That last line "the B52 might outlive us all, but it just might be the C130 that ushers in our demise" was a haunting piece of poetry

The C-130 will be flying in some form or another for another 70 years.

The C130 is a fine example (along with the B-52) of a well designed aircraft able to perform long after the original designers are dead and buried. This doesn't mean the changes haven't been made - of course they have - but the basic airframe design has been proven over years of exactly just how good it is.

Did that Hercules just do a loop?👀

It's pronounced; (TAC - A - MO) or TACAMO. An EC-130 can be forward deployed anywhere around the world and like you said can land almost anywhere. Only the 1961 (proof of concept) version was a roll-on-roll-off system after those initial test the EC-130 G and Q models were permanent instillations. At that time there was a TACAMO aircraft aloft over the Atlantic and Pacific oceans 24-7-365 basis. I supervised the communications portion of the missions from 1972-1976 as an Aircrew member of VQ-4 (Crew 7) NAS Patuxent River Maryland .Those were days to remember.

START is pointless when only one side sticks to it.

I got to tour an E-6B at Travis AFB. Yes that antenna spool is in the back section. I had no clue what it was and one of the crew members told me, "That's in case we want to go fishing".

I did 14 strategic detergent patrols onboard three Ohio-class subs. Tacamo aircraft sucked balls, because they only flew on Sunday night, and Sunday was our day to catch up on sleep. if you ever wonder why anyone would turn down $100K for a two-year re-enlistment, just spend one day aboard a missile sub on strategic alert.

I served at TACAMO and I can't help but wonder how the pilots and aircrew feel about going from a 707 to a C-130.

Alex, it's pronounced TAC-A-MO! Glad to see you cover this mission.

The utility of the c130 never stops impressing, even more so its potential

I had no idea the TACAMO system existed before this

Great vid. Just have someone pronounce TACAMO for you.

C-130 is a one of a kind. You know something different is flying when it goes over head. Got to stay on Maxwell for a couple years, found myself down at the grocery store watching them land and takeoff, got to see a bunch of different aircraft there but the c-130’s definitely my favorite.

I’d love a show that talked about all the current and future roles for the C-130. It’s a dragon ship, an ammunition hauler for the Navy, a cargo aircraft for delivering troops and supplies in rough areas, and it can drop/launch hundreds of cruise missiles/drones, etc. Talk about versatility.

A very close family member in an engineer for the c-130 "propulsion" and I asked when they will be retiring that airframe. The reply was "They are flying it until it falls out of the sky" LOL

Eventually, they'll retrofit a Hurc for dogfighting.

Best job I ever had was as an IFT on EC-130G/Q in the eighties! Loved it

A video about the X65 and active flow control would be cool.

C'mon Alex, "This is...SEAPOWER!"

Fascinating stuff Alex, I can always count on your channel to bring forth some interesting and informative content!

When I worked at McDonnell Douglas on the C17 program in the electronics department. All C17 have these communications capabilities [very low frequency communication]

C130 is such a legend

The US Army just chose General Dynamics and Rheinmetall as finalists for the 4000 Bradley replacement IFVs. Could you do a Firepower series video about this program, the two finalists and the other three that dropped out. Or more generally the current state of IFVs (Bradley, CV90, Puma, Lynx) and their most likely future. Maybe even including anti air IFVs like some CV90 variants and SkyRanger.

Nice video Alex. Brought back memories for me. I had a short tenure as a Tacamo Reel Operator ( VQ-3 NAS Barber’s Pt, HI). I can definitely see how the Herc would be much more cost effective and reliable. I remember on my first flight as a reel operator going up to the cockpit just to stretch my legs and move around. When I get up there, I was surprised to see the flight engineer in the pilot seat, the pilot and copilot were in the galley 😂. Yeah, those continuous orbits were really a drag until you get used to it🥴🤢🤮. VQ-3 was a crazy bunch but I guess that was their way of blowing off steam. The only squadron to be banned from staying at certain hotel chain worldwide 😂. When I got back from those long flights, my wife would ask me why I was walking with a tilt

Thanks for the updates and the work you put into your videos. Even though I personally don't have a military mindset, it's always fun to watch your videos

Never even had an idea about this “problem” Thanks for informing me Alex.

Good stuff as always, Alex.

This totally took me back to the movie, Crimson Tide! "Scary scenario" is the understatement of all time!

This video reminds me of English assignments in college, where a question is asked, such as, "How would nuclear submarines get notified to launch their missiles if radio waves don't travel underwater?" And then you answer with "The C-130 will fly over their operating area relaying the message using Ultra Low Frequency" but the professor says, "That's a good answer, but you need to make it 5,000 words and make the C-130 seem like its mission is more dramatic than that."

this was a great video to add to your library. A+ brother

I have always been astonished at how well sound travels underwater. Once a couple of decades back I had a friend bang two rocks together underwater at a moderately busy pond. While I swam away. I got maybe 50-60 feet away and underwater I could still hear them. While above water, I couldn't hear them no matter how hard he hit them. This simple demo really stuck with me. Especially when the subject turns to communication with subs or whatnot underwater.

This is the usual well informed, authoritative report. Warmest compliments. Thank you, sir. :)

You do good work !!!!!

always great from SB

I thought for sure this was going to be about Rapid Dragon! I think the C-130 is the perfect aircraft for this mission. Cheap, reliable, versatile & long endurance.

In the late80’s during a commo exercise, we could copy Tacamo PAC , Looking Glass, Abncap Eur, Tacamo Lant, all while submerged in south Atlantic close to Africa

Alex, I Really enjoy your expertise and insights into America's military machines.

-TACAMO East has been using C-130s for connections with Subs since at least1972. My next door neighbor was Flight Engineer on one back then they kept one on station in the Atlantic 24-7 out of PAX RIVER NAS for the majority of the Cold WAR. And they had VLF Radio transmitter attached to one of the Engines. He said you could read the MORRIS CODE ON THE RPM GAGE Back then the length of the antenna was classified.

Very interesting video, learned a lot from it.

Alex, I love your videos, you're the best as far as I concerned. I was thinking about VLF transmissions and I was under the impression that the bandwidth was low and of course it's one way to the sub. You didn't mention ELF which is even lower in frequency and bandwidth. There are 2 ground stations in the US and all it's capable of doing is sending a coded letter group that signals the sub to come up to communicate with the Navy's satellite system. I read that VLF only reaches around 20 meters into the water while ELF penetrates to around 150 meters. I'd like to understand this system better.

Great stuff as always Alex...in the last few seconds of your video it shows the C-130 landing in the sand and going for reverse on the props to slow down and the sand that it kicks up and is inhaled to the engines is a nightmare for someone like me that maintains them... but very cool

@7:43, wow, they really pounded that landing down! Didn’t even attempt a flare!😂

I just know Alex was smiling saying now this is fire 🔥 when he wrote that last "usher our demise" line cause it is

_"....and the history of these platforms warrants a video of its own..."_ LET'S GO!!! (3:48)

Holy crsp! Navy here handled a lot of intel and I did not know that! I can always count on you.

Super interesting video. I learned something new today. Also that was an extremely strong title.

VLF is only used to call sub up to a higher depth so that higher frequency radio can transmit data faster. VLF is painfully slow.

C-130 is a swiss army knife. It does cargo transport, it’s a solid jump plane, it does search and rescue, it does surveillance , it’s a flying tank (ac-130), and apparently makes a good comms relay to subs.

Not to mention the modified c-130 carrier landing and take off testing in 1963. Not saying that it is being practiced now but with carrier's slightly larger, it could be possible

The other way to communicate with a submarine would be acoustically - you'd need a very loud sound source to cover the ocean, but that's not impossible. They'd pick up the signal on their sonar, which they are constantly listening to already.

The surface fleet also maintains ELF/VLF capability.

One additional wrinkle: The C130 can operate off the deck of a carrier.

Okay, I want a video only about C-130 covering it's history and achievements

Whew - for a second there, I thought there might not be airpower news, and it would be all about boats, but Alex had us well covered. ;)

Thats cool stuff. Thanks.

As a former USN P3 flyer never heard TACAMO “TACK-A-MO” pronounced they way you said it “TE-CA-MO” unique. 👍

Maybe a slight editing error right at the end? Either way, great video.

liked and subscribed

Tak u Mo is how you pronounce it bty. Great video Alex.

Ac-130: Hellrider on site, just show me where they are

One of the best Aircraft ever made The C-130 ⚔️ Just like a Raven 🐦‍⬛ it can do barrel rolls ❤

It's amazing how versatile the C-130 is. I don't know the range of one, but I'm sure that with wing tanks, it can reach just about anywhere.

Could you do a video about the future of Shorad? Will short range air defense provided by the laser stryker? Will the Bradley replacement IFV XM30 function as an anti air cannon? Should the US look at the SkyRanger / Skynex / millenium gun system? And will there be a Stinger replacement with a better battery, targeting, and most importantly more affordable? Or is this affordable future the APKWS guidance upgrade for the cheap and plentiful Hydra 70mm rocket? Should we slap that on Avenger Hummvees? Or IRIS-T?

I think that the replacement will be a 737 variant, as the E-7 Wedgetail is. There would be some logistical efficiencies because of the E-7s that will replace the E-3 and likely still be based at Tinker AFB, where the E-6s are based. Also, the Navy's P-8 is a 737 airframe. The "dash" capability of a jet is a desired quality for escaping an inbound nuclear attack and for repositioning to a different base or communications station during a nuclear war.

If you do a video on the Tacamo planes, don't forget The 747 based E4B. There were only a few made. Can you imagine a 747 flying in tight concentric circles for an extended period of time

It surprises me a little that this couldn't be done with the largest Helos in the US military. I know you have an issue with range and there are a lack of carriers that are deployed at one time, but there are other ships that could hold a large Helo, of course LHA/D being one class of ship, but there aren't many of those either, and I don't think you could carry a large array on a smaller helo, maybe not even our largest. And the military also wants to use the C-130 for scramjet missiles too, correct? It may also carry drones and other missles. What a beast, and it would be REALLY hard for another country to keep track of which C-130 is doing what. I foresee a LOT of C-130s being built over the next two decades. Ol' Faithful.

The subs have VLF (very low frequency) receivers that can receive orders while submerged. VLF signals can penetrate sea water.

Good video, I worked at that squadron from 1985-1990. For reference it is pronounced "Tack-amo" with emphasis on "Tac".

I'd always thought that we were using extremely low frequency (ELF) communications from the fixed stations to relay ELF trigraphs. We'd have a long antenna via a spool that we'd deploy from the back of the sail when we were deep. I recall that we'd receive three characters every 5 minutes while submerged (ELF trigraph BJB and BVN are the ones that stick in my mind). If we missed three consecutive communications, we'd come shallow to copy radio traffic. I remember hearing the pronunciation as "TACK-AH-MOE."

should’ve been C-power

Do some look-ups. Subs communicate while submerged via a floating wire antenna. Being out of communications would defeat their whole reason for being, that being rapid retaliatory response, the key to deterrence. That antenna can receive satellite communications, so the TAC-a-mo system is a backup to that in the event of satellite communications being impossible.

pretty impressive to see a plane that size fly like that

Do a video on the Four Horseman! They are 4 aircraft demonstration team like the Blue Angels, but hercs.

The way the antenna is un-spooled from the aircraft reminded me of this. Whilst some people here might be familiar with the Fulton Extraction system (if you're not it's worth a look up). There is a more primitive version use by early bush pilots (seen in Popular Science, December 1934). The aircraft would do circles above lowering a rope. Because of some neat physics, by the time the rope hit the ground, it was stationary to the ground but still attached to the aircraft screaming around at a hundred miles an hour. Mail delivery was done this way in Outback Australia where runways were not available. I heard the people behind Fulton played with this idea but found it too slow. Ended up adapting glider recovery tech from WW2 (another fun lookup) The closest live cargo I could find was a chicken and some eggs.

*_I'M ALEX HOLLINGS!_*

Did I just watch that C-130 invert and loop? Holy moly.

Outstanding episode! I've never heard the boomer mission put into more perfect context.

Why are so many here stuck on the slight variations in pronunciation of Tac-amo? Really? Anyway.... Alex, love your videos! Top notch and your knowledge base is impressive. Keep on making the great videos! Fantastic! How do you put up with all the.... feedback? Omg!

Pentagon to C-130-J Captain: "Code Brown. Fly tight rings and transmit your text message ordering the end of the world". Captain to Pentagon: "Affirm, Code Brown. Rings getting tighter, much tighter" 'MAD' is still 'Mutual Assured Destruction'. As a 65 year old Australian, I haven't forgotten growing up with this bloody lunacy.

C-130s did the TACAMO job before the E-6 anyway ... The E-6s had to have their tails modified / strengthened for the job

Iirc the COG aircraft back in the fifties and sixties and probably part of the seventies had a long towed communication array it could use to launch missiles wirelessly. I think it could control planes too. Idk about subs. I think the plane or codename for the project was Lookinglass. They always had a general on board and airborne above the central US 24/7 for decades ready to send the launch codes.

Hey Alex if you could cover the ill fated Canadian Avro Arrow and the cause of it's ultimate demise, it would be an interesting video to watch - thanks a bunch!!!

It should be a modular system that can be loaded into any C - 130.

Good 'ol C130! What an engineering "marvel". Sometimes (mostly ALL the time) simplicity is the best answer.

Can you do a comparison of the c130 and the new competitor, the kc-390 from embraer ?

They were ancient back in the 70's when I flew in them on countless deployments. We called them "Pterodactyl Airlines".

I live about 5 miles from Jim Creek Naval Base, the main submarine communication base for the West Coast. Would love to see a video on their MASSIVE miles wide antennas that criss cross the whole valley. Rumor has it you can send a one way signal to any submarine at any depth.

Alex, I was thinking that it was ELF for Extra Low Frequency and not VLF. As a kid I remember a ELF antenna in northern Wisconsin. You are more of an authority then me but that is what I remember.

Don't Subs also have a floating antenna they can unreel to the surface so they can communicate without surfacing..?

🤔 We used to pronounce it TAC-A-MO. 🤷🏻‍♂️

I was on a nuke cruiser in the 90’s but I had a few acquaintances who went subs. One of them on the Alaska out of Bremerton told me that the Navy has some kind of sonar-based communication system as a backup to the TACAMO aircraft.

C-130 just a rolling down the strip

Great job Alex. I love the 130. What about 737? Just to have more options and speed?

And remember, the message they are relaying is "Don't shoot!"...

I'm glad that Sandboxx is expanding from Air Power to Sea and Ground Power. I'd actually like to see Sandboxx to address the more finite Marine, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard news. They are all critical to the mutual defense strategy. Yes, I know that all strategic weapons are controlled by Strategic Command (formally Strategic Air Command or SAC). My time in the US Marine Corps for 21 years is dated as I'm now 77, but my dad flew B-47s and B-52s during the cold war under SAC. I don't know why SAC was transitioned to Strategic Command because every strategic asset today is airborne in one way or another. ICBMs are airborne. The B-2 is airborne. Strategic Recon are airborne. I'm old school and I don't believe in rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic makes the situation better. SAC had the ability to control all of the strategic assets in our military so changing the name was just a billion dollar waste of money to create and build a new command that does the same thing. Maybe it's like creating Space Force when the Air Force was already doing that job. Anyway, our military is trying to find it's way into the future in ways that Congress will fund them without analyses as to why the changes are needed. Keep up the good work.

Just happen to be here let's check it out.

Can we get an update on XQ-67A?

Let’s ride this crazy train!

An important detail needed here: The submarine unreels a long VLF receiver antenna and trails it. This antenna's far end floats on the surface and receives the transmission. This means the submarine follows a schedule to receive such transmissions. An Extremely Low Frequency message could penetrate the water to some modest depth on its own to tell the submarine to ascend to receive the VLF message, but dunno if the Navy even uses ELF anymore.