Boeing has given the F/A-18 a new service life after delivering the first Super Hornet under the Service Life Modification program to the US Navy. The second SLM jet will be delivered by the end of the month and Boeing will deliver the third F/A-18 in April.
Initial Super Hornets delivered under the program will extend service life from 6.000 to 7.500 flight hours. Future modification plans in the early 2020s will allow the jets to fly 10.000 hours and incorporate the new Block III features.
“The SLM will provide a critical resource for the Navy to recapitalize on long-life aircraft to return them to the fleet in near-new condition”said Captain Stephen May, co-leader of PMA-265 for E/F/G Air Vehicles. “This will reduce the burden on our maintainers, our supply system and our warehouse-level assets across the enterprise.”
There are currently 15 Super Hornets in the SLM program on production lines in St. Louis and San Antonio. It takes 18 months to complete modifications to an F/A-18, although that time will be reduced to a year as the program progresses. Boeing will deliver five more Super Hornets this year.
The Block III conversion will include enhanced networking capability, compliant fuel tanks, an advanced cockpit system, signature enhancements and an improved communications system. The upgrades should keep the F/A-18 in active service for decades to come.
Via-Boeing
