BZ's Nellis '08 - C-17 page

The C-17 can take off and land on fairly short 'unimproved' runways.


Here he is pulling up sharply on take off. Probably wouldn't be able to do that with a full load though.


At Nellis, the C-17 did a few passes, so everyone had a good opportunity to get nice pictures of it.


Here's a shot with the gears and flaps down.


A closer look, with the landing gear transitioning to up position.


For being a big plane, it was banking quite sharply.


Here is the C-17 on landing approach, with the Thunderbirds parked in the foreground.


If you look closely at the engines, the middle section is exposed as reverse thrust is being applied. Reverse thrust is used to slow the plane down during landing, and even to back it up while taxiing.