C-123 (and later C-130) loaded with flares and a side firing Gattling gun. Six or eight barrels, 20mm or 40mm and a horrendous rate of fire. This craft flew low and slow and with its night vision system could put fire in close to friendly troops. It even had radios that could talk on the Infantry net. One of the few air force types the ground fighters were always happy to see.
This photo was taken with a slow shutter speed and shows flares drifting
on the left and the stream of tracers (one each ten rounds) forming a
waterfall of fire. This machine really worked.
SPECIFICATIONS C-130A Span: 132 ft. 7 in. Length: 97 ft. 10 in. Height: 38 ft. 6 in. Weight: 124,200 lbs. max. Armament: Two 7.62mm mini-guns, two 20mm, two 40mm cannons and one 105mm cannon Engines: Four Allison T-56-A-11 turboprops of 4,050 hp. Cost: $5,240,000 ($2,740,000 for a basic C-130A) PERFORMANCE Maximum speed: 380 mph. Cruising speed: 335 mph. Range: 2,500 miles Service Ceiling: 33,000 ft.
RANCH HAND
First with C 123s then with C 130s, the Air Force developed spray systems to defoliate the ambush sites along roads. It ended with defolients being used in many places to remove the jungle foliage and NVA hiding places