C-17 Tackles South Pole

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A C-17 from McChord AFB, Wash., made two passes over the South Pole on Dec. 18, airdropping 10 containerized delivery system bundles on each pass for a total of 22,372 pounds of supplies. It was the second such test of the C-17’s capability to airdrop in this “challenging” environment, said Lt. Col. Jim McGann, commander of the 304th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron at Christchurch, New Zealand. Using the C-17 for this part of the Operation Deep Freeze mission, instead of the ski-equipped LC-130s, enables the Joint Task Force-Support Forces Antarctica to deliver up to four times as much supplies in a single mission to support the National Science Foundation. (13th Air Force report by Lt. Col. Toni Kemper)

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org