STEWART AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, NEWBURGH, NY (08/05/2011)(readMedia)-- The New York Air National Guard's 105th Airlift Wing will make its transition to the C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane from the C-5A Galaxy on Saturday, August 6 with a morning roll-out ceremony. Members of the media are invited to attend.

WHO: Most of the 1,346 Airmen assigned to the 105th Airlift Wing; Brig. Gen. Verle Johnston, the wing commander; New York State Deputy Secretary for Public Safety Elizabeth Glazer(representing Gov. Cuomo);Representative Maurice Hinchey; Representative Nan Hayworth; Major General Patrick Murphy, the Adjutant General of New York; General Duncan McNabb, commander of United States Transportation Command; Lt. Gen. Harry Wyatt, Director of the Air National Guard; State Sen. William Larkin; Assemblywoman Nancy Calhoun; and General David Huntoon, Commandant of the United States Military Academy.

WHAT: A ceremony marking the start of the wing's transition from operating the C-5A Galaxy to flying the more modern C-17 Globemaster III. The C-17 is the newest, most flexible cargo aircraft to enter the airlift force. It 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 C-17's performance improves the ability of the total airlift system to fulfill the worldwide air mobility requirements of the United States. Stewart Air National Guard Base will receive training and test equipment this summer and will continue training maintainers and aircrew until all eight C-17s are in place by May 2012.

WHEN: Members of the media should be at the front gate no later than 9:45 a.m. in order to go through security and be in position by 10:30 a.m.

WHERE: Stewart Air National Guard Base, Route 17 K, Newburgh, NY

For more information contact Tech Sgt. Michael O'Halloran at 845-563-2076.

Coverage Opportunities:

Video and still imagery of the C-17 ceremony and interviews with leaders of the 105th Airlift Wing. Reporters will be able to tour the C-17.

BACKGROUND:

The C-17

Maximum payload capacity of the C-17 is 170,900 pounds (77,519 kilograms), and its maximum gross takeoff weight is 585,000 pounds (265,352 kilograms). With a payload of 160,000 pounds (72,575 kilograms) and an initial cruise altitude of 28,000 feet (8,534 meters), , the C-17 has an unrefueled range of approximately 2,400 nautical miles. Its cruise speed is approximately 450 knots (.74 Mach). The C-17 is designed to airdrop 102 paratroopers and equipment.

The design of the aircraft allows it to operate through small, austere airfields. The C-17 can take off and land on runways as short as 3,000 feet (914 meters) and only 90 feet wide (27.4 meters). Even on such narrow runways, the C-17 can turn around using a three-point star turn and its backing capability.

The C-17 made its maiden flight on Sept. 15, 1991, and the first production model was delivered to Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., June 14, 1993. The first squadron of C-17s, the 17th Airlift Squadron, was declared operationally ready Jan. 17, 1995. The Air Force originally programmed to buy a total of 120 C-17s, with the last one being delivered in November 2004. Current budget plans involve purchasing 180 aircraft. The original 120 C-17s were based at Charleston AFB; McChord AFB, Wash., (first aircraft arrived in July 1999); Altus AFB, Okla.; and at an Air National Guard unit in Jackson, Miss. In September 2004, McGuire AFB, N.J. began basing the first of 13 aircraft expected by June 2005.

The C-17 is operated by the Air Mobility Command at the 437th Airlift Wing, Charleston AFB, S.C.; the 62nd Airlift Wing, McChord AFB, Wash; the 305th Air Mobility Wing, McGuire AFB, N.J.; the 315th Airlift Wing (Associate Reserve), Charleston AFB, S.C.; and, the 446th Airlift Wing (Associate Reserve), McChord AFB, Wash; and the 172nd Airlift Wing, Mississippi ANG. Additionally, Air Force Materiel Command operates one C-17 at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio; and Air Education and Training Command operates eight aircraft at Altus AFB, Okla.

General Characteristics

Primary Function: Cargo and troop transport

Prime Contractor: Boeing Company

Power Plant: Four Pratt & Whitney F117-PW-100 turbofan engines

Thrust: 40,440 pounds, each engine

Wingspan: 169 feet 10 inches (to winglet tips) (51.75 meters)

Length: 174 feet (53 meters)

Height: 55 feet 1 inch (16.79 meters)

Cargo Compartment: length , 88 feet (26.82 meters); width , 18 feet (5.48 meters); height , 12 feet 4 inches (3.76 meters)

Speed: 450 knots at 28,000 feet (8,534 meters) (Mach .74)

Service Ceiling: 45,000 feet at cruising speed (13,716 meters)

Range: Global with in-flight refueling

Crew: Three (two pilots and one loadmaster)

Maximum Peacetime Takeoff Weight: 585,000 pounds (265,352 kilograms)

Load: 102 troops/paratroops; 36 litter and 54 ambulatory patients and attendants; 170,900 pounds (77,519 kilograms) of cargo (18 pallet positions)

Unit Cost: Unit Cost: $202.3 million (FY98 constant dollars)

Date Deployed: June 1993

C-17 Fun Facts:

· The Electrical Power System generates enough electrical power to serve the needs of over 200 single-family homes.

· The air conditioning/heating capacity of the C-17 would keep over forty 3-bedroom homes comfortable in the coldest winter or the hottest summer.

· The empty weight (without fuel or cargo) of a C-17 is about 282,000 lbs. (this is approximately the weight of 3,800 5th grade students).

· The C-17 can carry approximately 165,000 lbs. of cargo. This is the same weight as 14 Keikos (the killer whale from the movie "Free Willy").

· The gas tank in the C-17 can hold approximately 36,000 gals of fuel; this much gas would allow a car (getting 25 mpg) to make about 35 trips around the world at the equator.

· The maximum takeoff weight of the C-17 is 585,000 lbs. This is the same weight as 60 adult elephants.

· The cargo compartment of the C-17 is approximately 88 feet long, 18 feet high, and 12 feet wide. This is enough room to hold more than 2,300,000 ping-pong balls.

- 170: Gallons of gray paint required to coat the C-17 to a uniform thickness of .003 inches. That's about 500 pounds of paint when dry.

-36,500+ -- Payload a C-17 can carry on its hydraulic ramp alone (40,000lbs ramp total), or, about the payload of a C-139 Hercules.

-169,000 -- The number in pounds of the maximum payload capacity of the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III (76,050 kilograms).

-102 -- Number of paratroopers that can fit inside the jet

-120 -- The number of miles of wiring in a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III (193 kilometers).

The C-5A

The C-5 is one of the largest aircraft in the world and the largest airlifter in the Air Force inventory. The C-5 can carry more than any other airlifter. It has the ability to carry 36 standard pallets and up to 81 troops simultaneously. The Galaxy also carries all of the Army's air-transportable combat equipment, including such bulky items as its 74-ton mobile scissors bridge from the United States to any theater of combat on the globe. It can also carry outsize and oversize cargo intercontinental ranges and can take off or land in relatively short distances. Ground crews are able to load and off-load the C-5 simultaneously at the front and rear cargo openings, reducing cargo transfer times. Other features of the C-5 are:

The C-5 has the distinctive high T-tail, 25-degree wing sweep, and four TF39 turbofan engines mounted on pylons beneath the wings. These engines are rated at 43,000 pounds of thrust each, and weigh 7,900 pounds (3,555 kilograms) each. They have an air intake diameter of more than 8.5 feet (2.6 meters). Each engine pod is nearly 27 feet long (8.2 meters).

The Galaxy has 12 internal wing tanks with a total capacity of 51,150 gallons (194,370 liters) of fuel -- enough to fill 6 1/2 regular size railroad tank cars. A full fuel load weighs 332,500 pounds (150,820 kilograms). A C-5 with a cargo load of 270,000 pounds (122,472 kilograms) can fly 2,150 nautical miles, offload, and fly to a second base 500 nautical miles away from the original destination -- all without aerial refueling. With aerial refueling, the aircraft's range is limited only by crew endurance.

General Characteristics

Primary Function: Outsize cargo transport

Prime Contractor: Lockheed-Georgia Co.

Power Plant: Four General Electric TF-39 engines

Thrust: 43,000 pounds, each engine

Wingspan: 222.9 feet (67.89 meters)

Length: 247.1 feet (75.3 meters)

Height: 65.1 feet (19.84 meters)

Cargo Compartment: height , 13.5 feet (4.11 meters); width, 19 feet (5.79 meters); length, 143 feet, 9 in (43.8 meters)

Pallet Positions: 36

Maximum Cargo: 270,000 pounds (122,472 kilograms)

Maximum Takeoff Weight: 769,000 pounds (348,818 kilograms) (peacetime), 840,000 pounds (381,024 kilograms) (wartime)

Speed: 518 mph (.77 Mach)

Range: 6,320 nautical miles without air refueling; unlimited with in-flight refueling

Crew: 7 (pilot, co-pilot, two flight engineers and three loadmasters)

Unit Cost: C-5A - $152.8 million (fiscal 1998 constant dollars); C-5B - $179 million (fiscal 1998 constant dollars); Modification unit cost, $90 million (fiscal 2009 constant dollars)

Deployed: C-5A - 1969, C-5B - 1980, C-5M – 2009

C-5A Fun Facts:

-The distance of the Wright Brothers' first flight-120 feet-was one foot less than the length of the C-5's cargo deck.

- At 121 feet long, 19 feet wide, and 13.5 feet tall, the C-5's cargo compartment could hold 100 Volkswagen Beetles or an eight-lane bowling alley.

- The C-5's cargo area could also carry 328,301,674 aspirin tablets, 25,844,746 ping-pong balls, or 752,000 hockey pucks.

-You could fit 277,263 cans of soda, or 3,934 bushels of wheat inside the C-5.

- More than 103 miles of wiring is required to operate all of the C-5's aircraft systems. The C-5 also contains 4 miles of tubing and 5 miles of cable.

- The C-5 carries enough fuel for the average American car to make 130 roundtrips between New York and Los Angeles or about 31 trips around the world.

-The C-5's environmental control system has a total cooling capacity of 24 tons, enough to air condition 8, average-sized homes at the same time.

- During takeoff, each of the C-5's four GE TF-39 turbofan engines, rated at 43,000 pounds of thrust, has an intake of approximately 1,500 pounds of air per second. A at this rate, a structure the size of the Houston Astrodome would be emptied in less than 5 minutes.

-Each GE TF-39 engine on the C-5 uses 42 tons of air per minute and weighs about 7,900 pounds.

-The total engine power of a C-5 equals that of 800 average automobiles.

- Each C-5 wing weighs more than 40,000 pounds, which is equivalent to the weight of an empty C-130 "Hercules" without engines.

105th Airlift Wing.

A total of 1,346 Airmen, full-time and traditional part-time Air National Guardsmen, are assigned to the 105th Airlift Wing. Along with the basing action, 12 C-5 "Galaxys" assigned to Stewart ANGB will be retired. Stewart's C-17 unit is scheduled to reach initial operating capability by December 2013.

The 105th Airlift Wing is currently one of three Air National Guard units in the country with an operational C-5 mission. The unit's 13 aircraft regularly fly missions around the world in support of America's armed forces. Stewart Air National Guard Base is located just 70 miles North of New York City and has a 60-year proven track record for answering the call to duty both in New York State and around the globe. The 105th AW recently celebrated its 25th anniversary at Stewart ANGB.

Posted Friday August 05, 2011 at 09:01 am by New York State Division of Military & Naval Affairs