AC-13OU Gunship Was On-Scene in Benghazi, Ogama Admin Refused to Let It Fire (updated)

PJ Media ^ | 10/26/2012 | Bob Owens

[Aria]

If you don’t get torches-and-pitchforks irate about this, you are not an American:

The security officer had a laser on the target that was firing and repeatedly requested back-up support from a Specter gunship, which is commonly used by U.S. Special Operations forces to provide support to Special Operations teams on the ground involved in intense firefights. The fighting at the CIA annex went on for more than four hours — enough time for any planes based in Sigonella Air base, just 480 miles away, to arrive. Fox News has also learned that two separate Tier One Special operations forces were told to wait, among them Delta Force operators.

There were two AC-130Us deployed to Libya in March as part of Operation Unified Protector.

The AC-130U is a very effective third-generation fire-support aircraft, capable of continuous and extremely accurate fire onto multiple targets. It has been used numerous times in Iraq and Afghanistan to save pinned-down allied forces, and has even been credited with the surrender of the Taliban city of Kunduz

It was purpose-built for a select number of specific mission types, including point-defense against enemy attack. It was literally built for the kind of mission it could have engaged in over Benghazi, if the administration had let it fire. As the excerpt above clearly shows, we had assets on the ground “painting” the targets with the laser.

An AC-130U flies in a counter-clockwise “pivot turn” around the target, with the weapons all aimed out the left side of the aircraft.

There are two state-of-the-art fire-control systems (FCSs) in a AC-130U, using television sensors,infrared sensors, and synthetic aperture strike radar. These fire control systems can see through the dark of night, clouds, and smoke.

The two FCSs on the AC-130U control a 25mm Gatling gun for area suppression, a precision 40mm cannon, and a 105mm cannon which can engage hard targets.

What this means is that we have the forces in the air and on the ground to have stopped the attack at any point, eliminating the terrorists and saving American lives.

See video of AC-130 engaging in a live fire exercise on next page.

Update (Bryan): Here is an AC-130 engaging in a live fire exercise. The crackling sound you hear is its extreme rate of fire.

Update: BlackFive confirmed with a retired Delta operator: The fact that ground personnel were painting the target says there was a Spectre on station.

From the comments: Having spent a good bit of time nursing a GLD (ground Laser Designator) in several garden spots around the world, something from the report jumped out at me. One of the former SEALs was actively painting the target. That means that Specter WAS ON STATION! Probably an AC130U. A ground laser designator is not a briefing pointer laser. You do not “paint” a target until the weapons system/designator is synched; which means that the AC130 was on station. Only two places could have called off the attack at that point; the WH situation command (based on POTUS direction) or AFRICOM commander based on information directly from the target area. If the AC130 never left Sigonella (as Penetta [sic] says) that means that the Predator that was filming the whole thing was armed. If that SEAL was actively “painting” a target; something was on station to engage! And the decision to stand down goes directly to POTUS!

[bert]

That would seem to apply to other lives if he is reelected.

Caligula comes to mind

[sirchtruth]

There has to be a breaking point where the American people demand answers. Benghazi is it! FCOL, four American's DIED because someone in the OBAMA adm. gave an order to stand down!

If the American people have to go around the POS MSM to get answers then WE HAVE TO do it!!!!

American's can NOT allow this sorry ass gov't to stonewall or cover this up! This is a turning point in America history and the democrats, MSM, rino republicans better understand things are going to come to ahead if answers are not forthcoming this WEEK!

The question is not WHY, OR IF, the question is WHEN are the American people going to get the answers? Under investigation is not an answer!

[Travis McGee]

Modern laser designators can archive grid locations/GPS coordinates for later use by other platforms. I don’t know about the guy saying that painting a laser on the mortar team means that an AC-130 or armed Predator was overhead at that time. I just don’t know.

[Travis McGee]

Long ago I was a SEAL officer and I attended many joint and combined operational planning meetings in the USA, abroad, and on ships at sea. This type of rescue mission is called a "NEO" operation, for Non-combatant Evacuation Operation. Every embassy and consulate has and practices all kinds of emergency evac plans, in concert with the US military.

For example, Marines and SEALs practice NEO ops prior to deploying on every float, as a VERY high priority mission. They involve full dress-rehearsals, with civilian role players, helos, landing craft, rounding up stranded stragglers, opfor ambushes, role-playing "angry mobs," fighting your way to LZs or even beaches while protecting a gaggle of civilians down to babies etc. Conducting successful NEO ops is a TOP TOP TOP military and state department mission priority. I cannot emphasize this enough. NEO ops are planned and practiced over and over and over.

When the alarm goes off worldwide that an embassy or consulate is being attacked, the entire U.S. military swings into rescue mode, without waiting for any orders from the White House. The military does all of the operational planning and begins to execute the rescue op.

The one thing they CAN'T do is cross an international border without permission from POTUS. So the US Military will be inbound full-steam-ahead to make the rescue, and all they need from POTUS is a "proceed" order. In this case, they got a "stand down" instead.

This is at the POTUS level, it is not a decision taken at State. State and the military (JCS) should be in the Situation Room with POTUS soon after a critical incident like this begins, so all decisions can be made in real time. (I have heard nowhere that POTUS went into the Situation Room at all. Apparently he went to the Oval Office briefly, but not down to the Situation Room, where the "war planning" screens, full staffs and commo tools are all located for dealing with a major crisis.)

But if POTUS punts after a brief Oval Office meeting with Dempsey and Hillary and goes upstairs to the family quarters....the stranded Americans will die.

Only POTUS can give the order to cross international borders. Only POTUS can allow US warplanes to give air support to Americans battling on the ground in a foreign country. If POTUS makes himself unavailable, the Americans will die.

Even the VEEP or Secretary of State cannot make that call. The VEEP can only do it if the POTUS is determined to be medically unable to perform his functions. If the POTUS goes upstairs and turns off his phone, there is nothing anybody can do about it. Nothing. And the besieged Americans will die.

On Friday an anonymous Pentagon insider ("Doug") called into Rush with a lot of new details about this disgraceful fiasco. But what we really need now is for a high-ranking officer with insider knowledge to go public, risk his pension and career, and tell the truth.

The blame for this humiliating and shameful national disgrace is pointing directly at the POTUS, and America needs to know why the inbound rescue operation was aborted.

[Truth is a Weapon]

Maybe the big 0 was afraid the plane might get shot down by one of our SAMs that Al Queda has.

[Molon Labbie]

My pops said the same thing. His outfit called in Puff on a ville the VC had occupied. This was done at night. He said it looked like curtains of lightning coming down to the ground.

When they went to recon the ville in the morning, he said it was if someone swept the village away.

If there was an gunship over the embassy, that’s probably a good ten guys you are going to have to keep quiet about this. There is most definitely an AAR (After Action Review) report written.

I just hope the flight commander kept a copy for himself, squirreled away.

This disgrace needs to be exposed.

[jonascord]

This is the Popular Science/Tom Clancy version: The spotter cross-hairs a target. An IR laser beam is sent, and "illuminates" the target, and the Herkybird, orbiting, sees the reflected IR designator in his IR gun sight. (It's invisible to normal human vision.)

A targeting computer can be locked onto the Designator to make any final adjustments, which will put 40mm rounds within a few inches of the laser dot. The pilot then can get a "weapons free..." from the sat phone and unleash Hell from a button on the control yoke. Sadly, guess who is on the other end of the sat phone?

[DUMBGRUNT]

“When surrounded...”

I cannot say about ‘surrounded’ but out gunned for sure.

First you pray they hurry.

Then you pray the pilot has a steady hand.

Over the target, you see a thin orange stripe in the sky.

Often wiggly like a garden hose in an unsteady hand, everyone knows all the numbers about Puff.

Head down in the dirt pray some more.

You hear the bullets impacting, jam your face deeper into the dirt.

You hear the roar of the mini guns, like an all clear on this pass. The bullets travel much faster then the speed of sound.

Starlight scope and or illumination... We are still here.

Thank you God.

[Victor]

Travis- thank you for your service and thank you for this very insightful explanation of NEO missions.

[Lees Swrd]

Puff The Magic Dragon as the C130 was called at that time. The best I can describe it when they cut lose it looked like a solid beam of light coming down,tracers, made a sound like meat frying-sizzling it fired so fast. The ground or jungle looked like a rototiller had been thru it!

[Irenic]

Hear! hear!

[no-to-illegals]

And an AMEN, goes up to God for Puff. It goes without saying, so will not say. Amen, FRiend.

[ThePatriotsFlag]

Good post. Painting is not proof an armed platform was above. They can paint to record digital coordinates that can be used later. But if proof arises that an armed platform was told to stand down, then there is a real problem. The order didn’t come from CIA or the military, that leaves one source with that kind of authority. POTUS. I would think this sort of breach would be easily impeachable.

[DJ MacWoW]

I'm being cautious. The article says "There were two AC-130Us deployed to Libya in March as part of Operation Unified Protector." That's not in the Fox news story. Where did it come from? Were they still there? Or back at Sigonella?

We just don't know if it was an armed drone or an AC 130U that he was painting the target for.

[Flag_This]

"This disgrace needs to be exposed."

Two former SEALs ran to the sound of the guns to help their countrymen - risking and losing their lives in the process. I'm afraid obama's betrayal will ultimately be successfully buried unless those with first-hand knowledge are will to step forward like Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty did.

I know it's very easy for me to recommend that someone else step up, but the obama narrative will prevail with the active support of the MSM unless somebody with real first-hand information tells the truth.

[no-to-illegals]

Thank You for your Service, FRiend. May God Bless You and Yours.

[M Kehoe]

Bttt.

5.56mm

[IMR 4350]

Shades of “Blackhawk Down” in 1993 that made UBL the big dog on the block in the terrorist world.

Wonder who the big dog in the terrorist world is now?

[Dr.Zoidberg]

As long as the pretender to the throne and his court of jesters are walking free anything less than seeing them “Brought to Justice” is a mockery.

Nothing in the world would be more pleasing to than to see obama, hillary, panetta and the rest of that ill begotten crew behind bars for all eternity.

[dalebert]

you nailed it.