TYPE REPORT // HC-130N/P
Known as the Combat King, the HC-130N and HC-130P variants of the Lockheed Hercules have supported the USAF’s combat search and rescue (CSAR) mission since the mid-1960s. Today, just a handful of these old models remain in service with a single Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) unit.
DEVELOPED FOR THE Military
Air Transport Service’s (MATS) Air Rescue Service (ARS), the Combat King has taken on many guises over its long service career with the US Air Force. The type first flew under the designation HC-130H in December 1964, with the variant initially planned as a replacement for the ARS’ Douglas HC-54Ds and Boeing HC-97Gs.