A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III heavy-lift transport aircraft flies over Travis Air Force Base, Calif., Mar. 27, 2017. This aircraft was developed for the USAF in the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previous piston-engined military cargo aircraft, the Douglas C-74 Globemaster and the Douglas C-124 Globemaster II. The C-17 commonly performs strategic airlift missions, transporting troops and cargo throughout the world; additional roles include tactical airlift, medical evacuation and airdrop duties.(U.S. Air Force photo/ Heide Couch)
180810-Z-UV276-1215 A C-17 Globemaster III with the 437th Airlift Wing, South Carolina flies through the clouds over southeastern United States August 10, 2018. The C-17 was had just finished being refueled by a KC-135 Stratotanker with the 121st Air Refueling Wing, Ohio. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Airman 1st Class Tiffany A. Emery)
No beach vacation here A C-17 Globemaster III from the 452nd Air Mobility Wing at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., taxis May 2 at Ramey Field, Puerto Rico, during Patriot Hoover 2009. The exercise is a large-scale air mobility exercise involving units with Air Force Reserve Command, Puerto Rico’s Air National Guard, and units from the FBI. (U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt Rick Sforza)
190927-F-NG306-1013 A C-17 Globemaster III from Dover Air Force Base, Del., takes off during exercise Mobility Guardian 2019 at Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash., Sept. 27, 2019. Mobility Guardian improves the readiness and capabilities of mobility Airmen to deliver rapid global mobility and builds a more lethal, ready Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Jessica Cicchetto)
Pope Field Hosts First All-Female Air Drop Paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division descend from a C-17 Globemaster III during Pope Army Airfield’s first all-female airdrop, April 13, 2021. The mission involved two C-17s, one from Joint Base Charleston, S.C., and the other from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. The all-female, joint aircrew and jumpers were made up of Airmen and Soldiers from four different installations. (U.S. Air Force photo by 2nd Lt. Margaret Burneske)
Hurricane preparations A C-17 Globemaster III relocates during preparations for Hurricane Ian at Joint Base Charleston, S.C., Sept. 28, 2022. The base routinely relocates aircraft prior to extreme weather conditions to continue the rapid global mobility mission and to prevent potential damage. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Christian Silvera)
AVIANO AIR BASE, Italy — A C-17 Globemaster III takes off from here bound for McChord Air Force Base, Wash., after transiting through Italy. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Mitch Fuqua)
Dusty takeoff A C-17 Globemaster III from the 305th Air Mobility Wing, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., takes off at Delamar Dry Lake, Nev., during the U.S. Air Force Weapons School Integration held at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Dec. 4, 2021. The C-17 is the most flexible aircraft to enter the airlift force with capabilities for rapid strategic delivery of troops and cargo to main operating bases or directly to forward bases in the deployment area. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Zachary Rufus)
Airlift Gas-n-Go A C-17 Globemaster III lands at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, Wednesday, March 22, 2006. The transport, from McChord Air Force Base, Wash., will receive services from Spangdahlem’s 726th Air Mobility Squadron. (U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. John E. Lasky)
Testing mobility forces During the short take off and landing phase of the Mobility Air Forces Exercise, a C-17 Globemaster lII lands on a dirt landing zone at the Nevada Test and Training Range near Nellis Air Force Base, Nev. The 29th Weapons Squadron provides advanced tactical training to C-130 Hercules aircrew selected to attend the Weapons School here. The six-month, graduate-level course culminates in a massive airlift mission, called the Mobility Air Forces Exercise. More than 30 airlift assets and hundreds of support personnel from across the Air Force participate in the biannual training exercise. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Taylor Worley)
Refuel A C-17 Globemaster III from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., receives fuel from a 92nd Air Refueling Wing KC-135 Stratotanker Nov. 12, 2015, over Washington state. During the flight, honorary commanders were able to lie beside Staff Sgt. Gregory Albers, a 93rd Air Refueling Squadron boom operator, during refueling, as well as view another refueling mission from the cockpit of a different KC-135 and C-17. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Taylor Bourgeous)
HIANG practices nighttime refueling A C-17 Globemaster III sits on the parking ramp at the Fort Carson Air Terminal, Colo., before an exercise Cerberus Strike 16-02 mission Sept. 16, 2016. C-Strike was a joint exercise where contingency response forces rehearsed potential real-world situations by training with Army counterparts in cargo uploading and downloading on aircraft, aircraft engine running off-loads, communications, aerial port procedures, and air mobility liaison officer operations with airdrops. (U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford)
180608-Z-OZ546-2006 A Boeing C-17 Globemaster III drops equipment for the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team during an airborne insertion exercise at Miroslawiec Air Base, Poland, June 8, 2018. The exercise is in support of Swift Response 18, a joint U.S. Army/Air Force exercise designed to train the U.S. Global Response Force – led by the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. (National Guard photo by Pvt. Chris Estrada)
Drop zone U.S. Army paratroopers assigned to the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 11th Airborne Division, also known as Arctic Angels, conduct airborne operations at Malemute drop zone after exiting an Air Force C-17 Globemaster III at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Aug. 24, 2022. Training jumps allow the Arctic Angels to stay proficient at their primary function – being a joint forcible entry unit, able to respond and project power across the Pacific within 18 hours. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Patrick Sullivan)
Ramstein AB Airmen prepare infant formula shipments A C-17 Globemaster III assigned to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii carries pallets of infant formula at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, May 22, 2022. Hundreds of boxes of infant formula arrived from Switzerland and were unloaded, palletized and loaded on a C-17 for transport during Operation Fly Formula, an operation to quickly import infant formula to the United States that meets U.S. health and safety standards. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jacob Wongwai)
Heavy cargo U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron load a U.S. Army M1A2 Abrams into a U.S. C-17A Globemaster III at Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, Aug. 27, 2022. The 816th EAS conducts rapid global mobility operations vital to the multinational coalition effort dedicated to militarily defeating the Islamic State group of Iraq and Syria. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Matthew Plew)
Loaded and ready! Airmen assigned to the 452nd Air Mobility Wing and Marines assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton, Calif., load 155 mm M777 howitzers onto a C-17 Globemaster III at March Air Reserve Base, Calif., Apr. 27, 2022. The weapon systems are a part of the security assistance the U.S. is providing for wartime operations in Eastern Europe. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Shawn White)
315th Airlift Wing Flare Drop A C-17 Globemaster III assigned to Joint Base Charleston deploys flares as part of a training event over the Atlantic Ocean in a military operating area outside Charleston, S.C., June 5, 2021. The C-17 is capable of rapidly and strategically delivering troops and all types of cargo to MOAs or forward-operating bases in deployment areas. The C-17 can perform tactical airlift and airdrop missions as well as transport litters and ambulatory patients during aeromedical evacuations. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Chris Hibben)