1 - The Black Vault

PRAETORIAN STARSHIP
was modified with test equipment on 13 and 14
December. On 15 December the aircraft departed
LAS Ontario and flew a test mission in the China
Lake restricted area. The mission profile included
multiple passes at 10,000 feet and 3,000 feet above
the ground and two passes at 250 feet. All test
objectives were met, and the mission was terminated
by midafternoon. The aircraft returned to
LAS, where test equipment was removed, and the
aircraft returned to Hurlburt Field on 17 December,
just in time for the Christmas holidays. 47 For
the 8th SOS, 1976 had been filled with schoolhouse
and test-oriented missions.
1977: Combat Talon
Redesignated as the MC-130E
Early in 1977 the most significant event in recent
Talon history occurred when aircraft 64-0564
deployed from the United States to the western
Pacific utilizing two in-flight refuelings and flying
27.8 nonstop hours. The aircraft had been the
first to be modified with the UARRSI. Crew members
from the 1st SOS were among the first to be
trained on the new system during the last week of
January 1977. The mission profile began with the
onload of US Navy SEAL personnel at Coronado
Naval Air Station, California, on 10 February.
With the 17-man SEAL team onboard, the Combat
Talon was refueled twice during its transit of
the Pacific en route to the Philippines. The first air
refueling was completed over Hawaii and the second
near Guam. After the second refueling the
Combat Talon proceeded on to the Philippines,
where it dropped the SEAL team at Subic Bay. 48
To deploy over long distances and air-drop special
operations personnel anywhere in the world dra -
matically improved the capability of the Combat
Talon (see chap. 2).
Another significant event in Combat Talon his -
tory occurred during early 1977. The Combat
Talon was redesignated by Headquarters USAF
as the MC-130E to reflect its multirole status.
Combat Talon had been originally given the des -
ignation C-130E(I), which denoted its special
status as a Fulton STARS-equipped, or interceptcapable,
aircraft. After MOD-70 the Combat
Talon carried three designations—C-130E(C), or
Clamp configuration for STARS-equipped aircraft;
C-130E (Y), or Yank configuration for Pacific
non-Fulton aircraft; and C-130E(S), or Swap
configuration for the two non-Fulton-equipped
aircraft (64-0571/64-0572) that were occasionally
loaned to other organizations outside of SOF. The
MC-130E became the one designation for all
Combat Talons in early 1977, regardless of equipm
ent installed on the aircraft. 49
1st SOS Excels during ORI
The spring of 1977 was a busy time for the 1st
SOS. The annual Foal Eagle exercise was combined
with Exercise Team Spirit 77 during March
and April. During the exercise the first of three
limited operational readiness inspections (LORI)
were held. The next month, during Cope Thunder
in the Philippines, units of the 18th TFW flew a
second LORI. These two LORIs, along with one
flown earlier in the year, composed the wing’s
ORI. The 1st SOS scored an excellent overall rating
and was the highest rated squadron in the
18th TFW. 50 Along with the LORIs, the 1st SOS
flew three additional Commando Talon missions.
On 17 June 1977 Lt Col Richard E. Clinton assumed
command of the squadron from Lieutenant
Colonel Gardella. A formal change of command
ceremony, presided over by Brig Gen Walter H.
Baxter III, the 18th TFW commander, was held
on 20 June. 51
Deployments to the Philippines and to Korea
were conducted throughout the summer and fall
of 1977. To expand the unique capabilities of the
weapons system, a 1st SOS MC-130E aircraft, en
route to programmed depot maintenance at LAS
Ontario, participated in Project Mauna Loa in
Hawaii. The mission consisted of evaluating the
ability of the aircraft’s FLIR system to detect
lava tubes of the volcano Mauna Loa. The idea
was to use FLIR information to help track lava
flow. Results of the mission were highly encouraging,
and data collected was provided to Headquarters
PACAF. 52
The 7th SOS Identified to
Receive European ECM MOD
In Europe the summer of 1977 brought about
another major change in the 7th SOS’s chain of
command. USAFE Special Order GB-19, dated 14
June 1977, formally activated the 7575th Operations
Group (OG) at Rhein Main AB, FRG, effective
1 July, and assigned the new OG directly
under Seventeenth AF. Along with the 7th SOS,
the 7405th Operations Squadron, also located at
Rhein Main AB and known informally as the
“Berlin for Lunch Bunch,” was placed under the
7575th. The changes were designed to give Seventeenth
AF a better span of control over its highly
specialized C-130 units. 53
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