The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III: The World Leading and The New Global Airlift Standard

According to airforce-technology.com: C-17 GLOBEMASTER III TACTICAL TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT: The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military airlift aircraft is capable of carrying payloads up to 169,000lb, and has an international range and the ability to land on small airfields. A fully integrated electronic cockpit and advanced cargo systems allow a crew of three; the pilot, copilot and loadmaster, to operate all systems on any type of mission. Since it entered service in January 1995, over 130 aircraft have been delivered to the US Air Force with 50 more on order. Deliveries are expected to conclude in 2008. The UK Royal Air Force has leased four aircraft, delivered by August 2001, under a seven-year agreement, which also has an end-of-lease purchase option. (3)

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III's mission is capable of rapid strategic delivery of troops and cargo to main operating bases, or directly to forward bases in the deployment area. The aircraft is also able to perform tactical airlift and airdrop missions when required. The inherent flexibility and performance characteristics of the C-17 force improves the ability of the total airlift system to fulfill the worldwide air mobility requirements of the United States.

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III started In December 1979, the Department of Defense initiated the Cargo-Experimental (C-X) competition to identify a new jet-powered strategic airlifter incorporating exceptional field performance capabilities, a cabin offering large-volume capacity, and a rear loading assembly to accommodate wheeled or tracked vehicles. Also, the aircraft must be capable of airlifting or airdropping outsize loads, including armored vehicles, directly into a combat zone.

See the following for detailed information:

DESIGN	A propulsive lift system allows the C-17 to achieve safe landings on short runways. The C-17 is capable of landing a full payload in less than 3,000ft. The propulsive lift system uses engine exhaust to generate lift: the engine exhaust is directed onto large flaps, which extend into the exhaust stream, allowing the aircraft to fly a steep approach at a relatively low landing speed.
COCKPIT	The C-17 cockpit accommodates pilot, co-pilot and two observer positions. The digital avionics system has four Honeywell multi-function cathode-ray tube displays, two full-capability HUDs, or Head-Up Displays, plus cargo systems. The quadruple-redundant electronic flight control system also has a mechanically-actuated backup system. There are two Lockheed Martin central processing computers, one Hamilton Sundstrand data management computer and two Honeywell air data computers. A program to upgrade the C-17A avionics includes new mission computers and displays, new software for the warning and caution system, being provided by Northrop Grumman Navigation Systems. The automatic flight control system will be upgraded with BAE Systems Controls CsLEOS real-time operating system and will be certified for GATM (Global Air Traffic Management) system requirements. First deliveries are planned for 2005.
CARGO SYSTEMS	The design of the cargo compartment allows the C-17 to carry a wide range of vehicles, palleted cargo, paratroops, air-drop loads and aeromedical evacuees. The cargo compartment has a sufficiently large cross-section to transport large wheeled and tracked vehicles, tanks, helicopters (such as the AH-64 Apache), artillery, and weapons such as the Patriot Missile System. Three Bradley armoured vehicles comprise one deployment load on the C-17. The US Army M1A1 main battle tank can be carried with other vehicles. The maximum payload is 170,900lb (77,519kg) with 18 pallet positions, including four on the ramp. Airdrop capabilities include: single load of up to 60,000lb (27,216kg), sequential loads of up to 110,000lb (49,895kg), Container Delivery System (CDS) airdrop up to 40 containers, 2,350lb (1,066kg) each; up to 102 paratroops. The aircraft is equipped for LAPES (Low Altitude Parachute Extraction System) drops. For Medevac, the C-17 can transport up to 36 litter and 54 ambulatory patients and attendants. .
COUNTER MEASURES	The C-17 is equipped with BAE Systems Integrated Defense Solutions (formerly Tracor) AN/ALE-47 countermeasure flare dispensers and the ATK AN/AAR-47 missile warning system. AN/AAR-47 has a suite of surface-mounted thermal sensors around the aircraft, which detect the thermal signature of the missile exhaust plume. Frequency selection and signal processing techniques are used to minimise the false alarm rate. The system provides a warning to the crew via the cockpit indicator unit of the presence and direction of the missile threat. A signal is automatically sent to the ALE-47 dispenser. AN/ALE-47 is capable of carrying a mix of expendable countermeasures, including jammers. The system interfaces to the C-17 aircraft's sensors. The aircrew can select the mode of operation of the dispenser for fully automatic, semi-automatic or manual operation. The cockpit control unit can be used to input mission data, together with the numbers and types of expendable countermeasures systems loaded into the ALE-47. The cockpit controller updates and displays the status of the dispenser and the numbers and types of countermeasures remaining. The ALE-47 is capable of dispensing the new-generation active expendable decoys, POET and GEN-X, in addition to the conventional chaff and flare decoys that are compatible with the previous-generation ALE-40 and ALE-39 dispensers. The USAF has selected the Northrop Grumman Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures (LAIRCM) system to equip its C-17 aircraft. LAIRCM is based on the AN/AAQ-24(V) NEMESIS. It entered low-rate initial production in August 2002 and completed Initial Operational test and Evaluation in July 2004. The system is scheduled to enter service in 2007, but 12 Air Mobility Command C-17s will have a single transmitter configuration (BOSS) by the end of 2005. The four aircraft leased by the UK RAF will also be fitted with LAIRCM. .

Boeing The C-17
Incorporates many of the military jet transport standards

A high-set wing (swept 25 degrees), T-tail, rear cargo-loading assembly and heavy-duty retractable landing gear with fuselage blister fairings. The aircraft also features a state-of-the-art "glass cockpit" (with four multi-function displays and a HUD for each pilot), a GEC fly-by-wire control system (featuring a stick rather than the conventional yoke), four high-performance turbofan engines, an advanced supercritical wing section, winglets, and a "blown-flap" system. Maximum use has been made of off-the-shelf and commercial equipment, including Air Force-standardized avionics. The aircraft is operated by a crew of three (pilot, co-pilot and loadmaster).

With a payload of 160,000 pounds, the C-17 can take off from a 7,600-foot airfield, fly 2,400 nautical miles, land on a small austere airfield in 3,000 feet or less. It can be refueled in flight.

Cargo Compartment - Capacity	18 fully-loaded 463L-type cargo pallets (88" x 108" @ 10,000 pound (4,536kg) capacity); up to 40 containers for Container Delivery System (CDS) airdrops; 102 troops; 48 litter and 54 ambulatory patients and attendants; three AH-64A Apache helicopters; one main battle tank; three Bradley armored vehicles. (A combination of pallets and wheeled vehicles can be carried together when required.) Able to accommodate nearly 100 percent more cargo volume than the C-141B Starlifter, the C-17 can carry virtually all of the Army's air-transportable, outsized combat equipment. It is also able to airdrop paratroopers and cargo. All cargo is loaded through a large ramp/door assembly in the rear of the aircraft.
Engines	The C-17 is powered by four fully-reversible Pratt & Whitney PW2040 series turbofans, designated as F117-PW-100 by the Air Force. Each engine is rated at 40,440 pounds (180kN) of thrust and employ thrust reversers that direct the flow of air upward and forward to avoid ingestion of dust and debris. The four Pratt and Whitney PW2040 turbofan engines are integrated in the wings. Engine thrust reversers, which are operable in flight, and speedbrakes enable the aircraft to carry out rapid deceleration and descent manoeuvres. The cruise speed is between 0.74 and 0.77 Mach. The range without in-flight refuelling, and with a payload of 160,000lb, is 2,400 nautical miles. Aerial refuelling provides an intercontinental non-stop range.
Supercritical Wing	Like other military transports, the C-17 uses a "supercritical" wing. These are advanced airfoil designs that enhance the range, cruising speed, and fuel efficiency of jet aircraft by producing weaker shock waves that create less drag and permit high efficiency.
Winglets	In the mid-1970s, the NASA-Langley Research Center developed the winglet concept through wind tunnel research. Winglets are small, wing-like vertical surfaces at each wingtip of an aircraft that enable the airplane to fly with greater efficiency. They curve flow at the wingtip to produce a forward force on the airplane, similar to the sail on a sail boat. Each C-17 winglet spans 9 feet, 4 inches.
Powered Lift & STOL Capability	A key element of the C-17 is the special flap system, first developed by a team of researchers at NASA-Langley in the mid-1950s and later demonstrated on the YC-15 prototype. The externally "blown-flap" or "powered-lift" system enables the aircraft to make slow, steep approaches with heavy cargo loads. With this powered-lift system, the engine exhaust flow is directed below and through slotted flaps to produce additional lifting force and allow steeper landing descents. Short TakeOff and Landing (STOL) capability is achieved when the trailing-edge flaps are extended into the exhaust flow from the engines during takeoffs and landings. The engine exhaust is deflected downward by the slotted-flaps to augment the wing lift. This allows aircraft with "blown flaps" to operate at roughly twice the lift coefficient of that of conventional jet transport aircraft. The C-17 can operate on small, austere airfields with runways as short as 3,000 feet (914m) and as narrow as 90 feet (27.4m) wide, and can complete a 180-degree three-point "star" turn within 80 feet (24.4m). Also, when fully loaded, the aircraft is capable of backing up a 2 percent gradient slope using the directed flow thrust reversers.
Composite Materials	Sixteen-thousand pounds of composite materials have been applied to the C-17. Several of the major control surface and secondary structural components of the aircraft are made of composites. The most direct contribution to C-17 applications was the development of the DC-10 graphite-epoxy upper aft rudders. These rudders have accumulated more than 500,000 flight hours since they were introduced into regular airline service in 1976. The high-time rudder alone has flown for 75,000 hours. The control surfaces of the C-17 follow the same multi-rib configuration as the DC-10 rudders.
Landing Gear	The C-17's landing gear system consists of a single nose strut with two wheels and two twin-strut tandem gear assemblies, one per side with three wheels per strut. The aircraft can takeoff or land just about anywhere in the world.
Missile Warning & Fare Dispensing	The C-17 is equipped with Tracor AN/ALE-47 countermeasure flare dispensers and the Lockheed Martin/Alliant Techsystems AN/AAR-47 missile warning system. The AN/AAR-47 is a passive missile warning system with a suite of surface-mounted thermal sensors around the aircraft which detect the thermal signature of the missile exhaust plume. Frequency selection and signal processing techniques are used to minimize the "false alarm" rate. The system provides a warning to the crew, via the cockpit indicator unit, of the presence and direction of the missile threat. A signal is automatically sent to the ALE-47 countermeasures dispenser. AN/ALE-47 is capable of carrying a mix of expendable countermeasures including jammers. The system directly interfaces with the aircraft's sensors. The aircrew can select the mode of operation of the dispenser for fully automatic, semi-automatic or manual operation. The cockpit control unit can be used to input mission data together with the numbers and types of expendable countermeasures systems loaded into the ALE-47. The cockpit controller updates and displays the status of the dispenser and the numbers and types of countermeasures remaining. The ALE-47 is capable of dispensing the new generation active expendable decoys POET and GEN-X in addition to the conventional chaff and flare decoys which are compatible with the previous generation ALE-40 and ALE-39 dispensers.
Service Life	Based on a buy of 120 aircraft, the last C-17 will be delivered in November 2004. The original specification from McDonnell Douglas defined a service life of 30,000 hours. Modification programs will keep the aircraft in line with current and future requirements for threat avoidance, navigation, communications, and enhanced capabilities. These modifications should include global air traffic management (GATM) and automatic dependent surveillance to meet anticipated navigation requirements. Commercially available avionics and mission computer upgrades are being investigated to reduce life-cycle costs and improve performance. Also, upgraded communication systems to enhance worldwide voice and data (including secure) transmission will support command and control.

C-17success is based on outstanding performance and adding value to the C-17 Program. �Value� is defined as products that consistently meet customer expectations through continuous improvement, integration and people.

Other success factors include customer satisfaction with C-17 responsiveness to and effectiveness of action requests.

Key sources of comparative/competitive data for C-17 include: State Quality Award Program Winners, Malcolm Baldrige National Winners, Supplier Certification, Requirements/Levels � Long Beach Supplier data (external and internal), Aircraft Industry Association (AIA) � Bureau of Labor Statistics, Industry Week�s Best Plants Statistics.

It is positive to see C17 has a great leadership of organization and it is so called 100 percent Customer Satisfaction.

Reported By: Catch4all.com, Positive Site: Sandra Englund, September 19, 2005

References:

(1) Retrieved in September 19, 2005