F/A-18 Super Hornet: The Aviation Spine of the U.S. Navy’s Aircraft Carriers

The U.S. Navy’s F/A-18 Super Hornet Is Still Dominant: That super-fast and agile fighter plane featured in Top Gun: Maverick and the new Blue Angels documentary on Amazon Prime Video is the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet.

The naval aviators in those productions push the Super Hornet to its limits and it’s totally breathtaking to see this fighter in action.

The airplane has boundless energy with the ability to conduct precision maneuvers in which the pilots take on maximum g-force. The Super Hornets are also being deployed to the Middle East in case of warfare between Israel and Iran.

Let’s take a closer look at the U.S. Navy’s most active fighter.

The F/A-18 Super Hornet Answers the Call

The early Hornet was developed to replace the F-14 Tomcat – itself an impressive war bird. By 1999, the F/A-18 E/F had entered service.

The Super Hornet displayed an impressive number of capabilities for its multiple requirements. It had to be carrier-borne at night and in bad weather. It needed to defend the fleet and be refuellable in air with better range than the F-14.

It had to be superior to existing enemy airplanes with better speed, maneuverability, and firepower. Yes, it is non-stealthy, and the naval version of the F-35 will ultimately replace it, but the Super Hornet has continually proven its value throughout the years.

Upgrades Made It Even Better

In 2001, the Navy introduced the F/A-18 E/F Block II upgrade, which made it ready to offer bombing and ground support missions during the war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan. The new Block III upgrade featured better cockpit features, extended its life span and range, and improved radar. The Navy will have 78 Block III Super Hornets in the fleet later this year.

The Super Hornet can be flown with a front seat and back seat. It was the two-seater that allowed for such realistic flight footage in Top Gun: Maverick. The real pilot flew in front with the actor in back, so those maneuvers with high g-force made the Hollywood-types look like real aviators.

Much to Admire

The F/A-18 Super Hornet is much heavier than the earlier Hornet and takes ample amounts of fuel provided by aerial tankers to extend its range. The Super Hornet has Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar and other sensors to alert the pilot when friend or foe is approaching. It has a quicker targeting system for the enemy bandits. Each Super Hornet Block III has 10,000 hours of service life.

A Lot to Like for the Price

Compared to the F-35, the F/A-18 Super Hornet is much more affordable – averaging $67 million per airplane. Two F414-GE-400 turbofan engines provide the power pushing out 22,000 pounds of static thrust per engine. This enables a speed of MACH 1.8. The ceiling is 50,000 feet. Its range is over 1,200 miles.

F/A-18: This Thing Is a Weapons Truck

As you would expect, the Super Hornet can carry nearly all missiles in the U.S. arsenal including Sidewinders, Sparrows, Harpoons, AMRAAMs, and many others. Plus, it can drop laser-guided bombs – both JDAMs and Paveways.

This Could Be Another Combat Deployment

The latest news on the Super Hornet regards its deployment to the Middle East in case the region blows up with Iran and Israel exchanging missile fire and drone attacks. There could also be more missile fire from the Yemeni Houthis and damage from strikes at U.S. bases in Iraq.

The F/A-18 Super Hornets have left the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Gulf of Oman and have been sent to a land base in an unknown part of the Middle East for the time being. Media outlets have reported that twelve F/A-18 E/Fs recently entered the area of operations along with an airborne warning airplane.

The F/A-18 Block III Super Hornet is one impressive warplane. You don’t have to be up to speed on the various film efforts from Hollywood to appreciate their prowess in the air, but take a peek at YouTube footage from the Blue Angels if you do not have Prime Video or visit an airshow in person to see their dominance. You won’t be disappointed.

About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood

Brent M. Eastwood, PhD, is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare, plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for U.S. Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former U.S. Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.