The bulk of the AC-130W Stinger II gunship fleet will be up-gunned with the addition of a 105-mm artillery gun like the rest of the gunship fleets, Air Force Special Operations Command boss Lt. Gen. Bradley Heithold revealed on Tuesday at ASC15. “If I have a gunship overhead and I jam the one gun, how many guns do I have? Zero, and that happens, so I’m a believer” in two guns for both the new AC-130J and legacy AC-130W, Heithold explained. The AC-130W fleet is currently armed with the precision strike package including a 30-mm cannon, Griffin missile, and Small Diameter Bomb capability. Nine of the 12 Stinger IIs will be up-gunned with the 105-mm weapon, while one of the remaining airframes is earmarked as a high-energy laser testbed for the next generation AC-130J. “I have to show that I am serious about pursuit of this high energy laser capability … I’m serious, here’s the aircraft we’re going to do it on,” Heithold said.
Watchdog Says Military Can Make Cyber Ops More Efficient
Sept. 17, 2025
The Government Accountability Office called for paring down the military's sprawling cyber enterprise in a recent report, amid renewed discussion about standing up a separate cyber force.
