Model Description
Gemini Jets 1/200th scale G2AFO1392 U.S. Air Force McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III 05-5144 (March ARB). Available to pre-order at Flying Tigers.
The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) during the 1980s and the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previous piston-engined military cargo aircraft, the Douglas C-74 Globemaster and the Douglas C-124 Globemaster II.
The C-17 is based upon the YC-15, a smaller prototype airlifter designed during the 1970s. It was designed to replace the Lockheed C-141 Starlifter, and also fulfill some of the duties of the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy. The redesigned airlifter differs from the YC-15 in that it is larger and has swept wings and more powerful engines. Development was protracted by a series of design issues, causing the company to incur a loss of nearly US$1.5 billion on the program’s development phase. On 15 September 1991, roughly one year behind schedule, the first C-17 performed its maiden flight. The C-17 formally entered USAF service on 17 January 1995. McDonnell Douglas and later Boeing after it merged with McDonnell Douglas in 1997, manufactured the C-17 for more than two decades. The final C-17 was completed at the Long Beach, California, plant and flown in November 2015.
The C-17 commonly performs tactical and strategic airlift missions, transporting troops and cargo throughout the world; additional roles include medical evacuation and airdrop duties. The transport is in service with the USAF along with the air forces of India, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and the Europe-based multilateral organization Heavy Airlift Wing.
The type played a key logistical role during both Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq, as well as in providing humanitarian aid in the aftermath of various natural disasters, including the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the 2011 Sindh floods and the 2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake.
RRP £164.00
