Video(s):
Overview
Latest developments
November 17 -- Boeing delivered the 191st C-17 Globemaster III to the U.S. Air Force during a ceremony at its final assembly facility in Long Beach, California. U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. David S. Fadok, director for Policy and Strategy, U.S. Southern Command, piloted the advanced airlifter to its new home at Charleston AFB, South Carolina.
October 28, 2009 -- Boeing delivered the 190th C-17 Globemaster III to the U.S. Air Force during a ceremony at its final assembly facility in Long Beach, Calif. Lt. Gen. Charles Stenner, chief of the Air Force Reserve and commander, Air Force Reserve Command, piloted the advanced airlifter to its new home at the 437th active and 315th reserve wings at Charleston AFB, South Carolina.
October 10, 2009 -- C-17s with the Hawaii Air National Guard and the U.S. Air Force completed a ten-day mission during which they ferried humanitarian and disaster relief to victims of the tsunami and earthquake that struck American Samoa on September 29.
October 9, 2009 -- C-17s from McChord AFB, Wash., completed a humanitarian airlift mission to earthquake-stricken Padang, Indonesia, where nearly 800 people were killed, giving them a total of three humanitarian missions completed in just over a week.
October 6, 2009 -- The U.S. Senate voted to maintain funding for 10 C-17s in its final version of the FY2010 Defense Appropriations Bill.
Go to the C-17 Tutorial (clicking on this link will open a new browser window)
The C-17 Globemaster III
A high-wing, 4-engine, T-tailed military-transport aircraft, the multi-service C-17 can carry large equipment, supplies and troops directly to small airfields in harsh terrain anywhere in the world day or night. The massive, sturdy, long-haul aircraft tackles distance, destination and heavy, oversized payloads in unpredictable conditions. It has delivered cargo in every worldwide operation since the 1990s.
Capabilities and Functionality
The C-17's ability to fly long distances and land in remote airfields in rough, land-locked regions make it a premier transporter for military, humanitarian and peacekeeping missions. It can:
- Take off from a 7,600-ft. airfield, carry a payload of 160,000 pounds, fly 2,400 nautical miles, refuel while in flight and land in 3,000 ft. or less on a small unpaved or paved airfield in day or night.
- Carry a cargo of wheeled U.S. Army vehicles in two side-by-side rows, including the U.S. Army's main battle tank, the M-1. Three Bradley infantry-fighting vehicles comprise one load.
- Drop a single 60,000-lb. payload, with sequential load drops of 110,000 lb.
- Back up a two-percent slope.
- Seat 54 on the sidewall and 48 in the centerline.
Additional Information
If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader for reading PDF files, it is available for free from Adobe.