Lockheed C-130 Hercules

The largest Air Force plane I ever flew in when traveling between Firebase Buttons and Bien Hoa was the Lockheed C-130 Hercules.

Its primary purpose was to transport passengers and cargo all over Vietnam.  The rear of the plane had a drop-down door that allowed fork trucks to load and unload large pallets of equipment.  Powered by four turbo-prop engines, the plane had a capacity of fifteen tons.

The C-130 also had the ability to drop large pallets of equipment without landing (see picture below).  The crew would attach a drag parachute to the load.  At low altitude, the pilot would would drop the rear door,  the crew then would deploy the chute out the rear and the chute then would drag the load out of the plane and drop it on the ground.

They were even modified into Spectre gunships.  As a gunship, they were fitted with a night vision scope, infrared site, gattling guns, and twenty, forty milometer cannons.  With guns blazing, a Spectre would perform a pylon turn which allowed them to focus their firepower on a stationary target on the ground far below.

Riding in this plane was not smooth and quiet, it was rough and loud.  But then again, the plane was not designed for passenger comfort.