Little by little, the F-35, Lockheed-Martin’s fifth-generation stealth aircraft, will end up defeating its main American opponent, the F/A-18, better known as the “Super Hornet”. Due to a lack of orders, Boeing has decided to halt the construction of its combat aircraft at the end of 2025 after the delivery of the last fighters to the US Navy. The last stop of this emblematic device was made during the last work of top gun with Tom Cruise at the helm.
In 40 years, Boeing has sold more than 2,000 of these planes around the world in different versions: Hornet, Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler. In Europe, Finland, Spain and Switzerland are equipped with it. Germany came close to formalizing the acquisition of more than 40 deliverable aircraft from 2025. In the end, Berlin preferred to sign with Lockheed Martin for 35 F-35s.
Search for export contracts
But it was probably Canada that dealt the final blow to the F-18. In January, the Canadian government signed a C$19 billion (€13.2 billion) contract to replace its aging fleet with 88 F-35s.
However, the in-service Block II Super Hornet fleet will be modernized to Block III. This level will allow these devices to integrate capabilities for electronic warfare.
Boeing is also making a last call to foreign customers who want to invest in this aircraft. The manufacturer announces that the stoppage of production could be postponed until 2027 “if the Super Hornet is selected by an international customer.”
drone lens
The end of the F-18 does not sign the end of Boeing’s defense activity. If the fight against the F-35s is lost, the group announced that the resources put into the service of its fighter jets will be reallocated to new defense programs “with or without crew”.
An investment of one billion dollars will be allocated to the construction of three new facilities in Saint-Louis, another in Arizona and the one for the MQ-25 Stingray refueling drone. This device was first tested in 2019. In 2021, it passed the in-flight refueling tests of an F/A-18 Super Hornet.
This drone should be delivered to the US Navy this year. In the long term, each US aircraft carrier should accommodate 5 in-flight refueling fighter jets in order to extend their range. In 2018, Boeing won an $805 billion contract from the Pentagon to develop this device.
Source: BFM TV
