The Lockheed C5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed and is now maintained and upgraded by its successor, Lockheed Martin. It provides the United States Air Force (USAF) with a heavy intercontinentalrange strategic airlift capability, one that can carry outsized and oversized loads, including all aircertifiable cargo. The Galaxy has many similarities to the smaller Lockheed C141 Starlifter and the later Boeing C17 Globemaster III. The C5 is among the largest military aircraft in the world.

The C5 Galaxy's development was complicated, including significant cost overruns, and Lockheed suffered significant financial difficulties. Shortly after entering service, cracks in the wings of many aircraft were discovered and the C5 fleet was restricted in capability until corrective work was completed. The C5M Super Galaxy is an upgraded version with new engines and modernized avionics designed to extend its service life to 2040 and beyond.

The USAF has operated the C5 since 1969. At that time, the airlifter supported US military operations in all major conflicts including Vietnam, Iraq, Yugoslavia, and Afghanistan, as well as allied support, such as Israel during the Yom Kippur War and operations in the Gulf War. The Galaxy has also distributed humanitarian aid, provided disaster relief, and supported the US space program.

In 1961, several aircraft companies began studying heavy jet transport designs that would replace the Douglas C133 Cargomaster and complement Lockheed C141 Starlifters. In addition to higher overall performance, the United States Army wanted a transport aircraft with a larger cargo bay than the C141, whose interior was too small to carry a variety of their outsized equipment. These studies led to the "CX4" design concept, but in 1962, the proposed sixengined design was rejected, because it was not viewed as a significant advance over the C141. By late 1963, the next conceptual design was named CXX. It was equipped with four engines, instead of six in the earlier CX4 concept. The CXX had a gross weight of 550,000 pounds (249,000 kg), a maximum payload of 180,000 lb (81,600 kg), and a speed of Mach 0.75 (500 mph or 805 km/h). The cargo compartment was 17.2 ft (5.24 m) wide by 13.5 feet (4.11 m) high and 100 ft (30.5 m) long with front and rear access doors.USAF studies showed that highbypass turbofan engines were needed for thrust and fuel efficiency requirements.

General Duane H. Cassidy, former MAC Commander in Chief
The criteria were finalized and an official request for proposal was issued in April 1964 for the "Heavy Logistics System" (CXHLS) (previously CXX). In May 1964, proposals for aircraft were received from Boeing, Douglas, General Dynamics, Lockheed, and Martin Marietta. General Electric, CurtissWright, and Pratt & Whitney submitted proposals for the engines. After a downselect, Boeing, Douglas, and Lockheed were given oneyear study contracts for the airframe, along with General Electric and Pratt & Whitney for the engines. All three of the designs shared a number of features. The cockpit was placed well above the cargo area to allow for cargo loading through a nose door.

General characteristics

Crew:
7 typical (Aircraft Commander, First Pilot, 2 Flight Engineers, 3 Loadmasters);
4 minimum (pilot, copilot, two flight engineers)
8 when augmented (Aircraft Commander, 2 First Pilots, 2 Flight Engineers, 3 Loadmasters)
Capacity:
36 master pallets 463L, 281,000 lb (127,459 kg
Length: 247 ft 1 in (75.31 m)
Wingspan: 222 ft 9 in (67.89 m)
Height: 65 ft 1 in (19.84 m)
Wing area: 6,200 sq ft (580 m2)
Airfoil: root: NACA 0012.41 mod; tip: NACA 0011 mod
Empty weight: 380,000 lb (172,365 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 840,000 lb (381,018 kg)
Fuel capacity: 154,880 kg ( 341,446 lb)
51,150 US gal (42,590 imp gal; 193,600 L)

Powerplant: 4 × General Electric F138100 turbofan engines, 51,000 lbf (230 kN) thrust each
Performance

Maximum speed: 462 kn (532 mph, 856 km/h)
Maximum speed: Mach 0.79
Cruise speed: 450 kn (520 mph, 830 km/h) / Mach 0.77
Range: 4,800 nmi (5,500 mi, 8,900 km) with a 120,000 lb (54,431 kg) payload. 2,300 nmi (4,260 km; 2,647 mi) with maximum cargo capacity
Ferry range: 7,000 nmi (8,100 mi, 13,000 km) with no cargo on board.
Service ceiling: 41,000 ft (12,000 m) at 750,000 lb (340,194 kg)
Rate of climb: 2,100 ft/min (11 m/s)
Thrust/weight: 0.26
Takeoff run: 5,400 ft (1,646 m)
Landing run: 3,600 ft (1,097 m)

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