Beale MC-12W Liberty aircraft surpassed 3,00,000 combat flying hours at a forward operating base in Afghanistan in September.

The aircraft was developed in response to urgent requests from ground combat commanders for tactical ISR. The result was the fastest military acquisition since the P-51 Mustang in World War II.

The milestone translates to approximately 34 years of flying that the Liberty team achieved in less than four. Project Liberty was also credited with flying 73 per cent of all Air Force intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) sorties and 24 per cent of all Air Force combat sorties in Afghanistan for 2012.

The MC-12W is a medium altitude, twinengine, turboprop aircraft loaded with stateof-the-art optical and sensor equipment. The aircraft’s primary mission is to provide ISR support directly to ground forces.

Liberty crews consist of two pilots, a sensor operator and a tactical systems operator who build the tactical picture and shape combat operations.