As usual before the arrival of the President of the United States abroad, a series of preparations have been made by the advance team. Especially ahead of the arrival of US President Joe Biden at the peak of the G20 Summit on 15-16 November 2022 in Bali, among several types of US Air Force military aircraft that have arrived in Indonesia, it is known that there is an MC-12W Liberty reconnaissance aircraft.
Based on the Hawker Beechcraft Super King Air 350ER business aircraft, the MC-12W Liberty is a twin-engine turboprop aircraft with medium to low altitude flight capabilities. The main mission of this aircraft is to provide intelligence support, surveillance and direct reconnaissance – ISR (Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) to troops or units on the ground.
Generally, the MC-12W is used as a joint forces air component commander asset to support joint force commanders in an operation.
The MC-12W has the advantage of being a complete collection, processing, analysis and dissemination system. The equipment on the MC-12W includes a mission system suit, electro-optical infrared sensor, line-of-sight and satellite communication datalink, along with a robust voice communication suite.
Quoted from Air Force – af.mil, it is called the MC-12W's ability to support all aspects of the Air Force Irregular Warfare mission, starting from counter insurgency, foreign internal defense and building partnership capacity.
The maiden MC-12W arrived at Key Field in Meridian, Mississippi on April 28, 2009. The MC-12W made its first 'attack' support debut on June 12, 2009. Currently, the US Air Force operates at least 13 MC-12W Liberty.
Modification of the Super King Air 350ER to the MC-12W Liberty was handled by L-3 Communications. From the specifications, the MC-12W Liberty is powered by 2x Pratt & Whitney PT6A-60A engines. With a speed of 600 km per hour and 2,355 kg of fuel, the MC-12W can fly as far as 4,444 km, while the maximum altitude of the aircraft is 10,668 meters.
This unarmed reconnaissance aircraft is manned by 2 pilots, 1 combat systems officer and 1 tactical systems operator. From the dimensions, the MC-12W has a length of 14.22 meters, a wingspan of 17.65 meters and a height of 4.37 meters. The maximum weight of the MC-12W at take-off is 7,500 kg. Curious about the price of the MC-12W Liberty?
The price of one unit of the MC-12W Liberty, which includes various communication systems and modifications, is said to reach US $ 17 million.
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