Seventh RAF Globemaster Transport Aircraft for 2011

The Royal Air Force is set to take delivery of a seventh Boeing C-17 Globemaster III to complement its current six-strong fleet of these heavy lift military transport aircraft, which serve with 99 Squadron at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, UK. January 5th 2010 saw the relevant contracts signed for the new airframe to be supplied and, once in service, it will join the six presents RAF C-17 which have seen action in global hostility hotspots like Afghanistan and Iraq.

The RAF has been operating the C-17 Globemaster III aircraft since 2001. Over the past nine years, examples have been deployed to various overseas locations, transported troops and equipment, and delivered humanitarian aid, among other duties.

Military Transport Aircraft

A US design, the Globemaster III fills a military transport aircraft niche that would otherwise be left empty – combining the landing and take-off attributes of smaller transporters like the Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules, with the airlift capacity of bigger types. The C-17 first flew in 1991 and, at the present moment, equips numerous air forces including the USAF, Royal Australian Air Force and the Canadian Air Force, as well as the RAF.

In RAF service, typical loads for the Globemaster III include RAF Chinook or Apache helicopters, Tornado F3 fighters, various armoured vehicles or multiple-asset loads weighing up to 160,000 pounds.

New RAF Globemaster

The new RAF Globemaster is due to arrive in March next year, and it represents one component of a comprehensive stream of UK armed forces changes detailed by the UK defence minister at the tail end of 2009. Minister Bob Ainsworth’s speech – made to the House of Commons on December 15th – also referred to planned improvements to the RAF C-130J Hercules fleet, alongside news of reductions to some aspects of UK defence.

In respect of the seventh RAF C-17 Globemaster III, Mr Ainsworth commented:“Afghanistan remains our top priority and this extra C-17 represents a major contribution to the strategic airlift directly supporting our troops in Afghanistan. Since its entry into service in 2001, the UK's C-17 fleet has provided outstanding performance in RAF service in support of operations, humanitarian relief and routine tasks.

“The additional aircraft will allow our strategic transport capacity to be expanded during a period of intensive coalition operations.”