Volume 48, No. 20, November 2, 2006
By Andrew Stackpool
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ABOVE:Globemaster C-17 to wear the Australian flag and Air Force markings after it was rolled out of the Boeing Long Beach facility in the US.
Photo courtesy of WGCDR Tony Thorpe.
BELOW: WGCDR Linda Corbould preparing for a training mission on the flight deck of a C-17 aircraft in Oklahoma.
Photo by Michael Fletcher, USAF
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AIR Force’s C-17 Globemaster III acquisition project recently passed another major milestone when the first aircraft rolled out of the Boeing Long Beach facility in the United States.
Shining in its Air Force grey livery, and with its Air Force markings and 36SQN ‘rampant stallion’ on the tail, A41-206 will shortly conduct its test flights under a USAF test flight crew from the Long Beach facility to a training area near the Los Angeles aerospace area.
GPCAPT Gary Martin from the
C-17 Transition Team said that the test flights are always flown by a US crew.
“We are following the standard process where the USAF conducts the test flights (generally two or three, more if required) to clear the aircraft through a normal acceptance envelope of flight tests,” he said.
“[Assuming they are successful] the official Boeing to USAF to Australia handover ceremony will be held at the Boeing facility on November 28. The handover is a three-step process as the ADF is acquiring the aircraft through a Foreign Military Sales process, in which the USAF acts as our agent in acquiring all required aspects of the contract.”
GPCAPT Martin said the project remains on schedule. A41-206 will arrive in Canberra on December 4 for its official ‘First arrival in Australia’ ceremony and then fly to RAAF Base Amberley two days later. The second aircraft is scheduled to arrive in mid-2007 and the remaining aircraft by mid-2008.
36SQN CO designate WGCDR Linda Corbould said there are six aircrew –three pilots and three loadmasters – and eight maintenance technicians working with the US 535th Airlift Squadron, which flies C-17s under the United States Pacific Air Force out of Hickam Air Force Base.
They are conducting ‘seasoning’ training, designed to fully integrate the Australians with the USAF to gain experience operating and maintaining the Globemaster.
The training also includes time on the US-based simulators as 36SQN is programmed to receive its simulator in late 2009. The seasoning training commenced in September and all personnel will return to Australia later this month.
WGCDR Corbould said that after the aircraft arrives, 36SQN will undergo six months of transition, training, testing and evaluating prior to the aircraft gaining its initial operating capability.
“The Americans have been absolutely fabulous in their support to us and have made us feel most welcome,” she said.
“The maintenance techs are working with the C-17 maintenance squadron, which is separate from the flying squadron.
“We all have specific duties on the C-17 and are working side-by-side with the USAF aircrew and maintenance personnel. The Australian aircrew have flown on numerous missions and are fully incorporated into the crew.”
As well as the Australians at Hickham AFB, another six aircrew are at McChord AFB and there are maintenance personnel at McChord, Charleston, Jackson, Travis and McGuire AFBs. Also, a USAF exchange instructor pilot has been posted to 36SQN to assist with the introduction of the aircraft to the squadron.
WGCDR Corbould enlisted as an air traffic controller before re-roling to pilot. She has an extensive C-130H background and has been involved with 36SQN since 1990.
“The C-17 is a fabulous aircraft and a pleasure to fly,” she said.
“The C-130H is a great aircraft but limited in the cargo it can carry. Like the C-130, the C-17 can operate into short unpaved airfields but it will be a tremendous enhancement to the ADF air lift capability as it can carry oversized, heavy cargo over long distances in a relatively short time. Its serviceability rate is also quite high, which means less time on the ground for maintenance and more time available for missions.”
