T-1, the Air Force’s prototype C-17 transport, retired to the National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, ending a 21-year testing career at Edwards AFB, Calif. The airplane arrived in Dayton on April 25. “This aircraft will serve as the representative C-17 airframe in the museum’s collection, allowing us to share with the public more of the story of the demanding airlift missions facing today’s Air Force,” said museum director John Hudson. McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) workers essentially fabricated T-1 by hand to support a five-year developmental test and evaluation program, according to museum officials. Successively rebuilt, the aircraft exceeded its design life by four times while supporting various test programs since its maiden flight in September 1991. In addition to test support, the aircraft sidelined as a film star, appearing in a bunch of Hollywood films during its service life. After decommissioning, T-1 is slated to join the museum’s outdoor airpark this summer, said the officials. (Dayton report by Sarah Swan)
House lawmakers are encouraging the Air Force and U.S. Special Operations Command to work together as each pursues long-range, long-endurance reconnaissance drones. Both entities are investing in unmanned assets that can slip into highly defended areas, loiter over a particularly valuable target for days at a time, and traverse multiple…