Strategic airlift - Definition and Overview

Strategic airlift is a military term for using cargo aircraft to transport materiel, weaponry, or personnel over long distances. Typically, this involves airlifting the required items between two airbases which are not in the same vicinity. This allows commanders to bring items into a combat theater from a point on the other side of the planet, if necessary. Aircraft which perform this role are considered strategic airlifters. This contrasts with tactical airlifters, such as the C-130 Hercules and Airbus A400M, which can normally only move supplies within a given theater of operations.

Examples of strategic airlifters include:

• Lockheed C-141 Starlifter
• Lockheed C-5 Galaxy
• Ilyushin Il-76 'Candid'
• Antonov An-124 'Condor'
• Antonov An-225 'Cossack'
• Boeing C-17 Globemaster III