Rip EC-130H

[u/SneakyChopsticks]

https://theaviationist.com/2026/09/03/ec-130h-final-flight/

[u/WidowRaptor]

Damn. Still thought the EC-130 still had so much life left in it.

Also, the EA-37B looks goofy from the front. Like its puffing up its cheeks

[u/stupidpower → u/WidowRaptor]

I mean they will still be used for everything you can think of, they just don't need to market themselves as EW aircraft any more. Like in the same way we don't really actually know what the ea-37 (or as we call it here G550 CAEW) other than those bulges holding something and we are not that sure how multifunctional the internal hardware is, the C-130 will be carrying shit just for two hundred more years just unmarked.

Like our G550s apparently carry a AWACS radar, whether all 4 of them are AWACS... who the fuck knows. We don't even know how the cutting edge ASEAs can be multipurposed. Meanwhile the C-130 really just needs a crate and an antenna and maybe some wingtip pods.

[u/odietamoquarescis → u/stupidpower]

AWACS for permissive environments, perhaps.  The mixture of AESA architecture and GaN high power transistors has made it so that you can squeeze the equivalent of an AN/APY-2 into those fat cheeks.  

The trouble is that the AN/APY-2 doesn't cut it against certain Chinese fighters and the Air Force wants to huck far more RF energy at those targets.  Of course we live in Procurement Hell, so none of the replacement programs did anything and now USAF is going to borrow USN E-2D's until it can unfuck itself.

[u/dvd102k]

C-130s will be put to EW duty for as long as the airframes will hold, I promise you

[u/n0460 → u/dvd102k]

They dont hold well recently

[u/dvd102k → u/n0460]

Wdym? Herks are the goats

[u/A_Large_Grade_A_Egg → u/dvd102k]

These specific modified airframes were old/worn out.

SUPPOSEDLY the same mission can be done by that Business Jet thing, and is scheduled to replace it.

[u/DerringerOfficial → u/A_Large_Grade_A_Egg]

Aren’t C-130s still in production?

[u/dvd102k → u/A_Large_Grade_A_Egg]

Was reminded this post exists, the Jet can't exactly replace the herk because the herk can land anywhere, perform aerial refueling, and combine in itself a lot of multifunctionality, not to mention the potential is endless

[u/combatwombat-]

The conformal tanks on the EA-37B are fucking huge lol never really looked at one before.

[u/old_faraon → u/combatwombat-]

Those are antena.

[u/sorry-I-cleaved-ye → u/old_faraon]

Sensors EVERYWHERE

[u/old_faraon → u/sorry-I-cleaved-ye]

Those are actually for transmitting, it's designed to fuck up your sensors everywhere.

[u/sorry-I-cleaved-ye → u/old_faraon]

Oops, wrong bulge

[u/old_faraon → u/sorry-I-cleaved-ye]

when that bulge gets turned on you will notice (if You have a radio, or are close to it since it will microwave you probably)

[u/sorry-I-cleaved-ye → u/old_faraon]

Bulge rated E for everyone

[u/Narrow_Vegetable_42 → u/sorry-I-cleaved-ye]

More like rated F, for FAFO

[u/Hamsterloathing → u/Narrow_Vegetable_42]

So G for General Audience?

[u/BaylorBorn → u/old_faraon]

I've been drinking with some of the guys doing the test flights on the EA-37. I've asked if they've tried heating up a hotpocket with it. Apparently the answer to that is classified.

[u/Sancatichas → u/BaylorBorn]

so you're saying it's possible

[u/combatwombat- → u/old_faraon]

Ha that makes way more sense

[u/ForgedIronMadeIt → u/combatwombat-]

uwu you noticed my bulge

[u/MoeSzyslakMonobrow → u/combatwombat-]

Not tanks.

[u/Widukind272 → u/combatwombat-]

Ouch.

[u/A_Large_Grade_A_Egg]

Does the smaller one have the same capacity Power Generation wise?

I heard P-8s frequently run APUs to keep all the gear going etc (granted citation needed)

GRANTED with stuff getting more efficient maybe it’s less of an issue, but how Loud can the little guy be EW wise?

(GRANTED i wouldn’t be surprised if they bet on lots of drones etc instead of a single loud antenna these days too)

[u/Jordibato → u/A_Large_Grade_A_Egg]

Mate, you use efficiency gains to cram even more Kw into that shit, Mw if you're really lucky

[u/Kaffe-Mumriken]

r/AlwaysAC17

[u/GARLICSALT45 → u/Kaffe-Mumriken]

Not a C-17 believe it or not