Strategic airlift made a historic return here yesterday with a C-17 Globemaster III making a couple of graceful, banking turns overhead and a final stop on the Hickam Air Force Base flightline.

More than 1,000 spectators were on hand for the arrival of "Spirit of Hawai'i — Ke Aloha," the first of eight of the Air Force's latest-generation cargo carriers being based in Hawai'i.

The arrival of the first jet represents a new airlift emphasis in the Pacific, and a return to an active-duty flying mission for a base struck in the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor that launched the United States into World War II.

The new unit will rely on an amalgam of active-duty Air Force and Hawai'i Air National Guard units to fly and maintain the aircraft — a pattern that will be repeated elsewhere as defense budgets tighten.

Hawai'i's first C-17 rolled up to the base operations building, which has been in continuous use since 1939, at 11 a.m. after touching down in challenging crosswinds on a short hop from the Marine Corps base at Kane'ohe Bay.

An Air Guard F-15 flew alongside the four-engine cargo carrier en route to Hickam.

U.S., state of Hawai'i and Air Force flags jutted above the airlifter's cockpit, and a long maile lei was unfurled from its window as cameras clicked and video whirred.

Gov. Linda Lingle, one of about 40 passengers on the plane, took three whacks on a lava rock to break a bottle of champagne and christen the aircraft.

Gen. Paul Hester, the four-star commander of Pacific Air Forces — who was in the cockpit of the big cargo carrier on the flight Tuesday from Boeing's Long Beach, Calif., plant to Kane'ohe Bay — said the basing puts Hickam back into the thick of worldwide events.

"These airplanes are strategic airlift, which means they'll fly all over the world, so consequently; they will do whatever mission is on their plate for the given day," he said. "It may be just normal missions of taking supplies to our forces in Japan or Korea, or it could be landing in the desert of Afghanistan."

Symbolism and connections of military heritage past and present, and pride in a prominent new role at Hickam, were everywhere.

It's the first time since the Vietnam War that an active-duty airlift squadron will be based at Hickam, although the Hawai'i Air National Guard has flown C-130 Hercules cargo carriers, F-15 fighters and KC-135R tankers out of the base.

The ceremony took place at the location where B-17 and B-18 bombers were parked wingtip to wingtip at the time of the attack on Dec. 7, 1941.

"We're looking at the flightline where all the B-17s were either lined up or were trying to land, and were getting blown to bits," said Pacific Air Forces historian Steven Diamond.

"It (the C-17 basing) is going to bring a combat mission to Hickam," said Airman 1st Class Robert Rosinski, 20, of Virginia Beach, Va. "It's going to go from supporting other units to being a primary component. Now that we've got our own specific mission, it gives us more focus. When C-17s deploy, we'll be sending our men and women over to support that C-17."

Yesterday's arrival of the first of eight of the $200 million aircraft will be followed by another of the C-17s about once every three weeks. The eighth is expected to arrive in late September or early October.

Air Guard Capt. Kimo Lowe, 32, and active-duty Air Force Capt. Paul Theriot, 30, piloted the C-17 into Hickam, representing the partnership between the part-time and full-time Air Force.

There were strong crosswinds, passengers that included a four-star general, and the arrival timing to meet on the ground.

"I've got a lot of hours, relatively speaking, in the airplane (and) I've flown into a lot more dangerous places than Hickam, but it was still pretty intense," said Theriot, who has seen Iraq and Afghanistan from the cockpit window.

Lowe, a 1991 Kamehameha School graduate, said the active-duty Air Force will bring experience and knowledge on the aircraft, and the Hawai'i Air Guard will bring roots and longevity.

The new prominence also is expected to mean a longer time away from families during missions.

"You'll hear it from a lot of people — the airplane is great, but the mission that comes along with it is very tasking, so that's the tradeoff," Lowe said.

The state will have C-17s close by for disaster relief. Such partnerships are expected elsewhere.

"As you know, the Air Force is getting smaller," Hester said. "It puts even more importance on both the active, Guard and Reserve (Air Force)."

Felix Duhaylongsod, 81, and Tommy Lau, 82, both with the 1266th Air Transport Squadron flying C-97 Stratofreighters out of Hickam during the Korean War, came out to see the latest generation of transport.

"We flew the aircraft from here to Haneda Air Base in Japan during the Korean conflict, and we flew back all the wounded, and they were transported to Tripler hospital," recalled Duhaylongsod, who lives in Pearl City.

Lau, who was wearing his old flight suit, was a flight engineer on C-97s.

"The C-17 is doing everything in half the time," said Lau, who also is from Pearl City. "We were low and slow, but we were there."

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com.