Mission
The gigantic C-5 Galaxy, with its tremendous payload
capability, provides the Air Mobility Command airlift in
support of United States national defense. The C-5 can carry
fully equipped combat-ready military units to any point in the
world on short notice and then provide field support required
to help sustain the fighting force.
Features
The C-5 is one of the largest aircraft in the world and the
largest airlifter in the Air Force inventory. The C-5 can
carry more than any other airlifter. It has the ability to
carry 36 standard pallets and up to 81 troops simultaneously.
The Galaxy also carries all of the Army's air-transportable
combat equipment, including such bulky items as its 74-ton
mobile scissors bridge from the United States to any theater
of combat on the globe. It can also carry outsize and oversize
cargo intercontinental ranges and can take off or land in
relatively short distances. Ground crews are able to load and
off-load the C-5 simultaneously at the front and rear cargo
openings, reducing cargo transfer times. Other features of the
C-5 are:
- Able
to operate on runways 6,000 feet long (1,829 meters)
-
Six landing gear totaling 28 wheels to distribute the
weight.
- Nose
and aft doors that open the full width and height of the
cargo compartment to permit faster and easier loading.
- A
"kneeling" landing gear system that permits lowering of the
parked aircraft so the cargo floor is at truck-bed height or
to facilitate vehicle loading and unloading.
- Full
width drive-on ramps at each end for loading double rows of
vehicles.
- A
system that records and analyzes information and detects
malfunctions in more than 800 test points.
The C-5
has the distinctive high T-tail, 25-degree wing sweep, and
four TF39 turbofan engines mounted on pylons beneath the
wings. These engines are rated at 43,000 pounds of thrust
each, and weigh 7,900 pounds (3,555 kilograms) each. They
have an air intake diameter of more than 8.5 feet (2.6
meters). Each engine pod is nearly 27 feet long (8.2 meters).
The Galaxy has 12 internal wing tanks with a total capacity of
51,150 gallons (194,370 liters) of fuel -- enough to fill 6
1/2 regular size railroad tank cars. A full fuel load weighs
332,500 pounds (150,820 kilograms). A C-5 with a cargo load of
270,000 pounds (122,472 kilograms) can fly 2,150 nautical
miles, offload, and fly to a second base 500 nautical miles
away from the original destination -- all without aerial
refueling. With aerial refueling, the aircraft's range is
limited only by crew endurance.
Background
Lockheed-Georgia Co. delivered the first operational
Galaxy to the 437th Airlift Wing, Charleston Air Force Base,
S.C., in June l970. C-5s are operated by active-duty, Reserve,
and Air National Guard crews. They are currently stationed at
Dover AFB, Del.; Travis AFB, Calif.; Lackland AFB, Texas;
Stewart Air National Guard Base, N.Y.; Martinsburg ANGB, W.V.;
Memphis ANGB, Tenn.; Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio and Westover
Air Reserve Base, Mass.
In March 1989, the last of 50 C-5B aircraft was added to the
76 C-5As in the Air Force's airlift force structure. The C-5B
includes all C-5A improvements as well as more than 100
additional system modifications to improve reliability and
maintainability.
Based on a study showing 80 percent of the C-5 airframe
service life remaining, AMC began an aggressive program to
modernize the C-5. The C-5 Avionics Modernization Program
began in 1998 and includes upgrading avionics to
Communications, Navigation, Surveillance/Air Traffic
Management compliance, improving navigation, communication,
and safety equipment, and installing a new autopilot system.
Another part of the modernization plan is a comprehensive Re-engining
and Reliability Program, which includes new CF-6 engines,
pylons and auxiliary power units, with upgrades to aircraft
skin and frame, flight controls, landing gear and the
pressurization system. This modernization program will enhance
aircraft reliability and maintainability, maintain structural
and system integrity, reduce cost of ownership and increase
operational capability well into the 21st century.
General Characteristics
Primary Function: Outsize cargo transport
Prime Contractor: Lockheed-Georgia Co.
Power Plant: Four General Electric TF-39
engines
Thrust: 43,000 pounds, each engine
Wingspan: 222.9 feet (67.89 meters)
Length: 247.1 feet (75.3 meters)
Height: 65.1 feet (19.84 meters)
Cargo Compartment: height , 13.5 feet (4.11
meters); width, 19 feet (5.79 meters); length, 143 feet, 9 in
(43.8 meters)
Pallet Positions: 36
Maximum Cargo: 270,000 pounds (122,472
kilograms)
Maximum Takeoff Weight: 769,000 pounds
(348,818 kilograms) (peacetime), 840,000 pounds (381,024
kilograms) (wartime)
Speed: 518 mph (.77 Mach)
Range: 6,320 nautical miles without air
refueling; unlimited with in-flight refueling
Crew: 7 (pilot, co-pilot, two flight
engineers and three loadmasters)
Unit Cost: C-5A - $152.8
million (FY98 constant dollars) C-5B - $179
million (FY98 constant dollars)
Deployed: C-5A - 1969,
C-5B - 1980
Inventory: Total force, 111
