C-17 makes its first South Pole airdrop
A C-17 Globemaster III drops pallets of cargo Dec. 20 during the first C-17 airdrop to the South Pole. Airmen from the 62nd and 446th Airlift Wings at McChord Air Force Base, Wash., delivered 70 tons of supplies to the National Science Foundation team wintering there. The mission was a "proof of concept" flight for the C-17 and was part of Joint Task Force-Support Forces Antarctica's Operation Deep Freeze. (Raytheon Inc. photo/Forest Banks)