HomeNewsFeatures

Features

Results:
Tag: ODF
Clear
  • A Team McChord C17 is unloaded at McMurdo Station, Antarctica.

    Where it's cold we go

    When we think of U.S. military aircraft working in austere environments, we generally imagine aircraft landing on a dusty airfield somewhere in the Middle East. After all, for the past 20 years, the Air Force has played a major role getting troops and materiel to the fight in the Middle East. What we don’t normally picture is a C-17 Globemaster III landing on a windswept runway made of ice in Antarctica.
  • Members assigned to the 304th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron prepare the U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III for the final flight of the 2018-2019 Antarctic research season Christchurch International Airport, Christchurch, New Zealand, Feb. 21, 2019. Maintainers in the orange vests are troubleshooting an issue with the aircraft’s avionics system.

    Maintenance challenges re-deployment from Deep Freeze support

    The last Operation Deep Freeze mission of the main 2018-2019 season returned to Christchurch International Airport, New Zealand, Feb. 23, delivering 99 passengers and 12,800 pounds of cargo.
  • A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III is unloaded after returning from one of the last Operation Deep Freeze flights of the 2018-2019 Antarctic research season at the Christchurch International Airport, Christchurch, New Zealand, Feb. 21, 2019. The seasons run annually from September 1st to July 31st. Led by Pacific Air Forces, the Joint Task Force-Support Forces Antarctica (JTF-SFA) provides the National Science Foundation-managed U.S. Antarctic Program with logistical support.

    Stars align for Deep Freeze’s last regular season mission

    The last flight to the Antarctic for the regular Operation Deep Freeze season almost didn’t happen. But, with the quick thinking of the maintenance crew and help from another C-17 unit, the mission was a go Feb. 22, 2019.
  • A C-17 Globemaster III from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, rests on Pegasus Ice Runway, Antarctica, July 15, 2016. (U.S. Air Force Reserve photo by Staff Sgt. Madelyn McCullough)

    Flying in safe hands

    Piloting 34 missions safely to the Antarctic, Lt. Col. JW Smith, 728th Airlift Squadron, also holds Air Mobility Command’s safety flying hour record of 17,753.5 flying hours, or nearly two years in the air, without any severe safety mishaps.
RSS