Photo Information

A C-17 Globemaster III drops pallets of cargo Dec. 20, 2006, during the first C-17 airdrop to the South Pole. Airmen from Air Force Reserve Command's 446th Airlift Wing and Air Mobility Command's 62nd Airlift Wing at McChord Air Force Base, Wash., delivered 70 tons of supplies to the National Science Foundation team wintering there. The mission was a "proof of concept" flight for the C-17 and was part of Joint Task Force-Support Forces Antarctica's Operation Deep Freeze. As a result of this operational excellence, the 446th Operations Group is slated to receive the Thomas E. Marchbanks Jr. Memorial Award in San Francisco June 29. (U.S. Air Force photo/Lt. Col. James McGann)