The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military airlift aircraft is capable of carrying payloads up to 169,000lb, and has an international range and the ability to land on small airfields. A fully integrated electronic cockpit and advanced cargo systems allow a crew of three; the pilot, co-pilot and loadmaster, to operate all systems on any type of mission. Since it entered service in January 1995, 178 aircraft have been delivered to the US Air Force with one more on order to be delivered by early 2009. A further ten aircraft were ordered in December 2006, for delivery by October 2009. The UK Royal Air Force has leased four aircraft, delivered by August 2001, under a seven-year agreement, which also has an end-of-lease purchase option.
News outlets and Sen. Christopher S. "Kit" Bond's office reported Tuesday that the final fiscal year 2009 troops funding - or supplemental defense appropriations - bill would tentatively include $2.2 billion to purchase eight C-17s.
Although the troops funding bill is currently being hammered out in the House-Senate conference - which Bond is a member of - the Missouri senator's official Web site announced Tuesday that Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye said that "conferees reached a tentative agreement" that would include funding for the C-17.
Boeing Co. spokesman Jerry Drelling said the company would not comment until the final spending package is completed. News services, however, are reporting that the full funding package is expected to be completed in the coming days.
In recent years, California's only remaining major aircraft production facility program has been in jeopardy as Boeing relies heavily on a solid base of domestic orders and funding for the program has been an unknown. Although President Obama mentioned the importance of programs such as the C-17, Defense Secretary Robert Gates later suggested shedding the military cargo plane from the proposed budget.
And while the House of Representatives approved its version of the bill that included money for the aircraft, the Senate version did not include funding for any of them. However, Inouye has publicly expressed his support for C-17.
Dana Rohrabacher, a supporter of C-17, did not know about the tentative deal but said he was confident that the program would be funded.
"Nobody in their right mind wants to eliminate the productions of the C-17 at a time when we are so reliant on C-17s to supply the mission in Afghanistan, for example," he said. "I can't imagine that we're going to lose it."
Thursday, June 04, 2009
DTN News: Boeing May Get $2.2 billion For More C-17s Transport Aircraft
DTN News: Boeing May Get $2.2 billion For More C-17s Transport Aircraft
(NSI New Source Info) LONG BEACH - June 4, 2009: It appears that the Boeing Co. C-17 program that employs about 5,000 people in Long Beach may get the funding it needs to extend its production line. The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military airlift aircraft is capable of carrying payloads up to 169,000lb, and has an international range and the ability to land on small airfields. A fully integrated electronic cockpit and advanced cargo systems allow a crew of three; the pilot, co-pilot and loadmaster, to operate all systems on any type of mission. Since it entered service in January 1995, 178 aircraft have been delivered to the US Air Force with one more on order to be delivered by early 2009. A further ten aircraft were ordered in December 2006, for delivery by October 2009. The UK Royal Air Force has leased four aircraft, delivered by August 2001, under a seven-year agreement, which also has an end-of-lease purchase option.
News outlets and Sen. Christopher S. "Kit" Bond's office reported Tuesday that the final fiscal year 2009 troops funding - or supplemental defense appropriations - bill would tentatively include $2.2 billion to purchase eight C-17s.
Although the troops funding bill is currently being hammered out in the House-Senate conference - which Bond is a member of - the Missouri senator's official Web site announced Tuesday that Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye said that "conferees reached a tentative agreement" that would include funding for the C-17.
Boeing Co. spokesman Jerry Drelling said the company would not comment until the final spending package is completed. News services, however, are reporting that the full funding package is expected to be completed in the coming days.
In recent years, California's only remaining major aircraft production facility program has been in jeopardy as Boeing relies heavily on a solid base of domestic orders and funding for the program has been an unknown. Although President Obama mentioned the importance of programs such as the C-17, Defense Secretary Robert Gates later suggested shedding the military cargo plane from the proposed budget.
And while the House of Representatives approved its version of the bill that included money for the aircraft, the Senate version did not include funding for any of them. However, Inouye has publicly expressed his support for C-17.
Dana Rohrabacher, a supporter of C-17, did not know about the tentative deal but said he was confident that the program would be funded.
"Nobody in their right mind wants to eliminate the productions of the C-17 at a time when we are so reliant on C-17s to supply the mission in Afghanistan, for example," he said. "I can't imagine that we're going to lose it."
The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military airlift aircraft is capable of carrying payloads up to 169,000lb, and has an international range and the ability to land on small airfields. A fully integrated electronic cockpit and advanced cargo systems allow a crew of three; the pilot, co-pilot and loadmaster, to operate all systems on any type of mission. Since it entered service in January 1995, 178 aircraft have been delivered to the US Air Force with one more on order to be delivered by early 2009. A further ten aircraft were ordered in December 2006, for delivery by October 2009. The UK Royal Air Force has leased four aircraft, delivered by August 2001, under a seven-year agreement, which also has an end-of-lease purchase option.
News outlets and Sen. Christopher S. "Kit" Bond's office reported Tuesday that the final fiscal year 2009 troops funding - or supplemental defense appropriations - bill would tentatively include $2.2 billion to purchase eight C-17s.
Although the troops funding bill is currently being hammered out in the House-Senate conference - which Bond is a member of - the Missouri senator's official Web site announced Tuesday that Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye said that "conferees reached a tentative agreement" that would include funding for the C-17.
Boeing Co. spokesman Jerry Drelling said the company would not comment until the final spending package is completed. News services, however, are reporting that the full funding package is expected to be completed in the coming days.
In recent years, California's only remaining major aircraft production facility program has been in jeopardy as Boeing relies heavily on a solid base of domestic orders and funding for the program has been an unknown. Although President Obama mentioned the importance of programs such as the C-17, Defense Secretary Robert Gates later suggested shedding the military cargo plane from the proposed budget.
And while the House of Representatives approved its version of the bill that included money for the aircraft, the Senate version did not include funding for any of them. However, Inouye has publicly expressed his support for C-17.
Dana Rohrabacher, a supporter of C-17, did not know about the tentative deal but said he was confident that the program would be funded.
"Nobody in their right mind wants to eliminate the productions of the C-17 at a time when we are so reliant on C-17s to supply the mission in Afghanistan, for example," he said. "I can't imagine that we're going to lose it."
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