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AC 47 Spooky

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Description

AC 47 Spooky
Country of Origin: United States
Manufacturer: Douglass
Crew: 8; 1 pilot, 1 co-pilot, 1 navigator, 1 engineer, 1 loadmaster, 2 gunners and 1 observer
Length: 64 ft 5 in (19.6 m)
Wingspan: 95 ft 0 in (28.9 m)
Height: 16 ft 11 in (5.2 m)
Weight: 18,080 lb (8,200 kg) empty, 33,000 lb (14,900 kg) combat loaded
Powerplant: 2x Turbosupercharged Pratt and Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp 14 cylinder air cooled radial piston engines with 1,200 horsepower each
Maximum Speed: 230 mph (375 km/h)
Service Ceiling: 24,450 ft (7,450 m)
Range: 2,175 mi (3,500 km)
Armament: 3x 7.62mm M-134 machineguns

The AC 47 Spooky, a gunship designed during the Vietnam War to provide close air support to friendly ground forces. Armed with three General Electric M134 Miniguns it could fire up to 18,000 rounds per minute.

The North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong guerillas were afraid of very few things, and the AC 47 was one of these things. So terrified by it that the NVA high command said this to their troops: "Do not attack the beast....to do so would only further infuriate the dragon".

They were actually convereted C 47 Skytrains, the famous World War II Allied cargo haulers and later gained fame in the 1948 Berlin Airlift. Proving their versatility once again in Vietnam, they were one of the few aircraft who could give adaquate close air support for long periods of time....so powerful and effective were they that no friendly ground force, fort, outpost, town or village was ever overrun by the enemy when the AC 47 was flying overhead.

Updated with new Pics:

Miniguns and kill markings:
[link]

Nose art and engine:
[link]

Underside:
[link]

Low 7 o'clock:
[link]

Planform:
[link]

The Red Tornado: Formed by the tracers fired by the Miniguns as the AC47 orbits the battlefield:
[link]
Image size
3296x1488px 808.35 KB
Make
EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY
Model
KODAK EASYSHARE C195 Digital Camera
Shutter Speed
1/32 second
Aperture
F/3.3
Focal Length
6 mm
ISO Speed
160
Date Taken
Apr 27, 2011, 6:08:35 PM
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Comments14
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Hoch-Spannung's avatar
A licenced version of C-47 was well-known in the USSR as Li-2 or just "Douglass". It was used as a personell and cargo transport and even as an improvised night bomber.

The paintjob is alright to me by the way. But it'll be nice to cover the decals with matt laquer so they don't look glossy.