Photo: MC-12W spyplane specialized in "find, fix, and finish" bad guys at its Red Flag debut

Published on: March 20, 2012 at 3:00 PM

Red Flag 12-3, that took place at Nellis AFB, Nevada, from Feb. 27 to Mar. 16 saw the first ever use of the MC-12W ISR (Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance) plane in the exercise.

Belonging to the 489th Reconnaissance Squadron of Beale AFB, California, (activated on Aug. 26, 2011) the MC-12s took part to the Red Flag supporting ground forces in simulated “permissive ops” scenarios, in which air threats were limited, according to the information officially released by the U.S. Air Force.

The MC-12, first fielded in 2009, is a highly modified Hawker Beechcraft 350 and 350ER with a SIGINT (SIGnal INTelligence) console and sensors capable to intercept enemy communication, fuselage bulges containing beyond the line of sight comms equipment, and a Wescam MX-15 camera that can supply live video feeds to troops on the ground. The crew includes two pilots, a sensors operator and a cryptologist who analyzes the data collected by the plane during its 6-hr missions.

Even if this was their first Red Flag, MC-12 crews have already flown several thousand missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, where their main purpose has been tracking high-value and time-sensitive targets, including people (Taliban leaders and commanders, insurgents, terrorists and other bad guys), as well as provide tactical intelligence and airborne command and control for air-to-ground operations.

Although they can stay airborne as long as drones, these planes are considered extremely valuable because, being manned, they can be flown more effectively and safely than robots in bad weather conditions.

The following pictures were taken at Nellis by The Aviationist’s contributor Tony Lovelock.

 

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David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.
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