"Spirit Of The Constitution" Will Arrive June 4

Boeing told ANN Thursday the company recently delivered the first of 13 C-17 Globemaster IIIs to officials with Delaware's Dover Air Force Base (AFB) during a ceremony at the company's C-17 manufacturing facility in Long Beach, CA.

The newest C-17 is named the "Spirit of the Constitution," in honor of Delaware being the first of the original 13 US colonies to ratify the S Constitution on December 7, 1787. This is the 165th C-17 that Boeing has delivered to the US Air Force.

The Delaware base will officially welcome the new C-17 on June 4, when the Commander of the US Air Force Air Mobility Command, Gen. Duncan J. McNabb, flies the Globemaster III into Dover for a planned ceremony.

Delaware's 436th Airlift Wing, which has been preparing for its C-17s since early 2006, will receive another six aircraft by the end of 2007. Boeing will deliver the remaining six aircraft in 2008. Earlier this year, the wing activated its 736th Aircraft Maintenance and 3rd Airlift Squadrons during a joint change of command ceremony.

The new C-17s will give Dover AFB valuable tools in the fight against terrorism, while allowing it to support humanitarian missions when needed, according to Col. Steven B. Harrison, 436th Airlift Wing commander.

"The C-17 is able to land on short, minimally-prepared airfields, does the work of multiple airlifters and is the most reliable, flexible and technologically advanced airlift aircraft ever built," said Dave Bowman, Boeing vice president and C-17 program manager.

The US Air Force's existing C-17 fleet has amassed more than 1.2 million flying hours -- and has flown combat missions supporting the global war on terrorism with record-setting reliability rates. With a payload of 160,000 pounds, the C-17 can take off from a 7,600-foot airfield, fly 2,400 nautical miles and land on 3,000-foot dirt runways.

The C-17 also is a key component for providing quick and efficient humanitarian aid to the victims of natural disasters such as tsunamis, hurricanes and earthquakes.

With the new C-17 at Dover, C-17s are now based at Charleston Air Force Base, SC; McChord Air Force Base, WA; the Air National Guard Base at Jackson, MS; McGuire Air Force Base, NJ; March Air Reserve Base, CA; Hickam Air Force Base, HI; Travis Air Force Base, CA; and Oklahoma's Altus Air Force Base.

Boeing is on a multi-year production contract to design, build and deliver 190 C-17s to the US Air Force through mid-2009. The worldwide fleet also includes two Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) C-17s and four United Kingdom Royal Air Force (RAF) C-17s. The planemaker is scheduled to deliver two more aircraft to the RAAF and one more aircraft to the RAF, all in 2008.

Later this year, Boeing will deliver the first of four C-17s to Canada.

FMI: www.boeing.com/ids, http://public.dover.amc.af.mil/