Lockheed C-5 Galaxy

Into production


The first C-5A Galaxy (number 66-8303) was rolled out of the manufacturing plant in [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] on 2 March 1968.

On 20 June 1968, [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] began flight testing its new Galaxy C-5A heavy transport with the
aircraft's first flight taking to the air under the call-sign "eight-three-oh-three [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]" (8303H).

Cost overruns and technical problems of the C-5A were the subject of a congressional investigation in 1968 and 1969.

The Lockheed C-5 program holds the dubious distinction of being the first program to produce a one billion dollar overrun.^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]}

Upon completion of testing the first C-5A was transferred to the Transitional Training Unit at [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], OK, in December 1969.

Lockheed then delivered the first operational Galaxy to the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], in June 1970.

Due to the higher than expected development costs, there were calls within the military as early as in June 1970 for the
government to split the losses that Lockheed were experiencing.

Production was nearly brought to a halt in 1971 due to Lockheed going through financial difficulties, brought on in part due to the C-5 Galaxy but also by the civilian jet liner, the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

The U.S. government loaned Lockheed money so they could keep running.
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In the early 1970s, [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] considered the C-5 for the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] role, to transport the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] to [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

However, they rejected it in favor of the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], in part due to the 747's low-wing design.

In contrast, the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] chose to transport its shuttles using the high-winged [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], which derives from the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], which is similar in design and function to the C-5.

During static and fatigue testing cracks were noticed in the wings of several aircraft, and as a consequence the C-5A fleet was restricted to 80% of maximum design loads.

To reduce wing loading, load alleviation systems were added to the aircraft.

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By 1980, payloads were restricted to as low as 50,000 lb (23,000 kg) for general cargo during peacetime operations.

To restore full payload capability and service life, a $1.5 billion program to re-wing the 76 completed C-5As began in 1976.

^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien][Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]} After design and testing of the new wing design, the C-5As received their new wings from 1980 to 1987.
During 1976, numerous cracks were also found in the fuselage along the upper fuselage on the centerline, aft of the refueling port, extending back to the wing. The cracks required a redesign to the hydraulic system for the visor, the front cargo entry point.

A U.S. Air Force Military Airlift Command Lockheed C-5A Galaxy (s/n 66-8306) in flight.

This aircraft was retired to the AMARC as CM0003 on 18 February 2004.

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In 1974, Iran, then a monarchy which maintained good relations with the United States, offered $160 million to restart the production of the C-5 to enable them to make their own procurements of the Galaxy; in a similar climate as to their acquisition of [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] fighters.

However no C-5 aircraft were ever ordered by Iran, as the prospect was firmly halted by the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] in 1979.
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As part of President [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]'s military planning, a new version of the C-5, the C-5B, was approved by Congress for purchase in July 1982.^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]
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The first C-5B was delivered to Altus Air Force Base in January 1986.

In April 1989, the last of 50 C-5B aircraft was added to the 77 C-5As in the Air Force's airlift force structure.

The C-5B includes all C-5A improvements and numerous additional system modifications to improve reliability and maintainability.
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In 1998, the Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) began upgrading the C-5's avionics to include a [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], navigation equipment, and a new autopilot system.
Another part of the C-5 modernization effort is the Reliability Enhancement and Re-engining Program (RERP).

The program will mainly replace the engines with newer, more powerful ones.

Three C-5s are to undergo RERP as a test with full production planned to begin in May 2008.

C-5 M

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Design

The C-5 is a large high-wing cargo aircraft. It has a distinctive high [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], 25 degree wing sweep, and four [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] engines mounted on [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] beneath the wings.

The C-5 is similar in layout to its smaller predecessor, the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

The C-5 has 12 internal wing tanks and is equipped for [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

It has both nose and aft doors for "drive-through" loading and unloading of cargo.
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The C-5 features a cargo compartment 121 ft (37 m) long, 13.5 ft (4.1 m) high, and 19 ft (5.8 m) wide, or just over 31,000 cu ft (880 m³).

The compartment can accommodate up to 36 [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] or a mix of palletized cargo and vehicles.

The cargo hold of the C-5 is actually a foot longer than the length of the first powered flight by the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]' Flyer at [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].
The nose and aft doors open the full width and height of the cargo compartment to permit faster and easier loading.

Ramps are full width at each end for loading double rows of vehicles.

It has an upper deck seating area for 73 passengers.

The passengers face the rear of the aircraft, rather than forward.

Its takeoff and landing distances, at maximum gross weight, are 8,300 ft (2,500 m) and 4,900 ft (1,500 m) respectively.

Its high flotation [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] has 28 wheels to share the weight.

The rear main landing gear is steerable for a smaller turning radius and it rotates 90 degrees horizontally before it is retracted after takeoff.

The "kneeling" landing gear system permits lowering of the parked aircraft so the cargo floor is at truck-bed height to facilitate vehicle loading and unloading.
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The C-5 has a Malfunction Detection Analysis and Recording (MADAR) system, which records and analyzes information and detects malfunctions in more than 800 test points.

The C-5 is also known as FRED (fucking, sometimes written as "fantastic", ridiculous, economic/environmental disaster) by its crews due to its maintenance/reliability issues and large consumption of fuel.

The C-5 requires an average of 16 hours of maintenance for each flight hour based on 1996 data.

The Galaxy has a Low Pressure Pneumatic System (LPPS) that utilizes a turbo compressor driven by [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] to provide 150 psi pressure for inflating aircraft's tires on the ground.

The Galaxy is capable of carrying nearly every type of the Army's combat equipment, including bulky items such as the 74 short tons (67 t)[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], from the United States to any location on the globe.
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One of the unique features was the crosswind landing system that allows the landing gear to be offset up to 20 degrees either side of centerline.

When the main landing gear was down (MLG) all the other 28 wheels would be slaved to the MLG and driven by hydraulic actuators to the same offset.

Operational history

The first C-5A was delivered to the USAF on 17 December 1969. Wings were built up in the early 1970s at [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], and [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

9 July 1970 marked the C-5's first mission in Southeast Asia during the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].
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Through the rest of the war, C-5s were used to transport equipment and troops, including Army tanks and various smaller aircraft.

C-5s have also been used to deliver support and reinforce various U.S. allies over the years, critically delivered weapons and supplies to [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] as part of [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] in 1973, in which the aircraft performed to such a high degree that the Pentagon considered further purchases.^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]}

The C-5 was also made available to support British-led peacekeeping efforts in Zimbabwe in 1979.

The C-5 is the largest aircraft to ever operate in the Antarctic.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] near [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] is capable of handling C-5 aircraft and the first C-5 landed there in 1989.

The C-5 Galaxy was a core part of the extensive airlift operations supplying troops involved in the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], and in delivering relief aid to Rwanda in 1994.

The wings on the C-5As were replaced during the 1980s to restore full design capability.

The U.S. Air Force took delivery of the first C-5B on 28 December 1985 and the final one in April 1989.

The reliability of the C-5 fleet has been a continued issue throughout its lifetime, however the C-5M upgrade program seeks in part to address this issue.

C-5 B

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C-5 M

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In response to Air Force motions towards the retirement of the C-5 Galaxy, Congress implemented legislation that placed set limits upon retirement plans for C-5A models in 2003.

By 2005, 14 C-5As were retired.

One was sent to the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] (WR-ALC) for tear down and inspection to evaluate structural integrity and estimate the remaining life for the fleet.

Thirteen C-5As were sent to the Air Force's [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] (AMARG) for inspection of levels of corrosion and fatigue.
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In 2007 the Air Force requested information on the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] freighter for possible use as a military transport to supplement the U.S. strategic airlift fleet.^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]
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The U.S. Air Force began to receive refitted C-5M aircraft in December 2008;^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]} full production of C-5Ms began in the summer of 2009.

^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]} In 2009, the Congressional ban on the retirement of C-5s was overturned.

^{[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]} The Air Force seeks to retire one C-5A for each 10 new [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] ordered.[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]