In the morning at 2009. 27th of June, 10:00 a.m. started the C-17 active service in the HUNAF-NATO Heavy Heavy Air Transport Regiment(Nehéz Légi Szállító Ezred) with a military parade with Mi-24 helicopters and JAS-39 EBS HU C,D Gripens. In the parade speech Gordon Bajnai, the Prime Minister of Hungary, general László Tömböl Chief of the HM Honvéd Vezérkar (Hungarian General Defence Staff), Claudio Bissugnierot the NATO secretary-general deputy, brigade general Richard Johnston, the SAC (Strategic Airlift Capability – Stratégiai Légiszállítási Képesség) chairman of the leader corporate and colonel John D. Zazworksy, commander of the HAW (Heavy Airlift Wings – Nehéz Légiszállító Ezred). On the celebration Imre Szekeres the Minister of Defense give a flag to the HAW. Now 12 country connect to the SAC initiative: 10 NATO member Bulgaria, USA, Lithuania, Denmark, Poland, Romania, Netherlands, Slovenia, Hungary, Estonia and NATO cooperator Sweden and Finland. MH Pápa Bázisrepülötér(Base Airport) win the competition against Ramstein and Constanca. The HUNAF will operate the Globemasters in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan, and the other counries operate them. Commander of the HAW is colonel John D. Zazworsky (USAF), deputy colonel Fredrik Hedén (Swedish AF). HAW number 131 soldier. After the trainings the Globemasters will operate Hungarian crew. Other 2 C-17 will arrive. The HUNAF want to the Canadian AF send their Globemasters to Pápa LHPA. If the Canadians send them, the Boeing will build a repair base at LHPA.

The first Globemaster HUNAF-01 arrive (photos from honvedelem.hu & Boeing Co. & aviation week & air-attack.com) :



Another photo www.honvedelem.hu : http://www.honvedelem.hu/mutat.html?image=/files/9/16952/003.jpg

The flag handing ceremony:



Minister of Defence & the Prime Minister in front of the Globemaster:



Badges of the C-17 Globemaster's crew:



Badge of the Nehéz Légi Szállító Ezred (Heavy Air Transport Regiment), Hungarian motto on down ,,Will Find The Solution"




The Tail:

Hi all,
I've been contacted by Bogdan Horvat, the Nato Airlift Management Organization (NAMO) Board of Directors Chairman with some corrections to the above report.

1. The first C-17 does not belong to HUNAF-NATO Heavy Heavy Air Transport Regiment, but to the 'Strategic Airlift Capability' - SAC initiative which, as stated above, is composed from 10 NATO and two PfP countries.

2. Denmark is not part of the initiative any more, but rather Norway.

3. The C-17 aircraft will be operated multinationaly with the crews from all SAC member nations in the HAW not by HUNAF.

4. And at the end, the piece of information which is missing: the second aircraft arrives in September and the third in October.

5. The project first started in NATO, and it shares NATO legal personality, but it is still multinational project of 12 nations.

C-17 is a wonderful aircraft. So much better to ride in than in the E model Herks.

I was under the impression that this arrangement was similar to NATO's implementation of E-3 AWACS aircraft. Those aircraft are crewed from multinational resources and carry no specific national markings, other than the Luxembourg civil registration (LX-#####). I was actually surprised to see the C-17A's decked-out in HunAF markings.

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N74JW :
I was under the impression that this arrangement was similar to NATO's implementation of E-3 AWACS aircraft. Those aircraft are crewed from multinational resources and carry no specific national markings, other than the Luxembourg civil registration (LX-#####). I was actually surprised to see the C-17A's decked-out in HunAF markings.

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Hi Jason! This is one unique thing from the Hungarian Law System. I will try to find more information about it.

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N74JW :
Hello Vasmadar! I think the C-17A's look great in their HunAF livery. Are they actually owned by the Hungarian government?

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Yes, the markings looks great! No, not owned by the government. I asked my pilot friend, he told me the HUNAF markings on the Globemasters because their base on Hungary at Pápa LHPA, and operate from here. Perhaps this is not the whole reason, I will try to find more information.

---Peter---