The first MC-130J Combat Shadow II special operations airlifter/tanker for US Air Force Special Operations Command was rolled out at the Lockheed Martin facility in Marietta, Georgia, on 29 March 2011. A total of fifteen MC-130Js are on order to begin replacing the existing fleet. The new aircraft, based on a KC-130J tanker, will be equipped with the Enhanced Service Life Wing, Enhanced Cargo Handling System, boom refueling receptacle, more powerful electrical generators, a chin-mounted electro-optical/infrared sensor, a combat systems operator station on the flight deck, and provisions for the large aircraft infrared countermeasures system. The Combat Shadow II is expected to begin operations in 2012.
