USSOCOM Air Mobility

BY DAVID C. ISBY

“What we should all know has been evident ever since we q had airplanes: mobility is power. Mobility is something you do not want to be without,” said Maj. Gen. John Alison, who in 1943 was one of the creators of the Air Commandos and in 1944 led them on their first combat mission. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) requires its own air mobility, provided by Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) and Army Special Operations Aviation Command (USASOAC). For years these commands have been in intensive combat. Along with training and exercises, both in the United States and worldwide, they have also been extensively used in situations such as humanitarian relief and evacuations.

It requires expertise to plan, sustain, and execute SOCOM air mobility missions, and a critical mass of such personnel ensure that this is reflected both in high-level planning and in the research and development that will lead to next-generation capabilities. The aircraft and personnel of AFSOC and USASOAC are an example of SOCOM cooperation with the services. They fly modified versions of aircraft used by other services or commercial operators. The services develop and acquire the aircraft and train personnel. SOCOM pays for mission-specific training, equipment, and modifications to aircraft.

SOCOM is also supported by other U.S. air mobility assets. The transport aircraft of U.S. Air Force Air Mobility Command (AMC) enable inter-theater SOCOM deployments and combat missions; for example, AMC provides crews trained for special operations low-level missions and Boeing C-17 transports modified to deploy Naval Special Warfare craft, dropping them by parachute.

Air mobility is AFSOC’s single largest mission area, with operational squadrons in the 1st Special Operations Wing (SOW) at Hurlburt Field, Florida, the 27th SOW at Cannon Air Force Base (AFB), New Mexico, the 352nd SOW at RAF Mildenhall in England, and the 353rd Special Operations Group at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa. Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard units include both associate units that share aircraft with the active force and those that operate their own aircraft.

SOCOM air mobility assets are also involved in its aviation foreign internal defense and advisory missions, enabling coalition air arms to create their own capabilities. The worldwide network that links SOCOM with friendly and allied forces is literally given wings by AFSOC.

Lockheed Martin MC-130J Commando II and MC-130H Combat Talon II. The 36 big four-turboprop MC-130J Commando IIs, along with 15 older MC-130H Combat Talon II versions they are replacing, equip five operational and one training squadrons. Their specialty is penetrating hostile airspace at night, under 300 feet altitude and at high speed, loaded full of personnel and equipment, relying on their terrain-following/terrain avoidance radar (TF/TAR) and pilots with night vision goggles (NVGs). They usually go into combat alone, enabled by detailed mission planning and as much situational awareness as can be provided.

The MC-130J uses the C-130J Hercules transport airframe, which, compared with its MC-130H predecessor, has more powerful and efficient engines, modern avionics and navigation systems, and a high-technology “glass” cockpit. Its fuselage is stretched by an additional 15 feet, increasing usable volume by a third. The MC-130’s electronic countermeasures capabilities and terrain-following radar (TFR) are currently being upgraded.

The versatility and importance of the MC-130s have been demonstrated in recent years. In 2017, an MC-130 delivered a 10-ton GBU-43 MOAB (Massive Ordnance Air Burst) bomb against a terrorist cave complex in Afghanistan, a weapon so large that it had to be parachuted out the rear ramp because it cannot fit in any Air Force bomber. In 2017, AFSOC demonstrated its capability to support combat aircraft operations at forward air refueling points (FARPs) – which can be vital if major bases are put out of action – during exercises on Okinawa and in England. MC-130s carried out the ground refueling of Marine Corps Lockheed Martin F-35B

Lightning II Fighters and Air Force Boeing F-15C Eagle fighters. In 2018, an MC-130 airlanded an M142 HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) launcher of the 14th Marines on an unimproved airstrip to simulate an artillery raid, opening fire on enemy positions during a live fire exercise at Dugway Proving Grounds, Utah. In 2018, MC-130s transported SOCOM teams that eventually rescued a boys’ soccer team trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand.

The EC-130J Commando Solo II broadcasting platforms also are capable of mobility missions.

Light Transports. Used for transport missions in support of SOCOM, the Sierra Nevada C-146A Wolfhound is a modified version of the Fairchild Dornier 328 twin-turboprop airliner. AFSOC took delivery of the first of some 20 in 2011, and they equip two operational and one training squadrons. These have been upgraded to Block 20 configuration, with a cockpit suitable for NVG use.

Some light transports are leaving the inventory. For example, two C-145s (modified PZL-Mielic M28 Skytrucks) will be transferred to Estonia. The remaining five C-145s are being used in the training role.

Other light transports, including the single-engine Cessna U-27 (Caravan), the twin-engine CASA C-41 (C-212), and the Basler turboprop version of the classic Douglas C-47, have been used operationally, but now are mainly used with training and advisory missions for coalition partner air arms.

Bell-Boeing CV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor. The CV-22 is the rotorcraft counterpart of the MC-130, a major element of the AFSOC force structure, with some 50 aircraft in three operational and one training squadrons. The CV-22 has the vertical take-off and landing capabilities of a rotorcraft along with the range, speed and payload of a twin-turboprop transport. It can use terrain-following radar, forward-looking infrared (FLIR) sensors, and advanced avionics to penetrate hostile airspace at low altitude, normally at night or in adverse weather. The CV-22s are currently being upgraded to Block 30 configuration, with a new TFR and defensive systems.

The CV-22 has seen extensive combat, starting in Afghanistan in 2010 and including Yemen, Sudan, Iraq, and Syria.

Mil Mi-17 Hip. Small numbers of Russian-built Mi-17 Hip helicopters are operated by AFSOC’s 6th and 711th (Air Force Reserve) Special Operations Squadrons. Currently, the Mi-17 is used primarily for training coalition air arm personnel. Others, including some GOCO (government owned, contractor operated) aircraft, take part in SOCOM training. In previous years, Mi-17s were used operationally, although this has been reduced due to post-2014 sanctions on Russia that reduced parts availability and the decision to reequip Afghanistan’s helicopter force with U.S.-built aircraft. The Army also flies a small number of Mi-17s.

Formed in 2011, USASOAC is responsible for training and equipping SOCOM’s Army Aviation assets, freeing operational units to concentrate on their mission. Like AFSOC, USASOAC flies a range of SOCOM missions and provides partnership, advisors and training to friendly air arms.

The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR). The 160th SOAR, known as “the Night Stalkers,” have provided the core of SOCOM rotary wing air mobility since the 1980s. The largest subordinate unit of USASOAC, the 160th’s active-force components include four helicopter-equipped aviation battalions, plus a company with General Atomics MQ-1 Gray Eagle unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and several detachments and specialized units. of light helicopters used in combat since the 1980s, at least 51 M-model MELBs have been delivered. They are currently being operated in Block 2.2 configuration. The MH-6M is usually employed as a mobility asset carrying personnel. The AH-6M is usually configured as a light-attack helicopter, including using precision-guided munitions such as the BAE Systems APKWS (Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System), a laser-guided version of the standard 2.75-inch aircraft rocket. The MELB’s 8-meter diameter rotor allows it to operate in urban terrain, flying between buildings. MELB Block 3 configuration provides higher gross weight, and improved cockpit design, flight controls, crew survivability and infrared countermeasures. It will achieve initial operation capability (IOC) in 2021.

Sikorsky MH-60/M Black Hawk. The SOCOM version of the U.S. Army’s standard utility helicopter, at least 72 MH-60M versions of the Black Hawk have been delivered, mainly to the 160th SOAR. The Black Hawk first entered combat in 1983 and has been used in support of SOCOM since then. The MH-60M is upengined to provide enhanced hot temperature and high altitude performance and is capable of air refueling. The MH-60M is being upgraded with the Raytheon Silent Knight terrain following radar. The Block I upgrade, starting in 2019, will include additional armament options.

Direct Action Penetrator. These highly modified MH-60L/M Black Hawks are armed for escort and attack missions. They can carry 2 7.62mm miniguns, an M230 30mm chaingun, Hydra rockets, and Hellfire missiles.

Boeing MH-47G Chinook. The long-range twin-rotor MH-47G is a workhorse of SOCOM air mobility. All of the 69 MH-47Gs were upgraded to Block I configuration, including air refueling capability, additional internal fuel tanks, and a more powerful electrical system. They are currently being upgraded with the Silent Knight radar.

The 2018 National Defense Strategy prioritizing readiness for a high-end fight means SOCOM air mobility may be called on to operate within threat anti-access/are a denial (A2AD) coverage. Penetrating these may require heavily armed, high-performance, network-capable, and stealthy aircraft such as the Lockheed Martin F-35. SOCOM air assets may be tasked to penetrate the same environment alone, unarmed, at low altitude, in a non-stealthy MC-130J or MH-47G. At the same time, SOCOM’s air mobility assets and their personnel have had only a limited opportunity to recover and recapitalize from the intense operational tempo both have had to sustain since 2001.

MH-47G Block II. The Army plans to upgrade all its Chinooks to Block II configuration, starting with the 160th SOAR’s MH-47G Block I Chinooks. This reflects the high operational tempo and demanding flight profiles the MH-47Gs have been subject to in recent years. Block II offers improved performance, especially in hot and high conditions. USASOAC currently has eight Block II aircraft in its MH-47G fleet. The remaining MH-47G Block IIs will all be new-builds, with machined fuselages, upgrades to sensors, and a glass cockpit.

FARA. The Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) represents the Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program’s Capability Set 1. The U.S. Army, after four failed attempts, wants an armed scout helicopter. If the FARA program does go ahead, it would be a likely replacement for the 160th’s Little Birds, SOCOM’s acquisition executive James Smith said in 2019.

FLRAA. The Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) represents FVL Capability Set 3, effectively a replacement for the Black Hawk. This size rotorcraft had been the Army’s priority before the appearance of FARA in 2018. This led to the funding of the two Joint Multirole Rotorcraft Technology Demonstrator (JMR TD) designs: the Bell V-280 Valor tiltrotor and the Sikorsky-Boeing SB>1 Defiant compound helicopter (with a pusher propeller and co-axial main rotors). The Marines and SOCOM are working with the Army on this project; SOCOM pilots have already flown the simulators for the two JMR TDs.

FVL Capability Set 5. There are no near-term plans to develop FVL’s Capability Set 5, the only one of the five FVL capability sets for which the Air Force rather than the Army is responsible, but as Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, AFSOC’s commanding general, told the Senate Armed Services Committee on April 11, 2018, “We are interested in developments relating to Next Generation Vertical Take Off and Landing capabilities. We see this presenting a revolutionary leap in vertical lift range and speed using advanced turbofan technology.” Similar to the pre-2001 MC-X and post- 2001 M-X projects, Capability Set 5 requires a design with payload, range, and speed basically comparable to a C-130 but routinely capable of vertical takeoff and landing. It may require extensive use of stealth technology. Bringing such a design to the prototype stage would obviously require major investment, building on the work currently in progress on the Low Observable Infiltration Platform, a SOCOM research and development priority.

Emerging Technologies. The diverse requirements of SOCOM’s air mobility may lead to future aircraft relying on technologies that are currently in development. SOCOM research and development efforts include network capabilities that can link air mobility assets to each other and to ground or naval forces, increasing situational awareness without alerting enemy forces. Future unmanned air vehicle designs could be used for some of the resupply and airdrop missions currently handled by manned aircraft. Electric power offers the potential for reduced acoustic and infrared signatures. Some of the commercial proposals for urban air taxis would be potentially applicable for SOF insertion.

Autonomous flight offers the potential for a helicopter to fly with two pilots, one pilot, or no pilots, depending on the mission. Sikorsky is currently demonstrating autonomous operation with a modified version of its S-70i (a commercial Black Hawk) and the Army will test it on a UH-60M Black Hawk in 2019. “We are going to build these vehicles so they are optionally manned,” Brig. Gen. Walter Rugen, head of the Army’s FVL cross-functional team for development, said of future rotorcraft.