Jane Edwards
Lt. Gen. Bradley Heithold, commander of the Air Force Special Operations Command, has said AFSOC wants to equip the AC-130 aircraft with laser guns and allow it to launch small drones to counter future threats, Breaking Defense reported Thursday.
“I believe we can put a high energy laser — offensive and defensive — on an AC-130 by the close of this decade,” Heithold said at the Association of Old Crows’ annual conference.
Sydney Freedberg Jr. writes Heithold said AFSOC has teamed up with the Joint Staff to create the techniques, tactics and procedures for the gunship’s laser platform.
The command chief also noted that tests on AC-130’s use of mini unmanned aircraft vehicles to search for enemy targets are now underway, according to the report.
AFSOC will test the capability of an AC-130 plane to launch a Coyote UAV through the aircraft’s Common Launch Tube and scout for threats through the drone’s camera, Freedberg reports.
The AC-130 is a variant of the Lockheed Martin-built C-130 Hercules transport plane.
