The carrier and embarked air wing spent a total of 10 months at sea, an unusually long deployment made longer by COVID-19 quarantine procedures and an extended stay in the Persian Gulf to check on Iran. Marine Corps fighter attack squadron VMFA-323 has returned from a deployment on the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz. The F/A-18C strike fighters of the Marine Corps “Death Rattlers” squadron are back from their last cruise, soon to be replaced by the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter. The F/A-18C Hornet, a fighter jet that once crowded the decks of aircraft carriers by the dozens, has left carriers for good. The “Death Rattlers” squadron will trade in the jets for the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter.The Marine Corps adopted the F/A-18C in 1987 and flew the jets for a remarkable 34 years.Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet squadron flew the Marines’ final deployment on an aircraft carrier. In August 2013, Boeing and Northrop Grumman began flight tests with a prototype of an Advanced Super Hornet aircraft with conformal fuel tanks, an enclosed weapons pod and signature enhancements. Nicknamed Green Hornet, the F/A Super Hornet has won seven consecutive awards for environmental excellence from the U.S. Boeing had worked with the Navy on laboratory testing of fuel properties and engineering evaluations of fuel system compatibility. On ApEarth Day- an unmodified, Boeing-built F/A-18F Super Hornet took off from Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., powered by a sustainable biofuel blend of 50 percent camelina and 50 percent JP-5 aviation fuel. and allied forces, delivering full-spectrum airborne electronic attack capability along with the targeting and self-defense capabilities of the Super Hornet. A Super Hornet derivative, the EA-18G provides tactical jamming and electronic protection for U.S. In 2008, the EA-18G Growler joined the Navy’s aircraft fleet. In April 2005, Boeing delivered the first Block II Super Hornet, an upgraded Super Hornet with the world’s first tactical multimode active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. Navy in 1999, after Boeing had merged with McDonnell Douglas, won the Collier Trophy for that year and flew its first combat missions in 2002. It entered operational service with the U.S. The F/A-18E/F is 25 percent larger than the original Hornet and has increased maneuverability, range, and payload, and more powerful engines. The Super Hornet is produced in the single-seat E model and the two-seat F model. Navy Carrier Air Wings (25 squadrons) and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Super Hornet is a low-observable aircraft that performs multiple missions, including air superiority, day-and-night strike with precision-guided weapons, fighter escort, and close air support. The F/A-18E/F Super Hornet made its first flight in November 1995. During 2001, Hornets provided around-the-clock battlefield coverage in the Afghanistan Theater of operations. During the 1991 Persian Gulf War, while performing an air-to-ground mission, Hornets switched to fighter mode and destroyed two Iraqi MiG-21s in air-to-air combat, then switched back to attack mode and successfully completed their air-to-ground mission. In 1986, Hornets on the USS Coral Sea flew their first combat missions. Hornets entered active duty in January 1983. Variants included a two-seater, an improved fighter, a reconnaissance aircraft and a night-attack fighter. The F/A-18 Hornet was also the first aircraft to have carbon fiber wings and the first tactical jet fighter to use digital fly-by-wire flight controls. It can switch roles easily and can also be adapted for photoreconnaissance and electronic countermeasure missions. Marines ordered it as an F-18 fighter and the Navy as an A-18 attack aircraft. The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet was designed for aircraft carrier duty and was the first tactical aircraft designed to carry out both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions.
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