2021-22, we’re going to start ramping up
between here and San Antonio, to close
to 40 airplanes a year, and that’s when
we’ll be on pace where we will be looking
to Boeing to turn these airplanes out
in a year. We have to do that, and we’re
con dent that Boeing can do that.’ The rst
jets will go to San Antonio in June 2019.Strike fighter shortfall
Boeing’s experience with the ‘classic’
Hornet SLEP, as well as the navy’s desire to
address the strike ghter shortfall, caused
both to begin looking at the Super Hornet
much earlier in its service life versus the
F/A-18A to D. The navy and Boeing began
an F/A-18E/F service life assessment
program (SLAP) in 2012 to determine
what parts of the airplane might need to
be replaced, reinforced, or modi ed toget an additional 3,000 ight hours out
of the airframes. These studies were then
aided by data from two ‘learning aircraft’,
as Boeing calls them, which underwent
engineering analysis and later destructive
testing in St Louis during 2017. In 2016,
Boeing brought in two high-hour Super
Hornets (BuNos 165672 and 166435) so
that engineers could take a closer look
at what was really going on inside the
aircraft. Dan Gillian told Combat Aircraft,
‘We were taking them apart to understand
the corrosion; how they wear and tear
in the eet. Those two jets were in good
material condition. We then took them
and destructively tore them apart and
tested them — they’ll never y again — to
really validate the engineering analysis.
‘We pulled three-and-a-half years out
of the engineering analysis by puttingthose aggressive corrosive and tear-down
programs in place. We’re learning that
there is no center barrel replacement hot-
spot issue, like with the ‘legacy’ Hornet.
We’re learning that the material condition
of [airplanes] that were well-maintained
is good; we’re learning that the material
condition of [airplanes] that sat [inactive]
for a long time is not so good. And then
we learned some stu about how to do
the SLM, like we don’t have to take the
wings o the aircraft to get them inside
the facility or to do the inspection but we
have to remove the fuel tanks.’
The rst Super Hornets entered service
in November 1999. They have since
seen heavy use in overseas operations
and have, since the retirement of the
Lockheed S-3B Viking, assumed all tanking
responsibilities for the carrier air wing.
This heavy utilization rate surpassed
original service life predictions, meaning
the aircraft were wearing out faster than
expected. Moran told reporters, ‘Since
‘9/11’ we’ve been at war. We’ve been
overseas in Afghanistan, in Iraq, and in
Syria, ying the airplane as required to do
the nation’s bidding. We ew the airplane
at higher rates than we had planned. So
we nd ourselves at the 6,000-hour design
limit of the aircraft.’
Early Super Hornets will hit 6,000 hours
this year — ‘we had to do something to
extend their life,’ explains Moran.
The rst Super Hornet scheduled to go
through SLM (BuNo 166619) arrived at St
Louis on April 5 from NAS Oceana, where
it ew with VFA-106 ‘Gladiators’, the East
Coast eet replacement squadron (FRS).
Boeing says the jet, which entered service
in 2004, has just over 5,600 ight hours
on its books. Three more aircraft willAbove:
Maintenance
below decks
on an F/A-18E
of VFA-25
aboard the USS
Abraham Lincoln
(CVN 72). The
SLM project
is designed to
add life to the
existing fl eet of
Super Hornets.
US Navy/
MCSS Maxwell
AndersonIntroduced to the fl eet in 1999, the Super Hornet will remain the
navy’s primary strike fi ghter well into the mid-2030s. Boeing says
that two of the air wings’ three Super Hornet squadrons will be
Block III standard by 2027. US Navy/MCS3C Rebekah A. WatkinsFIGHTER FOCUS // SUPER HORNET
46 October 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net