EC-130H Compass Call in Afghanistan

Photo by SSG Evelyn Chavez 455th Expeditionary Wing

There are all sorts of aircraft flying overhead in Afghanistan. Some are small and some very large and they all have specific missions. What those missions are is sometimes a mystery. Most everyone knows that an A-10 provides Close Air Support, a C-17 will be your ticket home, a Black Hawk will get you to that remote FOB (well, it used to - the small FOBs have or will be going away). But what does a EC-130H Compass Call plane do? Fortunately the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing located on Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan provides us with a little information on the EC-130H and the 41st Expeditionary Electronic Combat Squadron. The EC-130H Compass Call aircraft " . . . conducts electronic attack operations in order to deny, degrade or disrupt enemy communications". The aircraft can provide " . . . the ability to engage and receive real time target sets . . . " and helps to create a safe mission environment for the troops on the ground. Read the entire article in "41 EECS Scorpions execute theater electronic warfare", DVIDS, September 22, 2014.