Alabama

[@konchy]

So does the poop fall onto the enemies too?

[@mr.america7342]

So ive been watching the boot camp things for a while and does anyone else think his voice was lower this time?

[@US_Defense]

Angel of death!!!

[@josephgelske2582]

Hate saying this but miss afsoc and Clovis nm

[@conantheagrarian]

wow did you see how they no homo’d the throttle at 10:07 the pilots name is peenusy

[@Joeylikeswakkie]

Imagine seeing one of these rain fire on you while realizing these guys can poop and drink coffee at the same time 🇺🇸

[@Praetor_Fenix420]

Do they dump the toilets onto enemy targets as well?

[@OlllOHD]

Is that Rishi Geol ? 🤔

[@kingslate1]

I thought the guns were on both sides of the plane based on another video I seen

[@adamc366]

No doubt an absolute badass of a plane but completely ineffective against any military with AD systems.

[@R-UBBERD-UCK]

You do realize that the only military in the world with fully functional active denial systems is the US, right? 😂 Thank you Raytheon.

[@prophecyrat2965]

@@R-UBBERD-UCKdrones my good man. Drones. Welcome to the IEDs of the sky!!! Cheap, ez to make, and impossible to avoid all of them.

[@R-UBBERD-UCK]

@@prophecyrat2965 Which drones, specifically? An AC130 can fly over 400mph at altitudes of 25,000ft+.. the world's fastest drone can fly 224mph, and that's a racing drone. Not some Iranian built quad copter with explosives strapped to it. The cross winds of an AC130 cruising altitude alone would knock it out of the sky. The deadliest drone known to man, the MQ1 Predator, has a maximum speed of 125mph and 25,000ft max alt. The Russian counterpart would be shot down by the AC130's fighter jet escorts within seconds of entering it's airspace. Care to try again?

[@R-UBBERD-UCK]

@@prophecyrat2965 I can't fathom the thought process behind thinking that a 165M$ gunship can be brought down by a drone. 🤣 Thanks for the quick laugh, bud.

[@prophecyrat2965]

@@R-UBBERD-UCK Look dude, no sarcasm. No wierd “try agains”. Yes its a Gunship, a flying fortress and there is likley nothing save modern air defences and fighter jets that can bring it down… BUT if there were some sort of drone like “balloon”, that could reach altitudes as great as the AC-130c, a “balloon” that could theroetically be Autonomously piloted, even mostly by General Inteligemce systems, using solar and what not as passive power… and say this machines has some pay lodad ofvery small deones that could fly thrugh the air and just interfere with Airships electronic systems even… with lasers, virus or detonation, chemicals, or whatever. Oh well, I guess thats just in the real of scince fiction, its not like the world millitary would just reveal every single one of its most advance technologies anyways.

[@MrMscotth]

1 missile. 1 drone. Better defend that thing....

[@bennyjohn205]

you know that plane doesn't fly by itself, right? The US doesn't fight like that.

[@JayDubb410]

AC130 is online

[@tomasr64]

Wow, thats a lot of brass. Keeps the ammo makers happy. Anyone here also watch Redacted?

[@captchompers6920]

Hearing Enemy AC130 in the area was the scariest thing in COD.

[@Yosh1az]

I'm still wondering why the USAF decided to remove the 25mm GAU from its AC-130Js. Does anyone can provide me an answer?

[@rizdalegend]

30mm rounds are explosive with higher area effect.

[@paulogden7417]

And longer range

[@mr_beezlebub3985]

30mm > 25mm

[@ChiefCrewin]

The 25mm is largely pointless above about 8000ft, more of a "crowd pleaser" or to make the enemies keep their heads down.

[@Avinash-xz7yn]

It must be a sitting duck for Manpads

[@ronaryel6445]

The gatling guns are gone. Not precise enough? Not cost effective regarding ammunition? The AC-130 no longer hoses targets down with lots of lead.

[@prophecyrat2965]

Prob will use LAWs or AWS

[@davidmarkmann6098]

Too short range.

[@slayer6936]

One thing as a former Cav. Scout. I prefer the 25 or 45 meter Gatling gun myself. That is he weapon that scares the crap out of the enemy! And as for Loyd Austin what a joke of a so called leader. He knows nothing about ground war along with Milley!

[@Codlegend4life00]

I got that in COD before

[@chrisk5437]

Drink every time that LT says SA…

[@vicioustwist]

Are there no fitness standards anymore in the military? Half those officers look like they're one burrito away from a heart attack.

[@speedracer2336]

I see fat sailors, Airmen, support soldiers all the time. Definitely not your father’s military! Still most technological military in the world!

[@OverTheVoids]

I guess it's a combination of if they role really needs fitness (versus if it would just be a nice added attribute to have) as well as the military possibly being more flexible in who they recruit since much of the population doesn't want to even consider joining the military to begin with.

[@klemol5682]

why are weapons dimensions in metric system, while most everything else in US is in imperial ? Also in the video I see that they use meter for distance measure...

[@brianskinner5212]

Probably to make them Nato freindly

[@bora--bora]

this is what protects the $USD as world reserve currency

[@bc4life862]

Nope. It's stability and the fact, that every country accepts its (even their sworn enemies, lol).

[@madmansocrazylol5547]

where the gatling gun go ?

[@wannabe4668]

The military industrial complex at its max.

[@armageddonready4071]

It’s not even an air plane, it’s a gun ship.

[@peterson551]

This plane only work when the enemy don't have a anti-air I mean manpad could Force it to fullback to base

[@ChiefCrewin]

Nope, just cause it to fall out of it's firing orbit. But they can figure out where it's from so the firer will soon be dead.

[@OverTheVoids]

@@ChiefCrewin That may or may not be true. If the anti-air capability is robust enough (e.g. multiple launchers in different locations), then that could pose a problem. Regardless, I am pretty sure that they ideally would not want to risk using it even if there was a single legit anti-air threat in the area since they only has 30 of these new J-variant ones.

[@justinnotarianni2427]

This narrator straight up sounds like god

[@8thfleet384]

🥰🥰🥰

[@TonyStark-ne5jk]

So an howitzer from above is called a cannon attack not an artillery attack😅😅😅 They remove the 130mm

[@johnnaughton2364]

How Air Force Pilots Fly The $165 Million Ghostrider - in circles