RAAF gets giant new aircraft

news.com.au ^ | 4th December 2006

[naturalman1975]

THE second Ashes Test in Adelaide might not be going to plan but the chief of Australia's air force was keen to rub in victory of a different kind for Australia today.

The Royal Australian Air Force today took ownership of its first C-17 Globemaster, a massive jet that is capable of moving equipment and troops in amounts never seen before.

And Chief of Air Force, Air Marshal Geoff Shepherd, was quick to mention the RAAF was one of the first forces in the world to bring the Globemaster into service.

"We beat the Poms by some three months in bringing this aircraft into service," Air Marshal Shepherd said today.

The C-17 was flown into Canberra's Fairbairn RAAF base, where Prime Minister John Howard and Defence Minister Brendan Nelson met the plane and its crew for the first time.

Mr Howard said the delivery of the plane significantly strengthened the US-Australian defence relationship.

This was a point backed by US ambassador Robert McCallum.

"We can accomplish much more together," Mr McCallum told a crowd of onlookers after the plane had landed.

[tophat9000]

People the C-17 Globemaster is not in the mold of C5 a pure heavy lift strategy transport...it a combo heavy lift /STOL tactical transport (think a heavy lift C130)

[sargunner]

In '68 cross-trained from choppers to comm/nav tech and was assigned to Dover. They had 124s,133s, and 141s. A 124 was written up for a squeal in the ICS. Simple enough, right. Well the 124 had 24 ICS stations. With one in each of the 4 engine nacelles. After much grief it turned out to be a problem in the No. 4 nacelle. It seems that a conscientious crew chief decided to pretty up the terminal strips and used conductive silver spray paint. Never flew a Shakey but on engine run-ups I could tell she earned her name legitimately.

[Billthedrill]

You can't fool me. That thing cain't fly. No way. BTT.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

No, not a Constellation. That was TWA's tradmark airplane from that era.
have to do a search but I do recall seeing big 4 engine planes at Haneda when I was a kid in the 50s and I don't think they were DC-6s.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Northwest flew L-188 Lockheed turboprops and DC-7s prior to buying DC-8 jets when they were first built. Neither of the propeller planes looks like what I remember tho.

[naturalman1975]

I saw a bit about it last night on Channel Ten news in Melbourne, but I think virtually everything else did get crowded out by Rudd - the half hour news programs only have time for one big story, it seems.

And Beazley, for all his leftist ways, was actually pretty good on defence, and I wonder what approach Rudd will take on that important issue for a start.

[Attention Surplus Disorder]

some "Connie" pix:

http://www.aviation-history.com/lockheed/1049.html

[ASOC]

Hummm - yummy! I remember as a child my mother flying out of Tucson - on a Connie. Aircraft look like ugly buses now I suppose...

Some light a/c look 'pretty' if one can use the term for an inanimate object.

[DuncanWaring]

The R-4360 engine:

If I recall correctly, the gap shown between the two rows of cylinders, providing a view into the crankcase, originally held another row of cylinders.

[hinckley buzzard]

I flew on a Constellation once, quite by surprise and unexpectedly, in the sixties, on an eastern commuter run. The aisle had a step up, about two thirds of the way to the rear. Most interesting passenger plane I ever was on.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Thanks for the trip down memory lane...

[HiJinx]

Hmmm...my flight on a Super Connie was from the Azores to Charleston via Bermuda. Mom and us kids were returning from a tour of duty with Dad at Wheelus AFB in Libya.

[Capn TrVth]

There seems to be an 'A' missing in that C-17 picture you posted.

Same Aircraft, different Air-Force, -just showing an example of the airframe.

[Tailback]

"it replaced the venerable C-141 Starlifter"

A good friend of mine was a crew chief on the C-141. He affectionately called it "The Tube Of Pain"

[Oztrich Boy]

the Poms have always been perceived as coming over as immigrants and then continually complaining about the state of affairs in Australia. "It's too hot", whinge the Poms. "The beaches are too sandy!" they cry. "The sea is too wet!". And so on, and so forth. At least that's been the stereotype.

"A block of chocolate left in the sun in summer will melt"

actual compalint

[Snickersnee]

...it a combo heavy lift /STOL tactical transport (think a heavy lift C130)

The C-17 can carry the weight of a C-5 in an airframe the size of a C-141 and land and take off in the space of a C-130.

Whew!