Lockheed Corp. Lockheed L-100-20 Hercules

Additional Information:

The Lockheed L-100 Hercules is the civilian variant of the prolific C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft made by the Lockheed Corporation. Its first flight occurred in 1964. The Longer L-100-20 and L-100-30 versions were also produced by Lockheed. The L-100 aircraft production ended in 1992 with only 114 aircraft delivered.

Lockheed made the decision to produce a commercial variant based on a de-militarized version of the C-130E Hercules. The prototype L-100, N1130E, first flew on April 20, 1964. Certification was awarded on 16 February 1965 and twenty-one production aircraft were then built with the first delivery going to Continental Air Services on September 30, 1965.

Slow sales of the L-100 led to the development of two longer versions, the L-100-20 and L-100-30, both of which were larger and more economical than the original L-100. Several L-100-20 aircraft were operating on scheduled airfreight flights by Delta Air Lines between 1968 and 1973. The L-100-20 stretched variant was certified in 1968 with a new 5 foot section forward of the wing and a 3 foot- 4 inch section aft of the wing.

Lockheed’s prototype of the L-100-2, N1330E, the stretched airfreight version of the aircraft was given its FAA high altitude tests at Albuquerque on August 7, 1968.

A Lockheed L-100 Hercules operated by Saturn Airways is shown.

GALLERY: