As a relatively single-purpose gunboat aircraft, the AC119 gunboat is naturally not as famous as her junior AC130, and even the predecessor, the AC47, may not be able to compare.

But in terms of praise rate, AC119's reputation in the military is still quite good, because the main purpose of the air gunboat is to attack downward, so the AC47 gunboat machine modified from C47 faces the problem of insufficient downward firing range because of the lower single-wing layout, while the C119 air car and C130 Hercules will not encounter such a problem.

On the battlefield in Vietnam, the increasingly serious ground fire support needs of the big soldiers could not be met, therefore, the military carried out the improvement of the C119 transport aircraft and C130 transport aircraft at the same time, in fact, the military wanted to directly change the C130 at the beginning, but the C119 is cheap, easy to maintain, and the number of C130 is insufficient, so the C119 has become a member of the gunboat plan.

The military modified two versions of the AC119 gunboat, one AC119G Shadow and the other AC119K Stinger, the difference between the two is not too big, the Stinger model has two more 61 Vulcan cannons and some other equipment than the Shadow model.

On the battlefield in Vietnam, the AC119 generally performed tasks such as border blockade and ground support, and during the operation, the gunboats destroyed a large number of ground vehicles and ships, which can be said to be a weapon with a very high cost ratio.

After the end of the war, because the demand gap had narrowed and the production of AC130 gunboats had been satisfied, some of these AC119 gunboats were decommissioned, and the other part was handed over to the South Vietnamese government.

What Shepard got from the military warehouse was an AC119K Stinger gunboat that had been decommissioned from the battlefields of Vietnam.

Because it was a retired product, he didn't spend much money, but because of various restrictions, this AC119 was also modified before it was handed over to him, for example, two 61 Vulcan guns were dismantled, leaving only four 7.62mm Gatling guns.

This doesn't really matter to Shepard, after all, the firepower of four Gatling guns is enough for the Shadow Company, you must know that the rate of fire of this thing is only about 3,000 rounds per minute, but the gunboat can carry a full 31,500 rounds, which is enough for the shooter to have fun!

In addition, the fire control system is also equipped with a new model of black and white thermal imaging device, and the farthest observation distance can even reach 1,500 meters, which has exceeded the effective range of airborne weapons.

The maximum effective killing distance of four 7.62 mm airborne Gatling machine guns is one thousand meters, and the US military generally uses this distance to fire at the ground when performing tasks, after all, the opponent's anti-aircraft guns and anti-aircraft missiles are not toys, and even a distance of one thousand meters is not necessarily safe, in Vietnam, there are many gunboats and planes shot down, and even the last downed plane before the end of the war is also this unlucky thing.

This AC119 needs a total of six crew members, of course, if you want to cram a few more into it, it is not impossible, that is, the engine room will be very crowded, but the gunboat's own self-sustaining power is still good, after filling up the fuel, it can fly 3,100 kilometers, and the effective stay time can even reach nine hours.

After nearly an hour of inspection and other work, the AC119 finally completed all the processes, and then, under the control of the captain, slowly drove into the runway.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are going to rescue our allies here, they are the vanguard of the fight against drug traffickers, warriors who are not afraid of life and death, and they are indispensable preparations for our operations in this area, this is your first operation with the Shadow Corporation, so I want you to use your skills to tell our enemies that in this place, it is not their turn to go wild!"

When the plane was about to take off, Shepard did not forget to give a speech to the new members of the command seat, mainly the pilot and radarman, as for the gunner and loader, they are old men, and the weapon control of the gunboat is not a high-tech position, so it only takes a period of training to be able to take up the post, so Shepard did not recruit new people.

"Understood, boss! I'll show those guys how we do it!"

"That's good, I'll leave it to you, Fire Dragon One!"

The captain nodded, then turned on the in-flight announcement.

"This is Fire Dragon One, everyone, please fasten your seatbelts! We're taking off!"

As the two R4360 air-cooled piston engines began to operate at full power, the AC119K Stinger gunboat, codenamed Fire Dragon in the Shadow Company, increased its speed little by little, and then, Shepard, who was sitting in the middle of the cabin, only felt the fuselage tremble, and then, the fire dragon took off, and then, it will rise to an altitude of two thousand meters with a climb speed of 1.5 meters per second, and then fly for 40 minutes to reach the sub-town town 271 kilometers away.

There are several low-visibility original red emergency lights installed inside the cabin, but the light source is not much bright, so there are two small desk lamps in the command seat and navigation seat, in addition to the aircraft aisle position, a small Xiaoice box is also installed to store drinks, C119 is an old aircraft after all, so some improvements are still necessary, as for the cost, not to mention, it is much cheaper than purchasing a new AC130 gunboat, of course, the firepower of the two is naturally incomparable, The latter was armed with a 105 mm gun and other cannons.

But Shepard is already very satisfied, after all, when his team first opened, it was only a few 16 or 60 machine guns, and helicopter bazookas were borrowed, and now it is less than ten years, armored vehicles, attack aircraft, and gunboat planes are available, this day, but the more hopeful!

"Hey, hey, Carrillo, can you hear me?"

After forty minutes of flight, the Fire Dragon arrived at its position on time, and Shepard could even see the fire caused by the explosion on the ground, as well as the trajectory of the tracer bullet when it was fired, but before giving the order to fire, he still felt that it was better to confirm whether the friendly forces on the ground were alive, after all, it would be very embarrassing to fire directly like this, in case they were not all killed and left alive!

However, there was no answer on the radio, only fierce gunfire could be heard, Shepard called twice, and was about to give up when Carrillo's voice finally came over the radio.

"Generous gifts, you lazy dogs have finally arrived, come and help, my people can't bear it!"

"Wait a minute, I'm in the sky, I have to confirm your location first, you don't want to be knocked out by your own people, right?"

"Wait, I'll set you on fire!"