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Special Tactics Squadron Clears Runway, C-17 Globemaster III Uses It for Epic Take Off

Military aircraft need not only be very effective in the air, but they also have to be able to take off and land from less than perfect runways and other areas. With a little help from ground personnel, they can easily do that, as reflected in the pic we have here.
C-17 Globemaster III 13 photos
Photo: USAF/Staff Sgt. Carly Kavish
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You’re looking at two humans, members of the 22nd Special Tactics Squadron out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, and a C-17 Globemaster III that’s soaring to the sky from a runway of sorts the humans just cleared for it at Moses Lake in the same state.

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) was practicing there a humanitarian aid and disaster relief scenario at the end of November, when the photo was taken, “designed to maintain readiness for worldwide crisis response.”

The 22nd Special Tactics Squadron, which was set up in 1984, was on site to train on “airfield survey, rescue and emergency medical techniques,” while the Globemaster was there to both assist them and make their task a bit more difficult.

The plane is one often used in such missions by the Air Force. It can be configured to carry either personnel (54 people seated on the sidewall and 48 centerline), or cargo, which can weigh as much as 164,900 pounds (74,797 kg).

The Globemaster is large enough to carry wheeled vehicles in two side-by-side rows, including the U.S. Army's main battle tank, the M1, and depending on conditions at its destination, it can either land to deliver its cargo, or drop it from the air, as it can release a single 60,000-pound (27,216-kilogram) payload, with sequential load drops of 110,000 pounds (49,895 kilograms).

With proper preparations, the plane can take off from airfields that are just 7,740-foot (2,359 meters) long, aided in its task by four Pratt & Whitney engines that spit out 40,440 pounds of thrust each.
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Editor's note: Gallery shows other Globemasters.

About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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