When the Air Force’s newest C-17 airlifter arrived April 21 at its home at JB Lewis-McChord, Wash., from the Boeing production facility at Long Beach, Calif., it joined the unit that also operates the oldest C-17 in USAF’s inventory. The 62nd Airlift Wing picked up the oldest C-17 from Charleston AFB, S.C., where it first flew in 1993. With this latest of the new strategic airlifters, the 62nd, and its Air Force Reserve Command associate 446th AW, now operate and maintain 51 C-17s. (62nd AW photo release)
A three-month continuing resolution that ended in December inflicted less pain on the Department of the Air Force than it had expected, as procurement and construction continue in the new year. The federal government operated under a stopgap spending measure that stretched from the beginning of the fiscal year on…