IF YOU have just heard the huge roar of an aeroplane ahead and wondered what an earth it was, you are not alone. 

One of the biggest jets in the world has just flown over Bournemouth at a very low altitude and has landed at Bournemouth Airport. 

The Boeing C-17A Globemaster III took off from RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire this morning, Friday, July 2.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture by Gary Owen

The impressive jet landed at Bournemouth Airport in Hurn. 

The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft that was developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) from the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture by Dan Mapes 

It commonly performs tactical and strategic airlift missions, transporting troops and cargo throughout the world, additional roles include medical evacuation and airdrop duties.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture by Peter Kazmierczak

On 13 January 2013, the RAF deployed two C-17s of No. 99 Squadron from RAF Brize Norton to the French Évreux Air Base.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture by Agi Sellwood 

The aircraft transported French armored vehicles to the Malian capital of Bamako during the French Intervention in Mali.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture by Alan Milstein

In June 2015, an RAF C-17 was used to medically evacuate four victims of the 2015 Sousse attacks from Tunisia.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture by Ryan Armstrong 

Boeing, which merged with McDonnell Douglas in 1997, continued to manufacture C-17 aircraft after the merger.

Bournemouth Echo:

Picture by Rob Foster 

The plane is in service with the U.S. Air Force along with air arms of India, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, NATO Heavy Airlift Wing, and Kuwait.

If you have any pictures of the jet please email them to newsdesk@bournemouthecho.co.uk