United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office National Security and International Affairs Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2011-06-23 U.S. Government Printing Office 1994-07-11 monographic deposited born digital 18 p. GA 1.13:NSIAD-94-225 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225 P0b002ee180d7f392 f:ns94225 DGPO 2011-06-23 2011-06-23 GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225 NSIAD-94-225 Defense contingency planning Military airlift operations Military aircraft Defense capabilities Strategic mobility forces Military bases Operations analysis Military systems analysis Airborne operations C-17 Aircraft C-5 Aircraft Korea Saudi Arabia DOD Mobility Requirements Study Letter Report NSIAD The Air Force has greatly overestimated the number of airfields worldwide that can accommodate the wide-bodied, C-17 cargo plane; when runway strength is considered, the C-17's wartime advantage over its C-5 predecessor shrinks from 6,400 to about 900 airfields. The C-17 advantage dwindles even further when only airfields that have been determined by the Air Force to be suitable for military operations are considered. So far, the Air Force has surveyed about 2,800 airfields as suitable for military operations. When wartime landing requirements, including minimum runway strength, are considered, the C-17's wartime airfield advantage is 145. When airfields in the United States, Canada, and Mexico are excluded, the C-17's wartime advantage falls to 95 airfields. Although the Air Face claims that the C-17's ability to land at small, austere airfields during wartime is a significant military advantage, the Defense Department has identified only three such airfields that the C-17 would use in major regional contingency scenarios; two are in Korea and one is in Saudi Arabia. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225/html/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225/pdf/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225.pdf GAO/NSIAD-94-225 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-94-225 Letter Report GAO/NSIAD-94-225; Military Airlift: Comparison of C-5 and C-17 Airfield Availability; Defense contingency planning Military airlift operations Military aircraft Defense capabilities Strategic mobility forces Military bases Operations analysis Military systems analysis Airborne operations C-17 Aircraft C-5 Aircraft Korea Saudi Arabia DOD Mobility Requirements Study