Joint Base Charleston gets final C-17 Globemaster transport

JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. — The U.S. Air Force’s 437th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Charleston is getting its last C-17 Globemaster, 20 years after it got its first such transport.

An Air Force statement says the aircraft is scheduled to be flown in Thursday from Long Beach, Calif., by Gen. Paul J. Selva, commander of the Air Mobility Command based at Scott Air Force Base, Ill.

The delivery means there are 54 such planes at Charleston. It also marks the final delivery to the Air Force.

C-17s deliver troops and all types of cargo to bases in difficult landing zones in all types of deployment regions. C-17s also can perform airlift and airdrop missions and carry patients during medical evacuations.

Since 1993, some 223 C-17s have been delivered to the Air Force.