The McDonnell Douglas FA-18 Hornet was designed in the 1970's as a carrier based strike fighter able to engage both airborne and ground targets for the USAF replacing it's aging F-4 Phantom, A-4 Skyhawk, and A-7 Corsair II aircraft and work alongside the more expensive existing F-14 Tomcat. The FA-18 Hornet has proved very reliable in service since it's introduction in January 1983, it's few deficiencies being those of range and payload, these were addressed buy the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet which
entered service in January 1999 primarily replacing the aging and increasingly expensive to maintain F-14D Tomcat fighters. McDonnell Douglas FA-18 Hornet Specifications: - Crew: F/A-18C: Pilot only, F/A-18D: Pilot and weapons system officer
- Length: 56 ft (17.1 m)
- Wingspan: 40 ft (12.3 m)
- Height: 15 ft 4 in (4.7 m)
- Empty weight: 24,700 lb (11,200 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 51,550 lb (23,400 kg)
- Engines: Twin 17,750 lbf (79.2 kN) thrust General Electric F404-GE-402 afterburning turbofans
- Maximum speed: Mach 1.8 (1,190 mph, 1,915 km/h) at 40,000 ft (12,190 m)
- Combat radius: 330 mi (290 NM, 537 km)
- Ferry range: 2,070 mi (1,800 NM, 3,330 km)
- Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m)
- Rate of climb: 50,000 ft/min (254 m/s)
Armament: - Guns: Single 20 mm M61 Vulcan internal gatling gun
- Hardpoints: Two wingtip, four under-wing, and three fuselage, for 13,700 lb (6,215 kg) of ordnance
- Missiles: Air-to-air: AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-132 ASRAAM, AIM-120 AMRAAM, AIM-7 Sparrow, IRIS-T AGM-45 Shrike, AGM-65 Maverick, AGM-88 HARM, SLAM-ER, JSOW, Taurus missile
AGM-84 Harpoon - Bombs: CBU-87 cluster, CBU-89 gator mine, CBU-97 CEM, Paveway, JDAM, Mk 80 series, nuclear bombs,Mk 20 Rockeye II cluster, mines
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