A C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft assigned to the Alaska Army National Guard’s Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, parked on a tarmac at Ali Air Base in southern Iraq, is silhouetted against the rising sun. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


A C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft crewman assigned to the Alaska Army National Guard’s Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion displays the unit patch on his flight suit. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Stephen D. Law, of Anchorage, Alaska, and a C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft pilot assigned to the Alaska Army National Guard’s Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, keeps an eye open for ground hazards after take off. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Tracy W. Andersen, a C-23 Sherpa pilot in Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, performs a pre-flight inspection on the aircraft before takeoff. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Tracy W. Andersen, a C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft pilot assigned to Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, waits for permission from the tower to take off at Ali Air Base, in southern Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Sgt. Larry W. Tolley, assigned to Company D, 4th Battalion, 123rd Aviation Regiment, based at Fort Wainright, Alaska, uses a forklift to load cargo onto a C-23 Sherpa at Ali al Salim Air Base, Kuwait. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. soldiers assigned to Company D, 4th Battalion, 123rd Aviation Regiment, based at Fort Wainright, Alaska, use a forklift to load cargo onto a C-23 Sherpa at Ali al Salim Air Base, Kuwait. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


A C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft assigned to the Alaska Army National Guard’s Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, makes the final approach for a landing at Ali al Salim Air Base in Kuwait. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Raymond A. Vasofsk, a flight engineer assigned to Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, performs a pre-flight inspection on a C-23 Sherpa before takeoff. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Gordon R. Howe, a flight engineer assigned to Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, observes the engine startup of a C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft at Ali Air Base, Iraq, before a predawn takeoff. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


A C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft assigned to Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, skims the desolate desert floor during a low-level approach to a landing strip in southern Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


Air crews assigned to Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, carefully load a C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft at Ali al Salim Air Base in Kuwait. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Gordon R. Howe, a flight engineer in Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, installs jacks for additional support underneath a C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft before heavy cargo is loaded at Ali Air Base, Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Gordon R. Howe, a flight engineer in Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, gives a hand signal to the pilots of a C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft to start the aircraft’s two turbine engines at Ali Air Base, Iraq, before a predawn takeoff. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Gordon R. Howe, a flight engineer in Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, gives an “all OK” hand signal to the pilots of a C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft at Ali Air Base, Iraq, before a predawn takeoff. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


A C-23 Sherpa cargo aircraft assigned to the Company E, 207th Aviation Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, taxis to a parking area at Ali Air Base in southern Iraq after a mission. U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Lek Mateo


Read the associated DoD story about the Sherpas here.

You can also go to this post at ROFASix for a little more about these unique aircraft.