[subego]

Was listening to a long flight dick-waving contest, and the winner was 30 hours on a C-130 for a classified project.

Since it was classified, no further details were forthcoming. My question is how do you get a 30 hour flight? It can't have been exclusively to go somewhere, right? Can't you get to anywhere from anywhere in a jet like that in, I don't know... 20 hours?

I trust the source of the story, but I wouldn't put it past him to keep a stupid (and unclassified) explanation quiet so he'll look cooler.

[imitchellg5]

In the military it's pretty common. You can get from any point to any point in a jet in about 22 hours nonstop (the only capable airliner of that is the 777-200LR, which hasn't flown commercially a route longer than 19 hours), but on a C-130 for military use with in air refueling I can see a 30 hour flight. I know someone who was in the CIA during the Cold War and would often take off in the western US in a C-130 and be routed from West to East rather than the obvious East to West, across the Atlantic, over the Medi, through the Indian Ocean, and then finally north to over fly China and then land at Guam. I've not asked him how long that took, but I know he's mentioned having six meals in one flight before. I guess they did this since launching an aircraft straight at China was too obvious.

[Doc HM]

circumference of the earth 40,075km. top speed of of a C-130 575kph. Time to fly around the world = 70 hrs therefore anypoint on the earth in 35hrs.
Of course you could go anywhere, the long way.

[Waragainstsleep]

Don't they fit those out with all sorts of radar equipment sometimes? Maybe it wasn't about the destination, maybe it was about the journey.

[subego]

Originally Posted by Doc HM 

circumference of the earth 40,075km. top speed of of a C-130 575kph. Time to fly around the world = 70 hrs therefore anypoint on the earth in 35hrs.
Of course you could go anywhere, the long way.

Gotcha. I was thinking a higher top speed.

[subego]

Originally Posted by Waragainstsleep 

Dpn't they fit those out with all sorts of radar equipment sometimes? Maybe it wasn't about the destination, maybe it was about the journey.

That struck me initially as the most obvious answer. It wasn't a 30-hour point-to-point trip, but involved loiter time.

[subego]

Originally Posted by imitchellg5 

In the military it's pretty common. You can get from any point to any point in a jet in about 22 hours nonstop (the only capable airliner of that is the 777-200LR, which hasn't flown commercially a route longer than 19 hours), but on a C-130 for military use with in air refueling I can see a 30 hour flight. I know someone who was in the CIA during the Cold War and would often take off in the western US in a C-130 and be routed from West to East rather than the obvious East to West, across the Atlantic, over the Medi, through the Indian Ocean, and then finally north to over fly China and then land at Guam. I've not asked him how long that took, but I know he's mentioned having six meals in one flight before. I guess they did this since launching an aircraft straight at China was too obvious.

I'd launch for Japan, and then just keep going.

[knifecarrier2]

C130s are not jets. They're also slow.