The Airmobility Workhorse: The first fifty-five years of C-130 operations
By (Author) Bill Kourelakos
Big Sky Publishing
Big Sky Publishing
30th April 2025
Not for Online
Australia
Non Fiction
War and defence operations
Weapons and equipment
Warfare and defence
Military history
Hardback
1216
Width 220mm, Height 285mm
The Airmobility Workhorse, focuses on the operational history of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules in Royal Australian (RAAF) service, spanning the A, E and H models from 1958 to 2012, leaving the J model to be covered in the future.
The C-130 was the catalyst for a transformational shift from Second World War technology to leading-edge aircraft systems in RAAF air mobility and in the broader Air Force.
It is a detailed and balanced reflection of what the mighty Hercules did for Australia and how it affected who flew it, fixed it, supported it, flew as passengers or benefitted from the missions it conducted. This aricraft was truly Australias Airmobility Workhorse.
Air Commodore Bill Kourelakos recently retired from the RAAF in 2020 after 32 years of military service in both the Canadian Forces and the Royal Australian Air Force. His career consisted of four tours as a C-130 Navigator; over 20 deployed operations; a variety of staff appointments in Air Mobility Group, Air Force Headquarters, and Joint Operations Command; and Commands / Deputy Commands in No 36 and 37Squadrons, Task Group 633.4, No 86 Wing, Air Mobility and Training Development Unit, Northern Command, Headquarters Air Command, and Air Mobility Group. Along with being a qualified teacher specialising in History, his broad career makes him eminently qualified to write the history of the mighty C-130 Hercules. Bill has two adult children, and although retired in the Hawkesbury region, he maintains an active lifestyle by devoting his time to writing, podcasting, guitar, playing ice hockey, some reserve work, and his 1972 Chevelle.