Boeing Completes Production of 1st Australian Super Hornet with Provisions for Future Electronic Attack Capability

ST. LOUIS, Sept. 23, 2010 -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] announced today that it has completed production of the first Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F/A-18F Super Hornet that has the capability to be converted into an electronic attack aircraft.

Boeing is pre-wiring the RAAF's second lot of 12 Super Hornets for potential electronic attack capability conversion during production at the company's facilities in St. Louis.

"Incorporating the ability to introduce an electronic attack capability on 12 RAAF Super Hornets as they are produced in St. Louis provides maximum flexibility for our Air Force in the future," said RAAF Group Capt. Steve Roberton, Officer Commanding 82 Wing, which includes Super Hornet and F-111 aircraft. "Ultimately, if a decision to incorporate an electronic attack option is pursued, it will further expand the broad capability of an already formidable Super Hornet weapon system."

The Australian government 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. Eleven Super Hornets are now operating at RAAF Base Amberley in Queensland. All 11 aircraft were delivered ahead of schedule and on budget. Boeing will deliver Australia's 24th Super Hornet in 2011.

"Besides giving the RAAF the potential of introducing electronic attack capability in the future, producing these 12 aircraft with this configuration from the outset also reduces cost when compared with retrofitting at a later date," said Carolyn Nichols, Australian Super Hornet program manager for Boeing.

The Boeing Super Hornet is a multirole aircraft, able to perform virtually every mission in the tactical spectrum, including air superiority, day/night strike with precision-guided weapons, fighter escort, close air support, suppression of enemy air defenses, maritime strike, reconnaissance, forward air control and tanker missions. Boeing has delivered more than 430 F/A-18E/Fs to the U.S. Navy. Every Super Hornet produced has been delivered on or ahead of schedule and on budget.

Boeing, US Navy Flight Testing Distributed Targeting System for Super Hornet

CHINA LAKE, Calif., Sept. 2, 2010 – The Boeing Company and the U.S. Navy’s Air Test and Evaluation Squadron VX-31 have begun flight testing a Distributed Targeting System for the F/A -18E/F Super Hornet strike fighter at the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division Advanced Weapons Lab in China Lake. The current test phase is scheduled to be completed in November 2011.

The Distributed Targeting System uses onboard hardware and software processing to get precise targeting solutions for Super Hornet aircrews. This enhanced targeting capability is part of the Navy’s F/A-18E/F Network Centric Warfare Upgrades program as well as the F/A-18E/F Flight Plan, which ensures that the Super Hornet remains ahead of known and emerging threats throughout the coming years.

“Distributed Targeting will continue to broaden the Super Hornet’s already sophisticated multi role capability for the warfighter,” said Kory Mathews, F/A-18 and EA-18 Programs vice president for Boeing. “Distributed Targeting is a powerful tool that will provide Super Hornet aircrews with precise targeting capability when identifying and engaging ground target sets. This is another phase of our evolutionary approach to continuous capability enhancement for the Navy’s combat-proven Super Hornet.”

Successful completion of the flight tests will enable the targeting system to transition to operational testing in late 2011. The capability is expected to become fully operational in F/A-18E/F aircraft in 2012.

The Boeing Super Hornet is a multirole aircraft, able to perform virtually every mission in the tactical spectrum, including air superiority, day and night strike with precision-guided weapons, fighter escort, close air support, suppression of enemy air defenses, maritime strike, reconnaissance, forward air control and tanker missions. Boeing has delivered more than 430 F/A-18E/Fs to the U.S. Navy. Every Super Hornet produced has been delivered on or ahead of schedule and on budget.

6 New Boeing Super Hornets Join Royal Australian Air Force Fleet

Photo credit: Photo courtesy Royal Australian Air Force

Queensland, July 7, 2010  Six new Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets arrived at Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Amberley on July 6, increasing the RAAF's fleet to 11 next generation, multi role air combat aircraft.

The RAAF's first five Super Hornets arrived in Australia on March 26.

Accoriding to Group Capt. Steve Roberton, Officer Commanding 82 Wing "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. 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. Australia's 24th Super Hornet to be delivered 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."

The Boeing Super Hornet is a multirole aircraft, able to perform virtually every mission in the tactical spectrum, including air superiority, day and night strike with precision-guided weapons, fighter escort, close air support, suppression of enemy air defenses, maritime strike, reconnaissance, forward air control and tanker missions.