It takes about 18 months to two
years before they are fully quali ed to
command the C-5.’Flying the ‘M’
Capt Joel Loftus is a C-5 pilot and has
been ying the ‘Mike’ variant for the last
ve years. ‘I was stationed at Dover AFB
in Delaware for four years ying the C-5M
and arrived at Travis in November 2016,
where I joined the 22nd Airlift Squadron’,
he recalls. ‘It is an incredible aircraft. It
may be huge but it’s fairly easy to y and
is quite responsive. The only time that it
can challenge us is when we are taxiing
on the ground — our 221ft wingspan
makes it incredibly di cult to t into
certain spaces, so we have to be very
careful when taxiing to ensure we do not
hit anything around us.’
The M-model has provided a signi cant
improvement to the eet in terms of
maintenance reliability compared with
the C-5As and Bs. The new General Electric
CF6-80C2 engines have increased power
and are much more reliable than the
previous powerplants.
Loftus says, ‘The biggest issue we have
in the C-5 community is part availability.
Because the C-5 is so big and requires so
many spare parts, many places we y to donot have spares if we have an issue. Often,
we are delayed because we are waiting
for a part to be shipped from Dover or
Travis. Overall though, the M-model has
signi cantly increased the reliability of
the Galaxy.’
Wangler explains the di erences
between the previous C-5 models and
the Super Galaxy. ‘I’m colloquially known
as an ‘M-baby’, meaning that I’ve never
own the ‘legacy’ A or B. The airframes
themselves are the same, however. What
modernizes the A/B-model airframe
to the M-model status is essentially
the combination of two updates: the
avionics modernization program,
AMP, and the reliability enhancement
and re-engining program, RERP. AMP
results in a modern cockpit layout,
with at-panel displays and enhanced
navigation, communication, and safety
equipment. Meanwhile, RERP gives the
airplane more powerful engines, with a
22 per cent increase in thrust compared
to the ‘legacy’ engines, and results in a
58 per cent greater climb rate to initial
cruise altitude.
‘In addition, these new, more e cient,
engines result in the Super Galaxy having
a range of 5,250nm with a 120,000lb
payload, as compared to 4,350nm withthe ‘legacy’ models. All of this combined
means that the C-5M gets its troops and
cargo where they are needed faster, more
a ordably, and more reliably.’
Wangler went on to pro le a typical
training sortie. ‘Each ight starts with
the crew being ‘alerted’ for the mission.
From then the next four hours are spent
traveling to the squadron, accomplishing
a mission brie ng with the entire crew,
mission planning, and pre- ighting
the aircraft. Typical sortie duration is an
additional four hours, during which we
often meet up with a tanker to sharpen
our aerial refueling skills and/or y
various instrument and visual procedures
either at Travis or one of several
surrounding air elds, depending on the
currency needs of the pilots or the type
of upgrade training that they are in. After
landing we accomplish post- ight duties
to include debrie ng and paperwork.’Future upgrades
With the arrival of the C-5M, the Galaxy
is expected to keep ying well into the
2040s. While the type has just received
a momentous upgrade with its new
avionics and engines, several smaller
improvements are in progress or planned
for the future.Top right to left:
The sheer size
of the C-5 is well
illustrated in this
view as a 22nd
AS example gets
ready to taxi.
The towering tail
fi n of the C-5,
the top of which
stands at more
than 65ft
(19.85m) high.
Below: The Travis
fl ight line is
dominated by the
heavies, including
the impressive
C-5M area for the
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