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Posted 11/2/2007
FORT BRAGG, N.C. -- A C-17 Globemaster III conducts an assault landing at Holland landing zone here, May 9, 2000. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. James E. Lotz)
Background
The C-17 made its maiden
flight on Sept. 15, 1991, and the first production model was delivered
to Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., June 14, 1993. The first squadron
of C-17s, the 17th Airlift Squadron, was declared operationally ready
Jan. 17, 1995. The Air Force originally programmed to buy a total of
120 C-17s, with the last one being delivered in November 2004. Current
budget plans involve purchasing 180 aircraft.
The original 120
C-17s were based at Charleston AFB; McChord AFB, Wash., (first aircraft
arrived in July 1999); Altus AFB, Okla.; and at an Air National Guard
unit in Jackson, Miss. In August 2005, March Air Reserve Base, Calif.,
began basing the first of eight aircraft. In February 2006, Hickam AFB,
Hawaii, received its first C-17.
The C-17 is operated by the Air
Mobility Command at the 437th Airlift Wing, Charleston AFB, S.C.; the
62nd Airlift Wing, McChord AFB, Wash; the 305th Air Mobility Wing,
McGuire AFB, N.J.; the 315th Airlift Wing (Associate Reserve),
Charleston AFB, S.C.; and, the 446th Airlift Wing (Associate Reserve),
McChord AFB, Wash; and the 172nd Airlift Wing, Mississippi ANG.
Additionally, Air Force Materiel Command operates two C-17s at Edwards
AFB, Calif.; Pacific Air Forces operates two aircraft at Hickam AFB,
Hawaii (Associate Guard); Air Force Reserve Command operates eight
aircraft at March Air Reserve Base, Calif; and Air Education and
Training Command operates eight aircraft at Altus AFB, Okla.
General Characteristics
Primary Function: Cargo and troop transport
Prime Contractor: Boeing Company
Power Plant: Four Pratt & Whitney F117-PW-100 turbofan engines
Thrust: 40,440 pounds, each engine
Wingspan: 169 feet 10 inches (to winglet tips) (51.75 meters)
Length: 174 feet (53 meters)
Height: 55 feet 1 inch (16.79 meters)
Cargo Compartment: length, 88 feet (26.82 meters); width, 18 feet (5.48 meters); height, 12 feet 4 inches (3.76 meters)
Speed: 450 knots at 28,000 feet (8,534 meters) (Mach .76)
Service Ceiling: 45,000 feet at cruising speed (13,716 meters)
Range: Global with in-flight refueling
Crew: Three (two pilots and one loadmaster)
Aeromedical Evacuation Crew: A
basic crew of five (two flight nurses and three medical technicians) is
added for aeromedical evacuation missions. Medical crew may be altered
as required by the needs of patients
Maximum Peacetime Takeoff Weight: 585,000 pounds (265,352 kilograms)
Load:
102 troops/paratroops; 36 litter and 54 ambulatory patients and
attendants; 170,900 pounds (77,519 kilograms) of cargo (18 pallet
positions)
Unit Cost: Unit Cost: $202.3 million (FY98 constant dollars)
Date Deployed: June 1993
Inventory: Active duty, 134; Air National Guard, 8; Air Force Reserve, 8