1st RAAF Super Hornet rolls off assembly line

[CougarKing]

And the RAAF gets the first of 24 Super Hornets to come.

http://boeing.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=740

ST. LOUIS, July 8, 2009 -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] today unveiled the first of 24 F/A-18F Block II Super Hornets for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during a ceremony at Boeing Integrated Defense Systems' production facilities in St. Louis. The aircraft will be delivered later this month, three months ahead of schedule.

"The Super Hornet is on its way to delivering advanced combat capabilities to the Royal Australian Air Force," said Bob Gower, Boeing vice president of F/A-18 and EA-18 Programs. "Cooperation and great teamwork on the part of Australia's Defence Materiel Organisation, the Royal Australian Air Force, the U.S. Navy and the Hornet Industry Team have enabled the first RAAF Super Hornet to be delivered within budget and ahead of schedule."

The remaining 23 Super Hornets, each equipped with the Raytheon-built APG-79 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, will be delivered to the RAAF throughout 2010 and 2011.

"The RAAF Super Hornet will bring a new generation of air power to Australia," said Group Capt. Steve Roberton, Head Air Combat Transition Office, RAAF. "Its advanced, networked weapons system will deliver enhanced air combat capability across the spectrum of air-to-air, strategic land attack and maritime strike, which is so important for Australia. It is a true multirole aircraft and there's a lot of excitement on the ground in the Air Combat Group about its arrival." The Australian government announced in March 2007 that it would acquire 24 of the F/A-18F multirole fighters, making that country the first international Super Hornet customer.
"The rollout of the first RAAF Block II Super Hornet is an important and exciting milestone for all of the Australian and U.S. team members, who have accomplished a great deal of significant work to make this event possible," said U.S. Navy Capt. Mark Darrah, F/A-18 and EA-18 program manager, PMA-265. "Our long and successful relationship has been mutually beneficial during the RAAF classic Hornet program, and taking this next logical step with the acquisition of the Super Hornet is a win-win for both nations. The Super Hornet's inherent tactical capabilities and ability to force multiply speak for themselves."
The Block II F/A-18E/F Super Hornet is a multirole aircraft, able to perform virtually every mission in the tactical spectrum, including air superiority, day/night strike with precision-guided weapons, fighter escort, close air support, suppression of enemy air defenses, maritime strike, reconnaissance, forward air control and tanker missions. Boeing has delivered more than 395 F/A-18E/Fs to the U.S. Navy. Every Super Hornet produced has been delivered on or ahead of schedule.A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems is one of the world's largest space and defense businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems is a $32 billion business with 70,000 employees worldwide.

 

[CougarKing]

More Super Hornets for the RAAF:

Flight Global website


Super Hornets arrive in Australia
By Will Horton

The first five of 24 Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets for the Royal Australian Air Force have arrived in Australia at its largest air force base, Amberley in Queensland. The F/A-18Fs are Canberra's first new combat aircraft in 25 years.
Australia is the first export customer for the Super Hornet, having signed an A$2.9 billion ($2.6 billion) contract in 2007. The RAAF expects Super Hornet initial operating capability by December, says Steve "Zed" Roberton, officer in commander of Super Hornet Wing.

The RAAF intends to use its Super Hornets as aircraft to fill the void between the retirement of its General Dynamics F-111 and the arrival of its Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The F-111s will go by the end of the year and the F-35 will not arrive until 2014 at the earliest.

While the RAAF has said it will not purchase additional Super Hornets, a delay in the F-35 could be in Boeing's favour. "We're here and we provide a good risk mitigation," says Boeing vice-president, F/A-18 and EA-18 programmes Bob Gower. "At this point we're going to focus on delivering the 24 aircraft. But we'll be here if they understand us well and the capabilities they're getting."

Beyond Australia, Gower says the Super Hornet is competing in nine countries. He was most confident about the Super Hornet's potential in India, which has five other competitors for the country's Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft tender for 126 aircraft.

"We just completed field trials in India and I think we did very well," Gower says. He explains that Boeing showed off the Super Hornet's integration of the sensor suite and also performed a landing at 10,000ft (3,000m) above sea level. "We have the best handling qualities of any aircraft out there right now."


(...)

 

[1feral1]

They did a fly by ( I think it was 5 of the new Hornets - greeted by some F111's) the other day as they made their enterence into Brisbane, and many kids were allowed to go outside their schools to see the jets (old and new) make their enterance.

They flew as far north as the island here for all to see and hear.

OWDU

 

[MarkOttawa]

The Aussies of course need a serious strike capability for self-defence, given their neighbourhood:

Super Hornets will put RAAF back on the regional front foot
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/super-hornets-will-put-raaf-back-on-the-regional-front-foot/story-fn59niix-1225925169388

THE balance of power in Asia is changing faster than the new Gillard government would like.

China is flexing its muscles, making its near neighbours nervous with its ambitious naval expansion. The US has taken note and is quietly shoring up its alliances in the region, reassuring all that it will remain the pre-eminent power in the Pacific.

These big-picture trends are causing debate, but in Australia there is a more subtle military shift under way that will also help redefine the balance of power in our immediate region for years to come.

The Royal Australian Air Force is about to reverse a decade of decline in its strength relative to other regional air forces. Within two months, the second batch of Super Hornets will arrive from the Boeing plant in St Louis, creating the first operational squadron of the RAAF's new jet fighter.

At the end of this year, these initial 12 Super Hornets -- the first of 24 -- will take over from the grand old dame of warplanes, the F-111 strike bombers.

The mothballing of the F-111 and the arrival of the Super Hornets, along with the new Wedgetail airborne early warning and control aircraft and new air-to-air refuellers, marks a long-awaited turnaround in Australia's air power capabilities...

A recent ASPI report on RAAF capability states: "Compared to the classic Hornets, they carry more powerful radar, electronic warfare and networking capabilities and can carry greater weapons load over a longer range. They also have a degree of low observability built in. The Super Hornets will give RAAF a capability on par with the US Navy."

Davies says the combination of the Super Hornets and the standard F/A-18s should ensure that Australia retains a capability edge in air power in the region ahead of the arrival of the F-35.

"The number and capability of Australia's air combat aircraft will overmatch the piecemeal and less well supported fleets of nearby nations [except Singapore]. As well, in any defence of Australia scenario, the RAAF should be able to establish local air superiority and conduct sea denial operations even against a major power."

Davies tells Inquirer: "What we will get with the Super Hornet is the ability to hit targets [that] have modern air defence systems...

The Super Hornets are a bridging fighter to fill the gap between the retirement of the F-111s and the arrival from 2014 of the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighters.

Former defence minister Brendan Nelson was widely criticised in 2007 when he announced the $6 billion Super Hornet purchase, but setbacks and delays in the F-35 project have justified the decision in hindsight.

Australia plans to buy 100 F-35s but the project has been bedevilled by technical problems, cost blowouts and schedule slippages. Its original delivery date to Australia of 2012 has blown out and the first squadron of F-35s is not expected to become operational until 2018 [emphasis added].

Despite this, the Australian government has never wavered from its commitment to the new warplane and still argues that it is the best and most cost-effective solution for the RAAF's future front-line fleet...

Mark
Ottawa

 

[Colin Parkinson]

The mix of Super Hornets and the F-35's strikes me as a good balance between proven and new tech, also a buffer if things go wildly out of control with the F-35 program, not that it's been super smooth for the F-35 as it is.