C-17 mishap closes Bagram base

[unhappycamper]

C-17 mishap closes Bagram base
Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Sunday, February 1, 2009

A mishap involving a C-17 cargo plane has forced the U.S. military to close its key air base near Kabul, Afghanistan, "until further notice," officials said late Friday.

According to U.S. Forces Afghanistan, the C-17 landed at Bagram Airfield on Friday night without having its landing gear fully extended, "causing a small fire."

No injuries were reported in the incident, according to a short press release issued late Friday. An investigation team will be appointed to look into the incident.

As of Saturday, military officials had not released information on where the plane had been flying from, or to which unit the crew and aircraft belonged.

Bagram, north of Kabul, has long been the main U.S. air hub in Afghanistan. It is the largest U.S. base in Afghanistan, and around 20,000 international troops call Bagram home. During the Soviet war in Afghanistan, it was also a major Soviet base.


Rest of article about this potential $217 million accident at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=60393



uhc comment: Read all about the C-17 --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-17_Globemaster_III