Just How Big is America's C-17 Globemaster III

just how big is america's c-17 globemaster iii the c-17 globemaster serves as the u.s air force's primary strategic lift aircraft for global transport of troops and equipment the c-17 is capable of rapid strategic delivery of troops and all types of cargo to main operating bases or directly to forward bases in the deployment area the inherent flexibility and performance of the c-17 force improved the ability of the total airlift system to fulfill the worldwide air mobility requirements of the united states the c-17 made its maiden flight on september 15 1991 and the first production model was delivered to charleston air force base now identified as joint base charleston south carolina on june 14 1993. the first squadron of c-17s the 17th airlift squadron was declared operationally ready on january 17 1995. the air force originally programmed to buy 120 c-17s due to the unrivaled success of the c-17 to accomplish various mobility missions additional aircraft were acquired resulting in a final fleet of 223 aircraft the c-17 fleet has been involved in many contingency operations including flying troops and equipment to operation joint endeavor to support peacekeeping in bosnia and the allied operation in kosovo eight c-17s in 1998 completed the longest airdrop mission in history flying more than 8 000 nautical miles 14 816 kilometers from the united states to central asia dropping troops and equipment after more than 19 hours in the air design features the globemaster 3 is the strategic transport aircraft able to airlift cargo close to a battle area the size and weight of the u.s mechanized firepower and equipment have grown in recent decades from increased air mobility requirements particularly for large or heavy non-palletized outsized cargo the c-17 measures 174 feet long 53 meters with a wingspan of 169 feet 10 inches 51.75 meters compared to other cargo aircraft in the u.s air force inventory like the c5 and the c-130 these specifications placed the c-17 globemaster right in the middle in size the c-130 measures 97 feet 9 inches long with a wingspan of 38 feet 10 inches the c5 the largest of the three measures 247 feet 10 inches with a wingspan of 222 feet 9 inches turbo fan engines the c-17 is powered by four pratt and whitney f-117 pw 100 turbofan engines which are based on the commercial pratt and whitney pw 2040 used on the boeing 757 each engine is rated at forty thousand four hundred pounds of thrust the engine's thrust reverses direct engine exhaust air upwards and forward reducing the chances of foreign object damage by ingestion of runway debris and providing enough reverse thrust to back the aircraft up on the ground while taxi the thrust reversers can also be used in flight as idle reverse for added drag and maximum rate descents in vortex surfing tests performed by two c-17s up to 10 fuel savings were reported wings landing on remote unprepared runways is a difficult task one of the main benefactors allowing the globemaster the ability to do so is its wings the wings of the c-17 amass a total of 3 800 square foot 350 square meters they contain a 7.165 aspect ratio 35 degree sweep angle and supercritical airfoil its wing flaps are fixed vane double slotted and simple hinged a supercritical wing is an advanced airfoil design that enhances the range cruising speed and fuel efficiency of jet aircraft by producing weaker shock waves that create less drag and permit high efficiency cockpit [Music] the instrument display in the c-17 cockpit is outfitted with two full-time all-function head-up displays and four multi-function active matrix liquid crystal displays the globemaster flight control system maintains a quadruple redundant electronic flight control with mechanical backup system a program to upgrade the c17a avionics includes new mission computers and displays new software for the warning and caution system provided by northrop grumman navigation systems the automatic flight control system is upgraded with bae systems real-time operating system is certified for global air traffic management system requirements [Music] crew members the large aircraft is operated by only a crew of three the pilot co-pilot and load master are the three positions necessary to deliver the rapid strategic delivery of troops and all types of cargo to main operating bases or directly to forward bases in the deployment area having a crew of three reduces manpower requirements risk exposure and long-term operating costs a standard crew of five are added for aeromedical evacuation missions medical crew which include two flight nurses and three medical technicians may be altered by needs of patients cargo systems the design of the cargo compartment allows the c-17 to carry a wide range of vehicles palleted cargo paratroops air load drops and aeromedical evacuees the cargo compartment has a sufficiently large cross-section to transport large wheeled and tracked vehicles helicopters such as the ah-64 apache artillery and weapons such as the patriot missile system three bradley armored vehicles comprise one deployment load on the c-17 the us army m1a1 main battle tank can be carried with other vehicles maximum payload capacity is 172 000 pounds and its maximum gross takeoff weight is 585 000 pounds a document by the u.s general accounting office from 1984 stated that data provided by the air force and mcdonnell douglas corporation the contractor show that the c-17 is designed to carry its 172 200 pound maximum cargo load an unrefueled distance of about 2 900 nautical miles this data also shows that the globemaster will be able to land in 2 370 feet with a cargo load of 170 thousand pounds airdrop air drops are one of the primary features the c-17 was designed for the c-17 can drop a single 60 000 pound payload with sequential load drops of 110 000 pounds the loadmaster is in charge of loading and balancing the cargo properly an airdrop is usually a coordinated effort between the air force and the army this airdrop represents a very significant mission delivering needed supplies while reducing the burden and risk on our army helicopter and maintenance crews said army chief warrant officer to david bevell third infantry division resolute support sustainment brigade this is our sole job regardless of what we are dropping our job is to throw stuff out of planes to people that need it troop capacity delivering a load capacity of troops are paramount to the success of the military in question the c-17 seats 54 soldiers on the side wall and 48 in the center line 27 soldiers on each side of the sidewall with an 18-inch seat the center line seats 48 soldiers and eight sets of six back-to-back seats or instead of the center line a c-17 can sit 80 soldiers on eight pallets in addition to the sidewall for a maximum troop capacity of 134 customers currently 274 c-17s operate around the world the aircraft's largest customer is the united states air force with 223 and 12 bases outside of that country the united kingdom australia canada kuwait qatar the united arab emirates india and the 12 nation strategic airlift capability all operate the c-17 globemaster iii [Music] you

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Keywords: c-17 globemaster, c-17 takeoff, c-17 cockpit, c-17 flyover, c-17 globemaster iii, c-17 pilot, c-17 airdrop, c-17 aircraft, c-17 afghanistan, c-17 boat drop, c-17 combat landing, c-17 combat takeoff, c-17 cargo drop, c-17 dirt landing, c-17 elephant walk, c17 engine, c-17 heavy, c-17 history, c-17 interior, c-17 inside, military transport aircraft, military aircraft, tactical airlifter, Heavy Airlift Wing, military cargo aircraft

Id: XVsnclvw0MQ

Length: 9min 45sec (585 seconds)

Published: Thu Oct 22 2020