The Boeing C-17 Globemaster II's ability to lift heavy loads and take off and land at short, rough airstrips has greatly improved the U.S. Air Force's strategic and tactical airlift capability. It has also taken the strain off the Air Force's hard-worked C-5 Galaxy strategic airlifter fleet, leaving the C-5s -- which the Air Force is upgrading with new avionics, life-extending structural improvements and General Electric CF6-80C2 engines -- available to carry outsize and very heavy loads. Credit: Boeing Photo
