Watch hulking Charleston-based C-17s make low-altitude flights in UK training area

[embed-1]In northwest Wales, there’s a series of valleys known as the Machynlleth Loop used by military pilots as a training ground for low altitude flying. It’s common to spot Royal Air Force, U.S. Air Force, and other allied fighter aircraft in the area, but it recently saw its first-ever passes by slightly-less-nimble C-17s out of Joint Base Charleston.

The crews of the Charleston-based cargo jets made the trip through the ‘Mach Loop’ on July 7 while in the area for an airshow.

Popular with photographers and aviation nerds, it’s one of the few areas in the world where you can get an up-close look at precision aircraft being put through their paces. Depending on your vantage point and the plane’s altitude, you can actually view the aircraft from above dash through the valley. Charleston-area residents are pretty familiar with C-17s, but this is a wildly different perspective.

Over on YouTube, you can find plenty of videos of quick F-15 and F-35 fighters showing off their maneuvering skills in the valleys. A few videos have been posted of the C-17 Globemaster III approaches which are more predictable, but no less dramatic than their smaller supersonic friends’.

(H/t to David Axe of War is Boring for spotting this one.)

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