AC-47 Spooky - In The Movies

[@jethaspotatoaim]

Awesome video on the spooky, thank you for including the story of my grandfather

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

Thank you watching Jack! Honoring family is very important to me so means a lot to have you comment.

[@crimsoncosmonaut9734]

I have an original photo of the skyrocket. One of my mother’s bowling friend’s father was a airforce photographer. She gave me most of his photos because i such a huge ww2 nut. She knew they would be in good hands

[@papagatordelta29]

Went to an air show in minnesota last weekend and they had an AC-47 spooky on display on the tarmac. Outside they had your grandfathers story posted!

[@Garage-uj7pv]

What an incredible feat of bravery Jack, he sounds like an amazing man.

[@surfbum8069]

Hi Jack! I served USAF 79-83, Your Grandfathers name is legendary amongst the ranks when i was in. I saw he had passed in 2000. RIP brother!!

[@ScoutSniper3124]

Back in the 1950's some R&D Engineers at Aberdeen Testing Grounds got the idea for Minigun. To proof it out, they dug a Civil War era Gatling gun out of a storage warehouse, mounted an electric motor on it and ran it till the barrels burnt out. That was the "proof of concept".

[@johannesmichaelalhaugthoma4215]

If memory serves, the same experiment had been tried in the 1890s, with a rate of fire of 3000 rounds/minute. It was abandoned as there was no military necessity at the time for such a high rate of fire.

[@djnotnice108]

@@johannesmichaelalhaugthoma4215 I heard it was because the ability to generate the electricity wasn’t quite all there in a practical real world sense

[@pyro1047]

@@djnotnice108 IIRC it was a mix of both, they could only really be mounted on ships because of the power requirement and possibly weight. Add the fact that said ships were already carrying multiple cannons with explosive shells and a small fast boi seems a lot less impactful. Put that in an Era when even the Maxim gun was discounted by many and you can see how this would be seen as excessively unnecessary.

[@mezmerizer0266]

Imagine the reload time on that thing in 1890.

[@johannesmichaelalhaugthoma4215]

@@djnotnice108 Given that the Gatling was already set up to be crank driven, putting in an electric motor to power it was simple. Bearing in mind that there were electric cars and even electric trucks in the early 1900s, I don't think getting an electric engine to operate a human-powered crank would be any issue at all. The issues were ammunition feed and lack of application.

[@BHuang92]

Interesting Fact: Other lesser known gunships were also used during the Vietnam War which were the Fairchild AC-119G Shadow and AC-119K Stinger. Those Aircraft were armed with four Miniguns and two 20mm M61 Vulcan cannons.

[@oddballsok]

and finally developed into the Star Wars republic Gun Ship which saw ; A pair of dorsal mass-driver 305mm missile launchers Four composite-beam 15 mm laser turrets and Three anti-personnel 20 mm laser cannon turrets

[@bigblue6917]

Thanks for the reminder. I knew other aircraft were used but I could not remember which.

[@AEB1066]

These often flew over the Ho Chi Mhin trail and faced heavy AA fire. A pilot of the Fairchild AC said that taking evasive action meant the crew running around in the cargo bay.

[@patriotenfield3276]

The South African Air Force is one lesser Known user of the AC-47 Spooky during the Apartheid Regime . They were used extensively along with the Alouette III Gunships for Ground support and as detterent against ground attack on the Paratrooper C-47 variants . Instead of Mini Gun However , The South Africans earlier armed these AC-47 Spookies of theirs with Twin 7.62mm M1919A4 and 12.7mm M2 Browning Machine guns and even with Oerlikkon (oerlikkon ones were prototype) before 20*82mm MG151/ Vektor GA-1 and Hispano suiza HS-404 were fitted in for a better combat performance. and These Planes are still in Service. Also The Colombian Air force have the Original AC-47 Spookies still in service . which saw notable combat in terms of ground attack against FARC and other rebels in the Country's long hidden civil war.

[@GrummanF-14Tomcat-j6q]

The AC-130 Also served there!

[@OtherWorldExplorers]

Fun fact. They use C-47s here in Florida to do tree top level mosquito spraying. Absolutely love waking up with the sound of those radial engines no more than a hundred feet above my house.

[@DrownedInExile]

I never thought of spraying mosquitoes with miniguns, but I like it!

[@ShortArmOfGod]

Low level cancer application.

[@raven_1133]

I live in Georgia and have been to Florida many times, never seen it, and I’m actually near depression since I’ve never even heard of it before this comment.

[@tonyrobinson362]

Hope it's not agent orange.

[@crimsoncosmonaut9734]

My grand father fought in Vietnam and probably had one of the most metal jobs you could have. He was the commander of an M 67 flame tank. I don’t know if they have any movies that incorporate it. but Johnny it would be really interesting to do a video on it.

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

I'll see what I can do in honor of your grand father! Just gotta give me some time my project list is getting pretty wildly long.

[@professionalbeanie8342]

@@JohnnyJohnsonEsq can you find any Long Range Desert Patrol group movies my great grandpa served in them

[@eamonnclabby7067]

@@professionalbeanie8342 I believe the BBC have commissioned ,Rogue Warriors, maybe they might feature the LRDG who ferried the SAS ...

[@math201i]

@@professionalbeanie8342 '84 Charlie Mopic' is a great one

[@crimsoncosmonaut9734]

Awesome, i will show it to him when you put it out. Cant wait :).

[@thekhoifish0146]

Unarmed vehicle: *exists* American R&D: “ok but what if we put machine guns in it”

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

I should have been a machine gun salesman to the American military.

[@thekhoifish0146]

@@JohnnyJohnsonEsq now I’m picturing the sommelier scene from John Wick 2, but instead it’s someone ‘selling’ to the AC-130 its armament

[@SydneySighs]

Look at US tanks like the M2 medium leading up to WW2. The M2 Medium had 7 to 9 total .30 cal machine guns on it with a total ammo storage of about 12,000 internally.

[@thekhoifish0146]

@@SydneySighs yeah I was thinking about that, the Americans really loved stashing machines guns I every nook and cranny they could

[@AldoSchmedack]

DARPA: "And we want to upgrade those guns to bigger ones now!"

[@jamesalexander3530]

In Vietnam I watched Spooky aka Puff the magic dragon, Spectre, whipping a load of ammo behind Marble Mountain. Not one base during the entire war was ever lost to Charlie when Puff was supporting them.

[@a8-94stalker]

I am from colombia and in one exhibition i got to see the "Fantasma" and i can tell you that it had some changes to the spooky, had modified engines, modernized radar systems and a beautyfull grey menacing color, idk if it's still in service but it was a rlly good plane.

[@patriotenfield3276]

The South African Air Force is one lesser Known user of the AC-47 Spooky during the Apartheid Regime . They were used extensively along with the Alouette III Gunships for Ground support and as detterent against ground attack on the Paratrooper C-47 variants . Instead of Mini Gun However , The South Africans earlier armed these AC-47 Spookies of theirs with Twin 7.62mm M1919A4 and 12.7mm M2 Browning Machine guns and even with Oerlikkon (oerlikkon ones were prototype) before 20*82mm MG151/ Vektor GA-1 and Hispano suiza HS-404 were fitted in for a better combat performance. and These Planes are still in Service.

[@jamesalexander3530]

Viva Colombia! Soy de Medellín

[@christopherparrisjr.3146]

John Wayne was offered the role of Major Reisman in The Dirty Dozen. He turned it down so he could be involved with The Green Berets. I'm glad. Lee Marvin was perfect for the role of Major Reisman. Plus, The Dirty Dozen was bigger blockbuster than The Green Berets.

[@ShortArmOfGod]

John wayne was so beloved by the Marines, when he went in front of a large group of them wounded at Okinawa to perform, they booed him off stage.

[@Moonhermit-]

@@ShortArmOfGod Can't imagine why. It was such a tragedy for him that he was forced to get a 3-A draft deferment, because "if he as the sole provider for a family of four were drafted, it would cause his family undue hardship". And that later, when the military tried to change his status back, Hollywood executives stepped in to ensure them that he was unreplaceable for the propaganda effort. It's just a weird coincidence that he became Hollywood's main action star right around the time when most of his more famous colleagues were actually drafted or enlisting.

[@selassietetevie4966]

​@@Moonhermit- the propaganda machine defeated more people in America and outside America in resisting the war machine, it was very profitable for the studio owners and their bankster kinfolk, who started to own the whole country by 1970,the war machine hasn't had really equal adversaries till Russia in Ukraine and they are finding out its not like a Hollywood movie.

[@jerrygoller4269]

I had my 19th, 20th, and 21st birthday in the Marine Infantry in Vietnam. Half of that was in the Combined Action Program. As I remember, the Army called their g AC-47s Puff The Magic Dragon. The Marines understood them better. We called them Spooky, and they were. The AC-130s were called Super Spook. I will never forget the first one I saw. It was at night and unforgettable. Spook saved my ass more times than I can remember.

[@alanmacpherson3225]

Excellent work once again. The DC3/C47 is such a classic aircraft. The unsung workhorse that sometimes is overshadowed by fighters and bombers. I remember reading stories about the South Africans using them for paratroops in the 70s and 80s. Another aircraft used in Vietnam was the AC119 Boxcar.

[@garfieldsmith332]

The good old DC3/C47 still lumbers along today. It did more than it was designed for. When I hear of the DC3, I always think of the story about the DC 2 and 1/2.

[@robshirewood5060]

Rhodesia too, until betrayed by Maggie Thatcher, nice reward for the brave Rhodesians who fought with us in ww2, including Ian Smith who flew in the RAF, and C Squadron 22 SAS who fought alongside the British, Australian and New Zealand SAS, in Malaya and Borneo, and later helped train Green Berets for Vietnam. There is no C Squadron in 22 SAS today as a mark of respect, for their service. The resultant Zimbabwe was a total disaster thanks to marxists.

[@peabase]

As a teen in the early eighties, I went to summer camp in Finland. There was a military training ground nearby. Often, a lumbering C47 came by, towing a target that the conscripts plugged away at with AA cannon. I thought their aim was good, because the target was soon shredded. Still, I doubt the pilots were keen on such an assignment.

[@airplanemaniacgaming7877]

@@peabase Probably because they were thinking "one of these days I'm gonna be pelted by that gun either because the pinhead in training is a complete moron, or needs their brain cleaned with an officer's gun."

[@DERKONIG12345]

It is not a story C47 was used for paratroopers in South Africa, especially Rhodesia. (They just didn't have C130 or couldn't afford I suppose) You can easily find footage on youtube

[@kirkswanum7729]

Ever boy growing up in the 70s loved the Green Beret. It's the game we used to play with our BB guns.

[@emmanuelperez8094]

This was the AC-130 Gunship of the Vietnam War and Also It was Included in Rising Storm 2: Vietnam as a Air Support

[@MrDgwphotos]

The AC-130 was also developed during and for the Vietnam War. The AC-130 was employed extensively for operations over the Ho Chi Minh trail in truck interdiction, because the NVA could only move their trucks during the night.

[@emmanuelperez8094]

@@MrDgwphotos Wow I never knew this thanks for the info

[@Roddy556]

​@Emmanuel Perez pretty sure the AC-130 was the AC-130 of the Vietnam war.

[@scott1395]

​@Emmanuel Perez The AC 130A and H models are responsible for the destruction of as much as 10,000 trucks and other vehicles on the Ho Chi Min trail in Vietnam! I served as a weapons mechanic on the H models during the early 80s in Florida! There was one H model lost in Vietnam #6571 the H model had 2 20mm Vulcan cannons, 1 40mm before cannon and 1 105mm howitzer!

[@mikestone9129]

The original gun ship, not only have I seen this beast in action but flew in one several times. The DC-3/C47 is a piece of history that needs to be remembered. I had the honor to fly DC-3's for a year or so in Central America in the 80's. She was slow and noisy, but I loved every minute of it.

[@Orangefan77]

Thank you for including John Levitow in this video.

[@GuangkaZ]

Always love Johny's signature 'ALRIIIIIIIIGHT'.

[@johnmcclean343]

Dad flew AC-47 in Vietnam, got his first culvian job flying commercial for Braniff Airlines . He eventually retired from United Airlines. From flying Spooky to United Airlines .

[@michaelwoodward5787]

The Green Berets was one of my favorite movies when I was a kid.

[@tedparkinson2033]

Can't help but admire whoever came up with this. Take an older plane that's starting to go obsolete and invent a new way of delivering remarkable amounts of air support to ground units.

[@larrymcgill5508]

I was at Phu Bai in ‘67 at the end of Tet and “Puff” was called in to chase a company of NVA out of our area. The original Puff had a single Vulcan cannon spitting out 6,000 20mm rounds per minute. That puppy could really bring “P”.

[@vietvet6670]

The Tet offensive started in January 1968.

[@AnthonyEvelyn]

I watched The Green Berets on VHS back in 1981, it was my first experience seeing the AC-47 Spooky in action and how those mini guns were deadly. That scene made an impression on me and still have flashes of memory of it now and again.

[@kcomst]

My dad flew for the USAF beginning in 1952: the T-28, T-29, T-33 and maybe a few others. From 1963-1972 he flew the C-47, first hauling cargo and personnel in Italy. In 1966 he started flying the AC-47 gunship out of England AFB and from 1969-1970 flew Spooky in Viet Nam. He remained an instructor at Luke AFB from 1970-1972 when he retired from the USAF.

[@visassess8607]

My dad used to work at CTA with several Vietnam Vets. They said it was terrifying and would call it Puff the Magic Dragon.

[@ЮрийСмит-ь9р]

Твой папа работал с убийцами вьетнамского народа

[@Blitz9H]

Excellent video! I worked at an FBO that owned and operated DC-3s. Such an iconic and great aircraft!

[@jasondouglas6755]

Man I remember loving the Green Berets film as a kid it was one of my favorites

[@Clipgatherer]

+Jason Douglas. I remember demonstrations outside the cinema where it was shown in the town where I live. Saw it on video many years later. It wasn’t a bad action movie, and I liked the gunship sequence in particular.

[@dimas152mm]

a lesser known country using the gunship is Indonesia, several C-47s were converted into gunships by Indonesian Air Force to supplement Seroja Operation (1975-1977) after hearing their success on Vietnam, but instead of 7.62mm miniguns, they used Browning AN/M3 from a P-51Ds (that also used in the same year)

[@alexanderwaite9403]

One bad ass weapons platform! Saved lots of Soldiers/Marines in the Nam.

[@airmackeeee6792]

Puff the Magic Dragon. Nice.

[@frednone]

Great video, both the AC-47 and AC-130 are two of my favorite aircraft. I noticed an A-4 in one of the clips, if you haven't, that would be a great air craft to do a video as it showed up in at least one movie.

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

Absolutely the A-4 is on my to do list 👍

[@scottn7cy]

The Green Berets is one of my all time favorite movies.

[@brothercaptainwarhammer]

The AC-47 Spooky, guaranteed to give Charlie the Spook of a Lifetime. Seeing the Grandaddy of the Modern AC Gunship, and the Current Generation of AC Gunship and Comparing them and seeing how the Evolved from Then to Now, certainly shows the Major Improvements the AC Gunships had since it was Conceived. And as a Man that Loves Large Amounts of Firepower, and seeing things go Boom, the AC Gunship Family is Certainly a Favorite of Mine. If you want more Bang for your Buck in Fixed Wing Close Air Support, then the AC Gunships are the Aircraft for you! Informative and Enjoyable to Watch as Always Johnny! Keep up the Great Work! Keep the Good Shit Coming, my Friend!

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

thanks man! Will have to do the AC 130 in a future video :)

[@brothercaptainwarhammer]

@@JohnnyJohnsonEsq Looking forward to it, my Friend!

[@rolfagten857]

John Waynes uniforms from "the Green Berets" and "The longest day "I came across 10 years ago at the shop "static line" ( Celles Militaria) in St. Mere Eglise, these uniforms were not for sale!

[@Me2Lancer]

During 1965 my ship patrolled the coast of South Vietnam from the DMZ, south along the coast, then around the tip of the Mekong Delta into the Gulf of Thailand to Phu Quoc Island just south of Cambodia. One evening an AC-47 Puff came to our aide just south of Phu Quoc. The aircraft were a substantial threat to the VC who raided friendly forces onshore and off.

[@jamesbednar8625]

Awesome video!! Can remember building a 1/48 scale plastic model of this aircraft in the 1970s because of the movie, "The Green Berets".

[@rismarck]

The green berets was one of the best movies of John Wayne. It’s hard to find a copy of it now and days

[@gooraway1]

Horse Soldiers or Rio Grande beat it

[@IamgRiefeR7]

Their callsign of Puff soon turned into the nickname Puff the Magic Dragon. Apt description seeing the three trails of minigun fire.

[@patriotenfield3276]

I am Late Buthere are some Fun facts :- The South African Air Force is one lesser Known user of the AC-47 Spooky during the Apartheid Regime . They were used extensively along with the Alouette III Gunships for Ground support and as detterent against ground attack on the Paratrooper C-47 variants . Instead of Mini Gun However , The South Africans earlier armed these AC-47 Spookies of theirs with Twin 7.62mm M1919A4 and 12.7mm M2 Browning Machine guns and even with Oerlikkon (oerlikkon ones were prototype) before 20*82mm MG151/ Vektor GA-1 and Hispano suiza HS-404 were fitted in for a better combat performance. and These Planes are still in Service. Also The Colombian Air force have the Original AC-47 Spookies still in service . which saw notable combat in terms of ground attack against FARC and other rebels in the Country's long hidden civil war.

[@fortis3686]

Quite the fire support in Rising Storm 2: Vietnam.

[@SpittingBritTeaEarlGrey]

YAAAH

[@101shocktrooper]

Anti ass defences ah actav

[@matthewrosa7262]

3:17/9:38 : The Guns Were Located On The Port Side Of The Plane Due To The Propellers' Torque And Direction Of Turn And, With That, It's Steering Radius, Providing A Wide Field Of Fire Above And Around The Enemy's Location.

[@Jesusisking2785]

I love the green berets one if my uncle's was a marine in Vietnam and my other uncle was in battle of Ia Drang Valley the battle that is shown in We Where Soldiers another damn good war movie

[@domenictesta5289]

love how the captions display the gunfire at the beginning as [applause]

[@sergioamayajr.5868]

Very interesting and informative as well.

[@UNSCSword]

Great channel. I love these videos, the content, format, etc. The Spooky and Specter Gunships are some of my favorite planes.

[@RX552VBK]

Another great vid, Johnny. My older brother's friend, Richie, was a "Green Beanie". I was very young, but I clearly remember him coming over to eat dinner with us. His family had rejected him because was against the war. In my neighborhood of the time, in the South BX, NYC (1974/5) there were not many white people around anymore. Richie was was really cool too, he listened to Marvin Gaye and worshipped Muhammad Ali...he also had an red headed afro style and wore those John Lennon shades. But he used to sit around with brother, smoking cigarettes and drinking (which my mother barely tolerated--lol) and talking about his missions. The thing that really bothered him was killing Guerillas, which in my 8/9 year old brain thought he meant Gorillas. I kept picturing this Magilla Gorilla type animals with machines guns. I'm really sorry my family lost contact with him, my brother's early death really screwed with him as he confessed to my dad after the funeral.

[@HiveofVillainy]

So crazy that an out of the box modification kept C47s flying for THAT long...

[@djolley61]

We had weekly assemblies at one of the elementary schools I attended (1968-72). We'd sing The Green Berets almost every week. and also, Kum Bah Yah.

[@RUHappyATM]

Love the Green Berets. Sometimes war is necessary, when it's inflicted on you.

[@Joe3pops]

Canadian trivia from CFB Lahr, West Germany. In the 1980s, they used to blackout the airfield. Nothing moved for 48-72 hours. Apparently so Skyhook training could be carried out by USAF squadrons & most likely Green Berets from nearby Baden Tolz. That WW2 S.S. training camp of the bad ole days.

[@mikearmstrong8483]

The first US plane to pioneer the gunship concept came over 40 years earlier. The Junkers-Larsen JL-12 had 28 guns mounted in the fuselage, pointing down at various angles. As these were Thompson SMGs, they were prone to jam and each had to be manually reloaded after only firing 100 rounds, which is probably why the Army Air Corps was not interested in acquiring the plane.

[@Treblaine]

Ahh they were almost there, but pointing down it could never continually aim at one point. Pointing out the side it could focus on a point by turning and allowed larger guns to be used.

[@mikearmstrong8483]

@@Treblaine With 100 round drums, trying to circle around a target was pointless as you would only fire for a few seconds. With that specific armament it made more sense to fly straight over a target and fire in a swath directly below the plane.

[@ЮрийСмит-ь9р]

Да хорошая мишень для нашего советского оружия.

[@davidm3118]

One thing that I find pleasing notable about John Wayne's "Green Berets" is that it explains why the USA was in Vietnam, and the the South Vietnamese Army WAS fighting, and that many of the casualties by the Northern forces were civilians. It has since been revealed by Chinese historians that at one point there were MORE Chinese troops in North Vietnam, Cambodia and the South, than there were US and allied forces - although this fact has yet to seep into public awareness of the war, still coloured by anti-war propaganda.

[@Jay-Niner]

Source?

[@capatinswifty]

I would also like a source on this

[@joetrey215]

@@Jay-Niner Some books on Chinese involvement: Dragon in the Jungle by Xiaobing Li; Building Ho's Army by Xiaobing Li; China and the Vietnam Wars by Qiang Zhai

[@nedflanders8447]

Yep, and look into the “thanks” Red China got for all their support. After USA pulled out , the VC and NVA turned to bite the hand that fed them. And don’t “source?” Me. We are on the internet. If you can read this , you can verify or debunk what I say on your own time.

[@josedorsaith5261]

It's always a joy to see a notification for your videos appear. Keep up the great work!

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

Thanks Jose. Really appreciate the kind words.

[@TyroneSayWTF]

Another outstanding and informative episode!

[@robshirewood5060]

I think the left hand circling turn is called a pylon turn, and was used by Nat Saint a former ww2 pilot turned missionary, who lowered a basket of supplies on the end of a rope, which kept a steady position (same as the gunfire) , for natives in South America, to gain their trust, he achieved this on numerous occasions. Sadly on one trip he landed and was murdered by those he was helping. The concept i believe was adapted by the USAF for the AC47 etc programs.

[@CGFIELDS]

We all appreciate the work you put into your videos…Thank you 👍🏾👏🏾

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

Thanks man! Just glad they are being enjoyed

[@NoMoreCrumbs]

The DC3 had a terrible reputation for accidents in civilian service, to the point where it was speculated that DC stood for "death cab." In reality, the enormous numbers in service meant that they had a proportional rate of accidents

[@KapiteinKrentebol]

Nah, just a Douglas tradition, see the DC-10 and 737 max. And if you're wondering why the 737 max, then look at the logo at 0:08 and go look what Boeing's logo is now.

[@joeharris3878]

The movie "End of the spear" has a good demonstration of the use of an airplane circling a point on the ground for good use, rather than evil. A bucket suspended on a long line from an airplane will effectively hover over that spot and goods can delivered to people on the ground.

[@Cander509]

Dude grabbing the tripod as they were bugging out is perfect..

[@aviation4life640]

Just met an AC-47 crew chief and pilot last night!

[@johnryder1713]

When there was no Chain guns available, usually 5 30 Calibers were used instead on theater made mounts

[@ddegn]

I'm a relatively new subscriber. I sure have been enjoying your fun and interesting videos. Thanks for making and sharing them.

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

Thanks and welcome. Always good to hear this sort of feedback.

[@waynevictory5208]

One of my favorite It made me want to join the Army engineering corps. As my uncle was a Green Beret, Dad was Airborne 101st Fort Cambell KY . My other uncles was tankers and helicopter maintenance. So it hard not to have loved this as they was my heroes as I was just a kid when they came home wounded and still standing proudly. I grew up hating the hippie culture. Still hold them in contempt.

[@sethrich5998]

My Grandfather is the one piloting Puff in the scene from The Green Berets. The scene makes no sense as Puff is flying flat when it lets a burst rip rather than flying in a parabolic arc as it’s supposed to. He was coming back to base from a combat mission when he gets a call over the radio to let a burst rip for some camera crews. He’s flying level as he’s over friendly territory with live ammo. He thought it was for the news or something, didn’t know it was for a movie until it came out.

[@Anonymous.034]

1:30 THANK YOU for using the Transformers [2007] Footage, which portrays the gunship more accurately. I legit thought i was about to see the god-awful Olympus Has Fallen bullshit, lol

[@a.j.kaufman7838]

In ‘65 we called it Puff the Magic Dragon

[@Thisisdarnell]

I was looking for this so thank you very much

[@readhistory2023]

They saved the day in Grenada when US troops were recovering Grenada's PM. They took out some BMPs that were at danger close ranges.

[@halo3odst]

An engineer at my job used to man these guys during the war. We like bob, he is a good ME.

[@oweneather1435]

The film was No 2 at the United States box office the tear it was released. Must have been popular with quite a few Americans during the war.

[@DOUGLAS55ish]

I saw the movie in San Diego when I was 13 years old and was surrounded by Sailors and Marines. We all cheered loudly.

[@australiantrains8988]

"Puff The Magic Dragon" legend!

[@hritikjuyal5484]

Skyhook recovery system was shown in the end of the third Mission of the video game "IGI 2.

[@christophersnyder1532]

Why is that song, Spooky ringing in my ears? Take care, and all the best.

[@garfieldsmith332]

I saw The Green Berets and took it as a John Wayne war movie. Just entertainment. However the "Puff" scenes were "neato" at the time. A quick way to clear the battle field; not actually thinking that in real life hundreds are killed. It is an awesome weapon. And then there was the Vulcan cannon on the old reliable Warthog. It is hard to fathom the rate of fire from these "Gatling" guns; the speed of the moving parts in them is just awesome. Whether it is a Gatling Gun in an old western film or a war film, there is something about watching them being fired; even if it is ma bit morbid to think of it.

[@Garmacmag]

This video is a W omg I been waiting for someone to make a video about this plane.

[@malakiblunt]

keep the varied subjects coming

[@TraderRobin]

Even though I was only eight when the Vietnam war ended, I can still remember watching Walter Cronkite (on our black and white TV), standing in front of that giant map of Vietnam, as he pointed out each day's actions! And that's the way it is! 😆😆😆

[@whaaaaaaap]

I love the ACH-48 upgunned chinooks. So cool, I think ACH-48s guarding ch-48s is the modern key to Vietnam-style air cavalry tactics.

[@MH5XXXX]

Thank you for the nice history lesson on this amazing pkane.

[@swenhtet2861]

Great Video. I thought you would add this in your C-47/DC-3 Dakota in Movies video.

[@stevenwiederholt7000]

The Green Berets (1968), Watched at Osan when it came out. We Laughed and Laughed!

[@robertspence831]

Nice presentation. Good job.

[@hawkerhurricane4302]

I read from a book that the Vietcong forces nicknamed the AC-47 as The Red Dragon or something along those lines due to the large steaks of tracer fire from the miniguns that cause it to look like a Dragon breathing fire down towards the ground, hence the nickname they Vietcong gave it.

[@BFVK]

This video is like an other air victory for Johnny Johnson... Top Ace Channel

[@redbloodcell4047]

I had to laugh at the start because the subtitles said [Applause] when the miniguns started firing

[@varovaro1967]

Beautiful plane and great channel!

[@JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

Thanks man really appreciate it

[@gregqualtieri609]

I was in the Navy and my best buddy was in the Airforce in man. one of his jobs was to shove out the spend bullet casing with a snow shove. He said that he said at least he was not in the jungle.

[@aurathedraak7909]

Should start doing drone and helicopter videos, but this was awesome. And possibly more ww1 and 2 or maybe something older in history, for any gun or vehicle

[@somethingelse4878]

In the uk I've been reading alot of US Vietnam memoirs. Id recommend this to anyone from 18 and up, especially for 22 year olds. The movies take on the war could not be more wrong. I now think the peace protests were so wrong to attack the young lads who were sent over there. The peace protesters attached the hammer and not the user. They painted the vc as Angeles, they were not. Going in to villages, shooting the leaders and taking everything, forcing cooperation at pain of death. If the us never went over they would still have killed eachother. Dont get me wrong, war is bad and its the people on all sides who suffer. World politics is so intertwined and complex but the 19yo should have never been the target of hate from the spoiled stay at home rich kids. Heavy man lol

[@Jay-Niner]

When Vietnam successfully rebelled against French occupation, the US helped negotiate peace and an opportunity for the French to withdraw. To achieve this withdrawal without further fighting, a temporary DMZ was created and the US promised Vietnam that they would be allowed to hold free & democratic elections once the French were out. The problem was that the people of Vietnam really liked Ho Chi Minh for leading the successful war of independence and it was pretty much guaranteed that he’d win the election. He was also communist and America feared a domino effect that would turn the entire region. So they went back on their promise of free election and instead created a puppet regime in the south. This was understandably unpopular and without further intervention, the people were going to overthrow the southern government and create a unified country under Minh. To prevent this, the US drew up plans to bombard cities in the North, faked the bay of Tonkin incident and unleashed hell (in that order). So no, they wouldn’t have “fought each other anyway”. It wouldn’t even have been 2 countries if not for the US breaking their side of the deal and using military force to prevent democracy. If you’re going to read up on something, make sure you can tell facts from propaganda.

[@AdamantLightLP]

@Jan Fetzer even if that were true, communism is a horrible plague that's killed untold millions. It needed to be fought at all costs.

[@tonyp9609]

Not Spooky, We called it Puff, The Magic Dragon. Great to have especially during a night attack. Put on a great tracer show. Good video, Thanks

[@The_Annoyed_chef]

John Wayne was playing Lauri Törni, Larry Thorne. The NCO shcool in the Finnish Army Sissi light infantry had out unit called section Törni.

[@brianlevine5213]

My birthday wish for summer 1969 was to see " The Green Berets". I was eight.

[@badguy5554]

I flew an EC-47 in Vietnam. But when I was learning to fly the C-47, in the states, I flew some AC-47's as well. The optical site, at the pilot's position, looked like it was "jury-rigged" in a couple of hours.

[@regard.pduplessis2109]

Great stuff Johnny

[@Svensk7119]

Puff the Magic Dragon!

[@lawrencequave7361]

Was there any correlation between the C-47 puffs and the PPM song 'Puff the Magic Dragon'?

[@sytrixd4651]

The first Ac?

[@treysmith8917]

one of these is at a Vietnam War mseum in Nelson County, Virginia

[@Nigelg68]

brilliant stuff thanks

[@pingwenhung8327]

Want to point out that, it has a square window which I think anyone who has been around air plane related development know that Square windows are pretty dangerous due to the pressure, if low altitude it would be fine RS2:V moment, Noob commander calls in Spooky onto friendly units while the VC side calls in AA to save US team xD

[@bigblue6917]

Interestingly all the component parts were available much earlier so you have to wonder what effect the AC-47 would have had against the Japanese in the jungle.

[@matthewzito6130]

I don't think they had mini guns in WW2.

[@johannesmichaelalhaugthoma4215]

@@matthewzito6130 A Gatling Gun powered by an electric motor had been built and tested in the 1890s with a rate of fire of 3000 rounds/minute. The only problem was, there was no military use for such a high rate of fire at the time.

[@garethjames1300]

Would have got shot down by Zeroes !

[@MrDgwphotos]

@@matthewzito6130 Correct. Perhaps the .50 cal could have been used, but it's not really suited to this kind of role, as it has a slow rate of fire, and, for a machine gun, is fairly accurate (to the point that one was used during the Vietnam war as a "sniper rifle"), this is a role where you actually want some dispersion. In addition, the C-47 was VERY much in demand during WW2 when it was the primary airlift aircraft, it's unlikely that anyone would be willing to spare them for such a role. By Vietnam, the C-47 was considered obsolete as a transport, having been superseded in that role by the C-119, C-7, and especially the C-130 (the greatest airlift aircraft ever developed). The AC-47, and her bigger sisters, the AC-119 and AC-130, are still at heart, heavily armed TRANSPORT aircraft, which makes them vulnerable to antiaircraft fire, and WW2 was much less permissive of an environment when it came to AA fire, especially in the ETO. This is why gunships generally only operate during night time when the threat is lower. An AC-130 (call sign Spirit 03) was shot down by an SA-7 during Desert Storm when they lingered into daylight hours during the Battle of Khafji, with the loss of the entire crew. There, was, however, an excellent gunship for WW2, the B-25J-2 Mitchell, which carried 8 .50 cal machine guns in the nose, plus four more in two side gun packs (one per side) for 12 forward firing machine guns.

[@raikbarczynski6582]

The AC-47 send their flames from all the barrels 6000 shots per minute to make a hill all level Pilots circle their machines as eagles in the sky snippets from the Song: Magic Dragon by Sodom. those line alone tell what they work with and how they do it. sure the AC-130 has different guns but the tactic HOW they are used is still the same. Angels of Death or Protecting Eagles. call them what you want... grunts love those crews as much as they love A-10s rushing to their aid.