Aircraft/Navy

Sea Power, Jan 2002

One characteristic found wanting in the original F/A-18 is the aircraft's range and/or endurance on certain strike-mission profiles. Because of higher-- priority demands, expensive range-improvement upgrades were deferred. The latest lot of F/A-18C/D Hornets is far more capable than the first F/A-18A/Bs; however, by 1991 it was clear that avionics cooling, electrical, and space constraints would limit future growth in capability. Additionally, as improvements increased the aircraft's "empty weight," Hornets were returning to their carriers with less than optimal reserve fuel and/or unexpended weapons. Although the FIA-18C/D's growth is now limited, the Hornet will continue to fill carrier air wings for many years to come, gradually giving way to the larger, longerrange, and more capable FIA-18E/F Super Hornet. The last Hornet, an F/A18D, rolled off the Boeing production line in August 2000.

As of December 2001, the Navy and Marine Corps had 188 F/A-18A, 31 F/A-18B, 407 F/A-18C, and 145 F/A-18D aircraft in service, as well as two NF/A-18A, two NF/A-18C, and three NF/A-18D aircraft serving in permanent test roles. Hornets equip 24 active and three reserve VFA squadrons, two fleet readiness VFA squadrons, one reserve fighter composite (VFC) squadron, one strike aircraft test squadron, one weapons test squadron, one air test and evaluation squadron, the Navy's Flight Demonstration Squadron (Blue Angels), and the Naval Strike & Air Warfare Center.

WING SPAN: ..............40.4 feet

LENGTH: ..................56 feet

HEIGHT: ....................15.3 feet

WEIGHT: ..................51,900 pounds maximum takeoff

SPEED: ......................1,000 knots

CEILING: ..................approx. 50,000 feet

RANGE: ......................(internal fuel only) fighter mission, 330 nautical-mile radius; (with external tanks) attack mission, 369 nautical-mile radius; ferry mission, 1,546 nautical miles

POWER PLANT: ...two General Electric F404-GE-402 enhanced-- performance engines; 17,754 pounds static uninstalled thrust

ARMAMENT: ..............one 20mm Mk61 Vulcan cannon; 17,000 pounds of external stores: AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-7 Sparrow, and AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles; AGM-65 Maverick, AGM-84 Harpoon, AGM-84E SLAM, AGM84H SLAM-ER, and AGM-88 HARM air-to-surface missiles; AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW), Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), Walleye bombs, and various other types of bombs and rockets

CREW: ....................F/A-18A and C, one pilot; FIA-18B and D, two pilots or one pilot and one weapons system officer

CONTRACTOR: .........Boeing

F-14 TOMCAT/SUPER TOMCAT

BRIEFING: The F-14, an aircraft that has been in service for nearly 30 years, continues to be the Navy's premier long-range, all-weather, carrier-based precision strike fighter. The Tomcat's "Roadmap for the Future"-a plan that incorporated significant performance improvements-makes the Tomcat a superb complement to the Navy's F/A-18 Hornet aircraft. The F-14's sophisticated radar-missile combination enables it to simultaneously track 24 targets and attack up to six targets while continuing to scan the airspace. Its powerful radar can break out fighter-size targets at more than 100 nautical miles across a 120-mile sector. When employing the highly effective Phoenix long-range air-to air missile, the Tomcat has scored kills at launch ranges in excess of 100 miles against simulated bomber and fighter targets. Tomcats fired the Navy's first combat launches of the AIM-54 Phoenix in early 1999 during Operation Southern Watch, and participated in strikes in Kosovo and Serbia during Operation Allied Force and in Afghanistan in 2001 during Operation Enduring Freedom.