CFB Trenton celebrated a milestone today.
The 429 Transport Squadron marked the first CC-177 Globemaster III surpassing 10,000 accumulated flying hours.
The milestone was reached on October 12, while on a mission to resupply RCAF Forward Operating Locations in the north.
Colonel Mark Goulden, Commander, 8 Wing Trenton says the Globemaster has been a game changer for the RCAF as it has become a go-to aircraft to support everything from overseas combat missions to domestic and international humanitarian relief.
“The fact that we have flown CC17701 over 10,000 hours speaks volumes to the operational tempo of the RCAF and the great work of our crews that maintain this aircraft in peak operational readiness,” he said.
The first CC-177 delivered to the RCAF left Trenton on its first operational mission to Jamaica on August 23, 2007. It was carrying 32 tonnes of humanitarian aid from the Canadian Red Cross and the Canadian International Development Agency, which in the past would have required four CC-130 Hercules flights.
- Since then, the CC-177 fleet has played an integral role in operations in Afghanistan, the fight against Daesh, and Operation Reassurance in Eastern Europe.
- The Canadian flag atop the gigantic tail of the Globemaster has become a symbol of hope in disaster-stricken areas around the globe. From Haiti to the Philippines, Nepal and British Columbia, in response forest fires, the CC-177 fleet carries supplies to those who need it most.
- Rapid, reliable and flexible, Canada was the first to land a CC-177 at the most northerly airport in the world.
- Pilots can fly the CC-177 wearing night-vision goggles. It can carry one Leopard 2 tank, a CH-147 Chinook helicopter or three CH-146 Griffon helicopters or one hundred and two paratroopers.
- Technical Details:
- 40,440 pounds of thrust (18,343 kilograms)
- Payload 160,000 pounds (72,727 kilograms)
- Height 16.79 metres
- Length 53.04 metres
- Wing span 51.75 meters
