EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif -- A test team conducted the first flights of Project Rough Road, an evaluation of the short field takeoff and landing capabilities of the production C-130B, among other airframes. These test aircraft were loaded to a gross weight of 101,000 pounds and subjected to a variety of hard and soft sand and clay runway landings. Subsequent ROUGH ROAD tests were conducted at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio and Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisianan.
This test involved a multitude of aircraft in addition to the C-130B. These airframes included the JC-130B, C-123B, NC-130B and the YC-123.