On 6 April 2012, an F/A-18D of Strike Fighter Squadron 106
(VFA-106) crashed into the center of an apartment complex in Virginia
Beach, Virginia. The jet crashed shortly after take-off from Naval Air
Station Oceana. Both pilots ejected. One pilot landed into the crash
site and sustained injuries requiring hospitalization. The other pilot
was not injured. Two of the apartment buildings caught fire after the
crash and at least one person on the ground was injured.
The F/A-18 "Hornet" is a supersonic, single seat (A and C models) or
tandem seat (B and D models), twin engine, all weather, night, combined
fighter and attack aircraft and can be refueled in flight. The F/A-18
multi-mission aircraft can operate from either aircraft carriers or
land bases. The F/A-18 fills a variety of roles: air superiority,
fighter escort, suppression of enemy air defenses, reconnaissance,
forward air control, close and deep air support, and day and night
strike missions. The F/A-18 Hornet replaced the F-4 Phantom II fighter
and A-7 Corsair II light attack jet, and also replaced the A-6
Intruder as these aircraft were retired during the 1990s.
The combat-proven F/A-18 Hornet is the first tactical aircraft
designed from its inception to carry out both air-to-air and
air-to-ground missions. The F/A-18, (models A, B, C and D), can deliver
conventional air-to-air, air-to-ground decoy expendables, and can carry
airborne control pods for various missions. The combination of excellent
thrust-to-weight ratio, and maneuverability an unmatched combat
capability.
The A and C models have AN/APG-65 radars and the B and D models
have AN/APG-73 radars. The AN/APG-65 and AN/APG-73 airborne radars
provide excellent long-range, all-weather, lookup and lookdown
capability over land or over sea. Communications for all four models
include dual UHF/VHF radios, one KY-58 secure radio, and a two-way Link 4
capability. These F/A-18 aircraft also have Forward Looking Infrared
(FLIR) capabilities for passive detection and ranging. Later model
aircraft can actively and specifically interrogate other aircraft
identification beacons.
The F/A-18 is in service with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps
and the air forces of Canada, Australia, Spain, Kuwait, Finland,
Switzerland, and Malaysia. As of May 1999 Hornet pilots had accumulated
more than 3.7 million flight hours and, in the process, are establishing
new records daily in safety, reliability, maintainability and mission
performance.
A key aspect of the Hornet's popularity with pilots is the ease
with which the aircraft can be converted from fighter to strike mode and
back again; it's as easy as flipping a switch. During Operation Desert
Storm, F/A-18s routinely performed fighter and strike missions on the
same sortie. Fulfilling a variety of roles-air superiority, fighter
escort, suppression of enemy air defenses, reconnaissance, forward air
control, close air support, and day and night strike missions-the F/A-18
has proven to be the most versatile combat aircraft in service.
The Hornet was designed to be reliable and easily maintainable.
These factors result in significantly lower operating and maintenance
costs for the F/A-18 compared to other U.S. Navy fighter and attack
aircraft; and life cycle costs comparable to other modern multi-role
aircraft. Survivability is another key feature of the Hornet. The F/A-18
uses a variety of systems and technologies to increase its likelihood
of reaching a target undetected, of escaping unhurt if detected, and of
returning its crew safely if it is hit.
The F/A-18 has a digital control-by-wire flight control system
which provides excellent handling qualities, and allows pilots to learn
to fly the airplane with relative ease. At the same time, this system
provides exceptional maneuverability and allows the pilot to concentrate
on operating the weapons system. A solid thrust-to-weight ratio and
superior turn characteristics combined with energy sustainability,
enable the F/A-18 to hold its own against any adversary. The power to
maintain evasive action is what many pilots consider the Hornet's finest
trait. In addition, the F/A-18 was also the Navy's first tactical jet
aircraft to incorporate a digital, MUX bus architecture for the entire
system's avionics suite. The benefit of this design feature is that the
F/A-18 has been relatively easy to upgrade on a regular, affordable
basis.
The F/A-18 has proven to be an ideal component of the carrier
based tactical aviation equation over nearly two decades of operational
experience. The only F/A-18 characteristic found to be marginally
adequate by battle group commanders, outside experts, and even the men
who fly the Hornet, is its range when flown on certain strike mission
profiles. However, the inadequacy is managed well with organic and joint
tanking assets.
During the initial hours of Desert Storm, 89 Navy and 72 Marine
Corps F/A-18C's conducted both defense suppression and strike missions
against Iraqi targets. the Navy Hornets flew 4,449 sorties and the
Marine Corps' F/A-18C's flew 4,936 sorties resulting in a combined total
of 4,551 strikes against targets during Operation Desert Storm. A total
of 174 American Hornets (90 Navy; 84 Marines) participated in the war;
26 Canadian models, known as the CF-18, also participated in Desert
Storm. Only three Hornets were lost during the war, one of them in a
noncombat accident.
The F/A-18 has been upgraded regularly since entering service in
1983. In November 1989, the first F/A-18s equipped with night strike
capability were delivered. Since 1991, F/A-18s have been delivered with
F404-GE-402 enhanced performance engines that produce up to 20 percent
more thrust than previous F404 engines. The Hornet's two engines deliver
about 36,000 pounds combined thrust and a top speed of more than Mach
1.8.
Since May 1994, the Hornet has been equipped with upgraded radar -
the APG-73 -, which substantially increases the speed and memory
capacity of the radar's processors. In addition, today's Hornets have a
laser target designator/ranger, housed within the targeting
forward-looking infrared sensor that enables the aircraft to deliver
precision laser-guided bombs with pinpoint accuracy.
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