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Scramble 459
two legacy F/A-18A/C squadrons. But the heavy wear from at
least twenty years of combat operations on the Hornet fleet,
budget cuts and pressures in their service life extensions pro-
grams, and eventually also the much written delays in the
fielding of the F-35C Lightning II have led the Navy to procure
more Super Hornets to close a gap in the strike fighter inven-
tory. Some carrier air wings now are equipped with four
Super Hornet squadrons. The first F/A-18 squadron sched-
uled for transition to the F-35C is VFA-147 Argonauts (‘NH-
2xx’) at NAS Lemoore (CA). The F/A-18E squadron is planned
for the transition in 2018.
Carrier Air Wing 9, USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74), NG
VAW-112 Golden Hawks (former ‘NG-6xx’) will be disbanded
on 30 September 2017. The E-2C unit will be replaced within
CVW-9 by VAW-117 Wallbangers.
Chief of Naval Air Training Command (CNATRA)
The US Navy is currently seeking 105 single-turbine-engined
helicopters that will replace the aging fleet of 113 TH-57 Sea
Ranger instrument flight rules trainers. The requirement, a
program called TH-XX, must be realized in fiscal year 2020-
2021. The US Navy is seeking a commercially available heli-
copter that will meet documented performance and training
requirements. This will speed up the acquisition as no new
flight certification is necessary if the helicopter is coming off
the shelf. Most single-engine helicopters meet visual flight
rules (VFR) certification, except the Leonardo Helicopters
TH-119, a military version of the commercial Agusta West-
land AW119Kx. It is no surprise that other manufacturers are
focusing in getting the TH-XX order (like the Bell 407GXP),
but they have to upgrade their helicopters to an IFR rating
under the current regulations.
Carrier News
On 22 July 2017, President Donald J. Trump commissioned
the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) during a cer-
emony at NS Norfolk (VA). USS Gerald R. Ford is the lead ship
in the Ford-class carriers. It represents the first new class in
more than fourty, and will begin the phased replacement
of Nimitz-class carriers. The Huntington Ingalls Industries
CVN-78 honors the 38th president of the United States and
pays tribute to his lifetime of service in the Navy, in the U.S.
government and to the nation. The Navy plans to spend
$43 billion developing and building the three new Ford-
class ships. The current Gerard R. Ford, the future USS John
F. Kennedy (CVN-79), and the future USS Enterprise (CVN-80).
United States Navy (NY)
C-2A
162158/24 VRC-40 ex 24/VRC-30 38 jul17
F/A-18A+
162873/AF-400 VFA-204 ex SH-102/VMFAT-101 414/A344
jun17
F/A-18B
161924/AF-12 VFC-12 ex AD-421/VFA-106 124/B032 jun17
163110/AD-420 309th AMARG ex AD-420/VFA-106 503/B087 jun17
F/A-18C
163987/41 NAWDC ex DC-20/VMFA-122 869/C139 jun17
164273/47 NAWDC ex DC-06/VMFA-122 1036/C250 jun17
164646/37 NAWDC ex AJ-317/VFA-15 1070/C275 jun17
164718/AD-315 VFA-106 ex AJ-301/VFA-15 1166/C320 mar17
165184/AG-300 VFA-83 ex AC-311/VFA-37 1310/C409 jul17
165196/AG-301 VFA-83 ex AC-303/VFA-37 1342/C421 jul17
F/A-18E
168481/NG-210 VFA-14 ex NJ-252/VFA-122 E238 jun17
168868/NG-203 VFA-14 ex NH-201/VFA-147 E245 jun17
168926/NG-201 VFA-14 ex NJ-263/VFA-122 E285 jun17
168927/NG-200 VFA-14 ex NJ-264/VFA-122 E286 jun17
169113/NA-312 VFA-113 ex NJ-260/VFA-122 E287 jun17
169116/NA-113 VFA-113 ex NJ-201/VFA-122 E290 jun17
F/A-18F
165880/AD-412 VFA-106 ex AD-240 F040 jun17
166630/NJ-125 VFA-122 ex AD-252/VFA-106 F123 mar17
166659/AB-232 VFA-211 ex AD-232/VFA-106 F137 jun17
166963/NA-110 VFA-22 ex NE-103/VFA-2 F238 jun17
168485/AG-212 VFA-103 ex NJ-176/VFA-122 F259 jun17
MH-60R
168083/TH HSM-37 CAG c/s 70-4... jul17
168150 nmks del 70-4... may17
MH-60S
168583/AC-616 HSC-7 ex AC-621 70-4... jun17
P-3C AIP
162777/777 nmks ex LK-777/VP-26 5803 jun17
162998/998 nmks ex RC-998/VP-46 5805 jul17
P-8A
168440/440 VP-16 ex 440/VP-30 40820/4366 jul17
168756/756 VP-26 ex 765/VP-30 42252/4673 jul17
169333/333 Boeing f/f 17jul17 63180/6412 jul17