U.S. AIR FORCE SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND AND U.S. ARMY SPECIAL OPERATIONS RECON/SPY PLANES FLEW FOR A LONG TIME...DC / NJ

VERY RARE AND HIGHLY SECRETIVE AIRCRAFT:

Boeing C-32B
United States Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) operates a small number of Boeing C-32B passenger jet aircraft, providing global airlift for U.S. government crisis response activities. These may include U.S. State Department Foreign Emergency Support Teams (FEST), which deploy in response to terrorism incidents around the world. They may also fly in support of CIA Special Activities.

The C-32B has been associated with the 150th Special Operations Squadron out of Joint Base McGuire, NJ (previously designated as 227th Special Operations Flight ) and the 486th Flight Test Squadron out of Elgin AFB, FL. These are highly secretive units, with little information publicly available about their activities. The aircraft have been spotted in a plain white paint scheme, with minimal markings. They appear to change serial numbers many times - no doubt an attempt to keep a low profile.

The aircraft are modified Boeing 757 airliners. They feature a standard seating fitment, as with a typical passenger jet. Any cargo must be stowed at the rear of the cabin as the usual cargo space in the hold has been configured to accomodate enlarged fuel tanks, extending the aircraft's unrefueled max range to 6000 nautical miles. The C-32Bs have been given an in-flight refuelling capability, via a Universal Aerial Refueling Receptacle Slipway Installation (USRRSI) located atop the fuselage, 15 feet aft of the nose, along the aircraft's centerline. Other fittments to the C-32B include a satellite communications package.

The Airborne Reconnaissance Low-Multifunction (ARL-M), designated EO-5C, is a legacy manned multisensor, day and night, all-weather Aerial Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance (AISR) system. It consists of a modified De Havilland Canada (DHC)-7 fixed-wing aircraft equipped with Communications Intelligence and Imagery Intelligence (COMINT/IMINT), Ground Moving Target Indicator/Synthetic Aperture Radar and Electro-Optical and Infrared (EO/IR) Full-Motion Video (FMV) capability. Onboard operators control the payloads via open-architecture, multifunction workstations. Intelligence collected can be analyzed and disseminated from the onboard workstations in real time as well as recorded for post-mission analysis.

The Airborne Reconnaissance Low-Enhanced (ARL-E), designated RO-6A, is the Army’s newest manned multisensor, day and night, all-weather AISR system. ARL-E consists of a modified DHC-8-Q315 fixed-wing aircraft equipped with a reconfigurable payload with enhanced COMINT and IMINT sensors including long-range Ground and Dismounted Moving Target Indicator/Synthetic Aperture Radar high-definition EO/IR FMV, and Hyperspectral Imagery. The sensors are controlled and operated using onboard Distributed Common Ground Station-Army (DCGS-A) multifunction workstations. Intelligence collected on the ARL-E can be analyzed and disseminated in real time; transmitted via Beyond Line of Sight satellite communication; or stored onboard for post-mission analysis.

The more capable DHC-8-Q315 based ARL-E will replace the ARL-M systems (DHC-7) with the First Unit Equipped in Fiscal Year 2020. By leveraging former Quick Reaction Capability DHC-8 programs the Army has capitalized on the reutilization of previous Army investments, non-recurring engineering, improved airworthiness, and improved system availability for the Army ACAT II program of record requirements. There are currently seven ARL-M configured systems and there will be eight ARL-E configured systems and one trainer.