On 28 October 1960 the RCAF's first Lockheed C-130B "Hercules" bulk-cargo and troop-carrier aircraft was officially accepted at RCAF Station Uplands, to be delivered to No. 435 Squadron at Namao. This nimble heavyweight of the RCAF's Air Transport Command, among other things, features a rear-loading system incorporating a large door section in the fuselage which lowers to form a loading ramp and facilitates the handling of bulky, long loads. With a freight compartment capacity of 4,300 cubic feet, roughly the size of a railroad freight car, this turboprop giant can haul the heaviest load of any CAF aircraft. It can transport more than 12 tons of cargo 3,400 miles at 340 miles an hour and can airlift 64 fully-equipped paratroops, or 92 infantrymen, or 70 litter cases and attendants.

Rugged, powerful construction and reversible propellers make the Hercules particularly well suited in the Canadian north, where limited landing and loading facilities are available. Since their acquisition by the RCAF, the Hercules have compiled an enviable list of achievements. Frozen and fresh foodstuffs, trucks and snowmobiles, gravel and lumber, fuel-oil and soft drinks, Christmas trees and jet fighters have been some of the items on their manifests as they have carried out their tasks as the bulk-freight carriers of the RCAF. In addition, the mighty "Hercs" have been flown in support of the United Nations peace-keeping operations in Egypt, New Guinea, Indo-China, Yemen, the Congo and Cyprus, in ferrying CF-104 Starfighters to the RCAF's NATO Air Division in Europe, and in domestic logistic operations.

The Hercules, considered to be one of the most versatile heavy-lift planes in the Canadian fleet, is used in the transport of equipment and cargo, in Search and Rescue (SAR) operations and in air-to-air refueling of fighters. The Hercules can be loaded and unloaded quickly, with little equipment, and is especially useful in delivering supplies because it does not need a lot of room to land. The plane can also be easily re-configured to carry fuel. During Operation Boxtop, the restocking of Canadian Forces Station Alert, the northernmost permanent habitation in the world, Hercules' are fitted with large fuel tanks to transport more than 100 planeloads of fuel. Since entering the fleet in 1960, the Hercules has also delivered humanitarian aid to many trouble spots around the world.