SubdiFuge, actually agree with you on the foam issue; briefings at the time of release of the BOI certainly implied that the decision to fit it had already been made. However, your accusation of complacency against the crew is unwelcome and untrue. As has been reported already on this thread this was not the first round to be taken by a UK C-130 in theatre, and clearly there had not been the same calamitous outcome. That the ac was fairly resilient to small arms fire was not an unreasonable conclusion to draw, and the presence of some very capable manpads in theatre a matter of fact. Obviously with the aid of your retrospectometer you would have made a different decision from the crew on tactics that day, but that was not a luxury available to them. They made the best decision they could with the information available, and to suggest otherwise does a great disservice to them and to yourself. Might I politely ask you to reconsider your statement and retract it?