Air Force engineers fabricated a new nose panel for a damaged C-17 Globemaster III through an experimental process known as “incremental sheet forming.”

The old saying “They don’t make them like they used to” is more than a saying for the US armed forces. For the Pentagon, it is literally true: many of the legacy systems it continues to operate and rely on aren’t produced any longer. This raises maintenance costs and creates a scarcity of spare parts; retired aircraft are often saved so that they can be cannibalized to keep aging operational planes in the air.

However, after a C-17 Globemaster III with the US Air Force’s 445th Airlift Wing was damaged when it was struck by a private Bombardier Challenger jet during strong winds and hail at Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport, Texas, in March 2025, it was clear that more drastic measures would be required to repair the legacy transport. The C-17 was able to fly home to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (AFB) in Dayton, Ohio, with a temporary nose panel repair and its landing gear down.

The plane was mostly intact and still airworthy, akin to a car with a crumpled fender. But fixing the damage posed an outsized problem for the Air Force, as the final C-17s were built in 2015, more than a decade ago. C-17 manufacturer Boeing had shuttered the production line that year, citing financial pressures and a lack of international demand for the enormous transport aircraft. Because no new aircraft are being built, no new parts are, either.

The 445th Maintenance Group (445 MXG) was able to address a damaged door and fuselage, but quickly determined the left nose panel was too far gone for simple repairs. The aircraft sat on the for more than a year as the team determined whether it could be repaired.  A team from Boeing even found that no vendors were available even to craft the tool for such an isolated part.

Turning to a retired aircraft also wasn’t an option, as there are virtually no C-17s at the famed Davis-Monthan AFB “Boneyard” in Arizona. The active fleet of Globemasters is heavily relied upon, and the required structural nose panel was a very specific and thus non-interchangeable skin section.

For a while, it may have seemed that this C-17 might not fly again, even as the damage was minor and hardly debilitating for the aircraft’s function. The Globemaster was also just one of nine in service with the 455 AW, and deemed “mission-essential.”

A High-Tech Solution: “Incremental Sheet Forming”

As the C-17 sat in storage, the maintenance group reached out to the Air Force Rapid Sustainment Office (RSO), a subunit of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center and a division within the Combat Readiness Directorate.

The Advanced Manufacturing Program Office Automation and Robotics (A&R) was able to assess that the damaged part was an ideal candidate for its “Incremental Sheet Forming (ISF) system, a robotic technology that progressively deforms metal sheets into functional parts,” the Air Force explained.

ISF is a die-less manufacturing process that transforms a flat sheet of metal, polymer, or even composite, into the completed component. It involves shaping the panel, which is securely locked into a rigid frame or rig, into a 3D part via progressive, localized deformation using a small round-tipped tool controlled by a CNC machine or robotic arm. ISF eliminates the need for expensive and time-consuming hard tooling or the use of molds. It is therefore ideal for rapid prototyping and for small-batch production of one to 1,000 parts. The other benefit is that it allows for product design modifications that require only software adjustments rather than physical die remanufacturing.

The team worked with engineers from the nearby University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI) and began production of the panel this past January. The ISF-completed part moved through the production process, which included an initial fit check and testing to ensure it was flight-worthy, before a final check in April.

Last month, a team from Boeing and the 445 MXG successfully installed the completed panel on the C-17 Globemaster—likely saving US taxpayers millions of dollars.

“When the mission demanded immediate action, the RSO stepped up,” said Mary Schuler, RSO A&R lead program manager. “By leveraging the ISF, with critical support from UDRI, we didn’t just meet the need. We significantly decreased our timeline, reducing the repair process from years to only a few months.”

On July 30, the newly-repaired Globemaster resumed its operational duties.

“This is a tremendous win for our maintenance group,” said Col. Karen Gharst, 445 MXG commander. “Using the ISF technology to produce an otherwise unobtainable part rapidly allowed us to avoid a prolonged work stoppage. The RSO was exceptionally responsive, delivering a part for fit check in just over a month. We are incredibly thankful for the partnership with the RSO that was instrumental in moving this critical project forward during a period of increased operational tempo.”

The success with the C-17 goes beyond returning one aircraft to service. It could change the dynamic in repairing aircraft, ensuring that cannibalizing retired planes isn’t the only option. RSO is already crafting new parts for a KC-135 and an F-15.

New Aircraft Maintenance Technology: “Digital Twins” and 3D Printing

Although it wasn’t an option or even needed in this case, the US military has also explored options for creating “digital twins” of some of its most crucially needed aircraft, helping maintenance personnel envision how the parts of an aircraft went together and practice repair steps before confronting the real thing. The efforts are being employed with the B-1B Lancer and B-52 Stratofortress bombers to keep the fleets in the air.

Every component of those aircraft was scanned, which in turn allows for parts to be replicated via 3D printing.

It was a year ago that the United States Air Force’s 35th Fighter Wing at Misawa Air Base, Japan, hosted a course focused on “additive manufacturing,” the process more commonly known as 3D printing. The five-day training session helped prepare airmen to “design, build and field solutions at the speed of need,” where the personnel could “create everything from critical aircraft components to custom tools, medical devices and small unmanned aerial system parts.”

About the Author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu has contributed to dozens of newspapers, magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.

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