"The C‑17A has been the backbone of global air mobility for over three decades,” said Travis Williams, Vice President of United States Air Force Mobility & Training Services, Boeing. “With the U.S. Air Force requirement to keep the C-17A viable through 2075, we already have a clear and achievable roadmap to support their needs, and the needs of our international partners around the globe. By resolving avionics obsolescence and introducing MOSA, we’re preserving a proven, highly dependable, heavy airlifter and keeping it at the forefront of performance and efficiency for decades to come..”
A row of C-17As sit on the flightline. (Photo Boeing)
The U.S. Air Force has awarded Boeing a contract to modernize the flight deck of the C‑17A Globemaster.
- The contract covers the flight deck’s design, manufacture, integration, qualification and certification — essential in keeping the proven C-17 airlifter mission-ready through 2075.
- Teams will:
- Replace critical flight deck components — Known as LRUs (line‑replaceable units), these flight deck displays will integrate multiple legacy systems into a common display, in addition to many other LRUs that are already consolidated.
- Introduce a modular open systems architecture (MOSA) to enable plug‑and‑play future enhancements.
Why it matters: Modernization reduces risk of avionics obsolescence, enabling faster, more affordable and easier capability upgrades to meet evolving mission needs for decades to come.
- The enhancements also preserve C-17 fleet commonality by using existing Boeing and supplier investments lowering cost and schedule program risk. Most importantly, they keep the trusted global mobility asset mission capable.
The bottom line: Per Bob Owenby, C-17 Program Senior Director, “The C‑17A has been the backbone of global air mobility for over three decades,” said Travis Williams, Vice President of United States Air Force Mobility & Training Services, Boeing. “With the U.S. Air Force requirement to keep the C-17A viable through 2075, we already have a clear and achievable roadmap to support their needs, and the needs of our international partners around the globe. By resolving avionics obsolescence and introducing MOSA, we’re preserving a proven, highly dependable, heavy airlifter and keeping it at the forefront of performance and efficiency for decades to come.”
Fast facts:
- 275 C-17As were delivered between 1993 and 2015.
- 222 to the U.S. Air Force.
- 53 to international partners.
- 9 partner nations operate the aircraft.