NATO partners see space in Super Galaxy

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. David Liapis
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Five members of the Dutch army and the 39th Air Base Wing host nation advisor, a Turkish national, were given a tour of the exterior, flight deck, cargo and passenger areas of the largest cargo aircraft in the U.S. Air Force's inventory here May 7.

Master Sgt. Juan Chapa, 728th Air Mobility Squadron production superintendent, provided a tour of a C-5M Super Galaxy cargo aircraft that landed at Incirlik for a layover while en route to Southeast Asia in support of overseas contingency operations.

The 247-foot-long C-5M is longer than the distance the Wright Brother's first plane flew at Kitty Hawk, said Chapa.

According to the Air Force's C-5 fact sheet, the aircraft is capable of carrying 270,000 pounds of cargo and can take off with a combined aircraft/fuel/cargo weight of 840,000 pounds (420 tons). The first C-5 was delivered to the Air Force in 1970 by the Lockheed-Georgia Co.

The Dutch are deployed to Incirlik AB to operate Patriot missile batteries as part of a NATO mission intended to show solidarity with the country of Turkey and to deter against potential Syrian aggression.