Ahead of Schedule and On-Spec? Boeing Gets a Gold Star

Boeing brought some attention to some of its work coming in above-board, when the company managed to deliver the first pair of modified Block III Super Hornets a full month ahead of schedule.

In the civilian world, it's easy to be a little nonplussed at the idea, but in the world of military procurement, where routine delays are measured in years, coming in a month early is downright phenomenal. The upgrade was the first pair of service life modifications to create an F/A-18 Block III Super Hornet, bringing the Navy's bread and butter multirole aircraft to the same standard as a brand-new production unit. Block III saw its first deliveries almost 4 years ago on the dot, when it ordered a slate of service life modifications for existing Block II Super Hornets, and new aircraft stretching out through the 2040s. The Block III upgrade is a pretty standard affair, improving avionics with large touchscreens, improved processing power, and enhanced targeting capability. Outside the cockpit, some light modifications reduce the Super Hornet's radar signature. Perhaps best of all for a Navy that measures airframe age in decades, the SLM adds an increased service life of 10,000 flight hours - pretty impressive for a fighter expected to live and breathe carrier landings. Original, unmodified Super Hornets are stuck with a 6,000-hour service life, which was later bumped up to 7,500 hours in an earlier SLM program.

Boeing highlighted its pretty thorough effort to make it all work out, given the Navy's desire for about 40 Block III upgrades per year. The project began in 2018, with plans to continue it up for the next 20+ years. Today, the SLM program is still in its early years, learning lessons and developing work flows that will allow it to ramp up to quicker turnaround times. In 2020, Boeing had targeted a timeline of about 18 months, from the moment a well-worn aircraft was taken in for checkout and induction, to the time it's back in Navy hands. Their goal at the current phase of operation is 15 months, meaning Boeing's already pretty close to their 12-month goal as laid out in 2020. The Company is now going to expand its ops for the Block III modifications at St. Louis, San Antonio, and San Diego.

“Our success in meeting the accelerated timeline is proof our service life modification game plan is working,” said Faye Dixon, Boeing Service Life Modification director. “Thanks to our years of learning on the program and our partnership with the Navy, the F/A-18 Super Hornet remains at the forefront of defense technology with renewed years of service to support the fleet.”

“These first deliveries of Block III SLM jets are a major milestone in our continued efforts to ensure capability, reliability, availability and maintainability of the Super Hornet aircraft,” said Capt. Michael Burks, program manager for the F/A-18 and EA-18G Program Office. “We look forward to our continued partnership with Boeing to deliver this critical warfighting capability to the fleet.”

FMI: www.navair.navy.mil