Six New Boeing Super Hornets Join RAAF Fleet

The RAAF's Super Hornet fleet grew to eleven with the arrival of six new F/A-18F aircraft at the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Amberley on July 6th. The RAAF's first five Super Hornets arrived in Australia on March 26.

"With the arrival of these six new Super Hornets, we will continue to broaden our training as we prepare to achieve Initial Operational Capability later this year," said Group Capt. Steve Roberton, Officer Commanding 82 Wing, which includes the Super Hornet and F-111 aircraft. "Our aircrews and support teams continue to be very impressed with the Super Hornet's remarkable capabilities, performance and reliability."

Australia announced in March 2007 that it would acquire 24 of the advanced Block II versions of the Super Hornet, all of which are equipped with the Raytheon-built APG-79 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar. Boeing will deliver Australia's 24th Super Hornet in 2011. The first 11 were delivered ahead of schedule and on budget.

"The Super Hornet's proven technologies -- including its fully integrated AESA radar, advanced sensors, two-engine design and network-centric data-sharing environment -- are providing the RAAF with a broad spectrum of new capabilities," said Carolyn Nichols, Australian Super Hornet program manager for Boeing. "The RAAF Super Hornets enable the two crew members to conduct simultaneous air and ground operations with unprecedented situational awareness."

FMI: www.raaf.gov.au