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| A 22-aircraft "freedom launch" took place at Travis AFB, Calif., Sept. 11, 2013. Seven C-17 Globemaster IIIs, 11 KC-10 Extenders and four C-5B Galaxies from the 60th Air Mobility Wing launched consecutively over 36 minutes to take part in Air Mobility Command missions. The first plane in the lineup, a C-17, launched at 8:46 a.m., the same time terrorists crashed American Airlines Flight 11 into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City 12 years earlier. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ken Wright) |
by 2nd Lt. Jessica Clark, 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Travis conducted a mass launch of 22 mobility aircraft Sept. 11, 2013, to practice the combat capability of safely launching a large number of aircraft.
During the operation, dubbed the "Freedom Launch," seven C-17 Globemaster IIIs, 11 KC-10A Extenders, and four C-5 Galaxies departed in 36 minutes and 21 seconds on both operational and training missions. The launch also provided essential training for mobility capabilities for flight operations, operations support, aircraft maintenance, fuels and air traffic control.
Today's mass launch of three types of aircraft was the largest ever at Travis.
The Freedom Launch also served as a remembrance of 9/11, as the first C-17 Globemaster III took off at 8:46 a.m., the same time the first plane crashed into the World Trade Center's North Tower on Sept. 11, 2001.
