A Spookier Spooky, 30mm at a Time? Nope.

Latest updates: 25mm ammo handling systems. AC-130U & flares(click to view full) In 2006 GD was contracted to repackage A-10 ammo for AC-130 Gunships. As is so often the case, there’s a story behind the story. The USA’s fearsome AC-130U “Spooky” Hercules gunships were having their old 40mm Bofors cannons and 25mm GAU-12 gatling guns removed, and replaced with ATK’s 30mm MK44 autocannons. It didn’t go very well. In the end, accuracy and operational needs trumped standardization, and the 40mm and 25mm guns had to go back in… AC-130H Firing(click to view full) The same modifications were planned for the AC-130H “Specter” fleet, for the same reasons: maintenance issues, and gun/ammunition compatibility and variety. A USAF Air Force Link article explains: “The aging 40 mm Bofors cannon, which has been around in various guises since World War II, is increasingly hard to maintain, Colonel Gottstine said, and there is no production line set up to replace shrinking ammunition stocks. While the 25 mm gun is newer, he said, “it is a maintenance hog as far as the amount of money and time we spend maintaining the ammo handling system.” In addition, because no other Air Force aircraft use the 25 […]