RAAF to receive first export Growlers
Australia will purchase 12 new EA-18G Growlers from Boeing in order to fill a stop gap that is left from the F-35 program. Their defense ministry confirmed the purchase earlier this week. Earlier plans called for a conversion of 12 already delivered F/A-18F Super Hornets into the Growler configuration, for which they paid extra for in 2010. Analysts had speculated that the country would order an additional 24 Super Hornets this year, but it appears that plans changed somewhere down the line. The purchase will make the RAAF the first air force in the world to use the Growler, behind the United States Navy.
No word on cost or planned delivery dates.
(Source: Boston.com)
Boeing To Test Super Hornet Upgrades This Summer.
Boeing will finally begin initial testing of conformal weapon bay’s and a stealthy weapons pod for it’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fleet this summer. The company is funding the testing along with Northrop Grumman and the United States Navy. These components are just part of the proposed Block III Super Hornet which includes the above plus upgraded engines and cockpit displays; the later two will not be tested.
Testing will begin in St. Louis this summer before moving to NAS Patuxent River, Maryland in the fall. No word on how much money the USN will actually use to field (if they field) these upgrades.
(Source: flightglobal.com)
Recent Tibbets
Congress has approved a potential foreign sale for 60 F-35A aircraft, or 60 F-15 Silent Eagle aircraft for South Koreas F/X-III requirement. Both are competing with each other, along with the Eurofighter Typhoon for the deal. A final decision is expected this June.
In other news, the USN has announced that it expects the RAAF to purchase 12-24 additional F/A-18F Super Hornets this summer. They also have high expectations for sales with Brazil, Malaysia, and Kuwait. Boeing Co. recently gave a demonstration of the fighter at Malaysia’s annual airshow in March. The Navy will be sending information regarding the F-18 family to Canada shortly, but a formal competition is not expected to be implemented for aircraft selection. Although Canada had committed to the F-35 in 2010, the country was recently forced to re-evaluate its options from the general auditor because of price increases and delays with the JSF.
(Source: articles.chicagotribune.com)
In my opinion, the sickest looking legacy hornets ever built. Malaysia received eight of them in 1997… pretty rare in the grand scheme of things.
USN considering conformal tanks for Super Hornet
The F/A-18E/F would get an additional 3,500 gallons of fuel, addressing a long standing issue for the Super Hornet… its range. Could this be the start of a Block III upgrade? The article goes into details about that too! Testing is expected to take place this summer by Boeing, no word on adapting this to the G models.
(Source: flightglobal.com)
Saudi F-15SA First Flight Video.
Singapore evaluating F-15SE and F-35
Singapore is interested in buying more fighters. Over the past few months they have ‘low key’ been evaluating the F-35 and F-15SE… the South Korean F/X-III decision is expected to be a strong influence on the final decision. It is not known how many fighters they are seeking, or what timetable they are wanting delivery’s… not that we would know anyways as Singapore usually like’s to keep defense matters private.
(Source: asiaone.com)
Brazil Fighter Decision Delayed… Again.
Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff has delayed the buy of thirty six new fighter jets for a third time. All bidding contractors were asked to re-submit their applications after March 30th, the delay will extend the negotiation time another six months. Brazil is unhappy with the amount of money needing to be spent and could be using the continued delays to negotiate a better overall price. Boeing is offering a Block II Super Hornet, Dassault its Rafale fighter and the Gripen from Swedish manufacture Saab. Boeing is seen as the front liner in the contract because of a competitive price, and recent agreements with Brazilian based Ebarer. Although first deliveries were initially set to start in 2014, the earliest as of now would be early 2016 because of the ongoing delay.
Brazil is just one out of many countries currently considering the Super Hornet, which also includes an additional buy from Australia and considerations from Canada and Malaysia.
(Source: vagazette.com)
Ricardo Traven tears the sky up at Farnborough 2012. Still trying to figure out what his call sign is when he fly’s around STL.
Australia formally asks Congress for info on 24 more Super Hornets
The RAAF has issued a request of information and pricing estimates for an additional order of (up to) 24 F/A-18F Super Hornets. The request comes after a year long evaluation of the country’s air power needs and an ongoing assessment of the F-35 program. This does NOT commit them to any order, but it opens the doors for another purchase sometime in late 2013 or early 2014.
Brazil, Malaysia, Denmark, and Canada could also be ordering Super Hornets over the next 2 years. The U.S. Navy recently added an additional 15 airframes to it’s MYP III order, and has pushed aside funds to order additional aircraft past 2015.
(Source: blogs.ottawacitizen.com)
Navy Orders 15 More Super Hornets, 151 Total MYP
The United States Navy today announced that it will be ordering an additional 15 F-18 airframes to the MYP III contract. The original order was for 124 airframes, while an additional 12 were added on last year. This second add on brings the total number of hornets to 151 for the Navy’s third multi-year purchase. At least three dozen have already been delivered from the order this year; all will be completed by July 2015.
Boeing is urging Congress to act on a fourth MYP in order to extend the production line’s and keep the U.S. Navy fleet from shrinking any lower. To date the company has delivered over 550 F/A-18E/F/G’s to the USN and Australia.
The Block II and Block III variants are currently in compeition’s with Brazil, Malaysia, and Denmark while Canada has requested information on the airframe as well. Over 30,000 people worldwide are employed directly with the jet.
(Source: reuters.com)
