The Air Force took delivery of its 14th C-5M Super Galaxy airlifter, announced prime contractor Lockheed Martin. An Air Force crew flew this airplane, tail number 86-0017, on Dec. 5 from the company’s manufacturing facility in Marietta, Ga., to Stewart ANGB, N.Y., where it will undergo internal paint restoration, according to the company’s release. From there, the C-5M will move to Dover AFB, Del., where it will serve with the 436th Airlift Wing, which operates a C-5 force there, along with Air Force Reserve Command’s 512th AW. This is the second C-5M that has joined the fleet in the past several weeks; the previous one, tail number 85-0004, arrived at Dover on Nov. 21. In all, Lockheed Martin is upgrading 52 C-5s to the Super Galaxy standard. This configuration includes new engines and numerous reliability and performance enhancements, along with new cockpit avionics. All 52 C-5Ms are expected in the fleet by 2017, according to the company.
President Donald Trump projected confidence Nov. 19 that a proposed sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia will sail through the Foreign Military Sales process, an early test of the Pentagon’s acquisition reforms. The deal is also likely to face scrutiny from ally Israel over how it could affect the balance…
