Boeing’s C-17 Globemaster is a beast of an aircraft capable of transporting tons of military gear, personnel and vehicles all around the world. However, as capable as the aircraft is on its own, it still requires a team of soldiers to organize its payload and prepare it for take off. And when that payload includes a Sikorsky chopper, loading it up is no easy task.
A new video posted to YouTube shows the process of packing the helicopter into the belly of the C-17. The clip is a time-lapse of the entire process shrunk down to just two minutes, but it documents the complex procedure from start to finish.
Check out the video below:
According to the video’s uploader, the soldiers featured in the clip are stationed at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. More than a dozen crew members can be seen helping with the delicate task of getting the military chopper ready to go.
Soldiers load an HH-60 Pave Hawk into a C-17 Globemaster III transport jet at Nellis Air Force Base on March 27, 2017. (Gung Ho VIds/YouTube)
The video clip also puts the soldiers, chopper and C-17 aircraft into perspective and offers an interesting glimpse at the sheer size and scale of the transport plane itself.
Soldiers load an HH-60 Pave Hawk into a C-17 Globemaster III transport jet at Nellis Air Force Base on March 27, 2017. (Gung Ho VIds/YouTube)
The Sikorsky HH-60 Pave Hawk is a fairly large helicopter in its own right. The chopper’s twin-turboshaft engine is managed by a four-person flight crew, and the aircraft can transport anywhere from six to twelve troops and various other cargo as well.
Introduced in the 1980’s, the HH-60 has seen active combat beginning in the Persian Gulf and spanning through Iraq and Afghanistan and beyond. The chopper is usually armed with either dual miniguns or dual .50 caliber M2 machine guns.
In addition to being an active-duty aircraft, various Pave Hawks are utilized for peacetime missions, rescue operations and natural disaster efforts.
Soldiers load an HH-60 Pave Hawk into a C-17 Globemaster III transport jet at Nellis Air Force Base on March 27, 2017. (Gung Ho VIds/YouTube)
As a transport plane, the C-17 Globemaster has been an integral aircraft in the United States Air Force fleet for nearly three decades. Its crew includes two pilots flying and a loadmaster responsible for managing the up to 170,000lb cargo distributed throughout the aircraft.
The C-17’s cargo area can transport more than 100 paratroopers in a single load. In addition to military personell, the aircraft can of course haul various military vehicles and other smaller aircraft as well. Often times, the C-17 will carry M1 Abrams tanks, Strykers, M117 armored vehicles and more.
The massive aircraft has a wingspan of nearly 170 feet, almost twice as wide as the average passenger jet.
