Ghostriders 1976-1995

"Invictus" Combat History of the AC-130 Spectre Gunship, Iran, El Salvador, Grenada, Panama, Iraq, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Somalia

Resistance is futile. You can run, but you’ll only die tired.  

The AC-130 gunship was quickly developed in 1968 to provide fire support for ground forces in Vietnam. Twenty-eight C-130 cargo aircraft were converted into AC-130s for night attack operations. The AC-130 was crude, ugly, ad hoc, and detested by many within the USAF...but it worked, and it worked well. Likewise, AC-130 crews were deemed unruly “biker gangs” but performed magnificently in every major US military operation from 1976 to 1995. Most of these combat operations were cloaked in secrecy, but records once classified for up to 20 years have now been opened. Based on this newly declassified information and hundreds of interviews with SOF veterans, Ghostriders 1976-1995 is the first authoritative historical account of the AC-130 operations, written by an AC-130 aerial gunner who participated in every AC-130 combat operation from 1980 through 1994.

©2022 William Walter (P)2022 Recorded Books

What a great book on Gunship history!

Bill has done a fabulous job of recording the history of gunships! He has written it in a manner that allows you to visualize everything happening and provides you with enough information to understand the operating environment at the time. I highly recommend this book!