'super' Hornet

well, before it was removed we were talking about the F18EF, and i found some interesting stuff!! so here goes, make of it what you will.

Facts about Super Hornet
Compared to a C/D model
The F/A18-E/F:

can fly up to 40% farther on a typical interdiction mission.
can remain on station 80% longer during a typical combat air patrol scenario.
has three times the “bring back” capability (will be able to “bring back” to the ship.)
approximately three times the amount of payload (unused ordnance and fuel)
Other Fact
has increased internal fuel capacity by 3600 pounds (33%).
has increased engine power.
can extend of the mission radius by up to 40%.
has additional weapon stations now totaling 11.
has increased surface area by 100 square feet (25%).
carries modified display mechanisms to include crew station features, up-front controls and color CRT instrumentation

General Characteristics, E and F models

Primary Function: Multi-role attack and fighter aircraft
Contractor: McDonnell Douglas
Unit Cost: $ 35 million
Propulsion: Two F414-GE-400 turbofan engines
Thrust: 22,000 pounds (9,977 kg) static thrust per engine
Dimensions

Length: 60.3 feet (18.5 meters)
Height: 16 feet (4.87 meters)
Maximum Take Off Gross Weight: 66,000 pounds (29,932 kg)
Wingspan: 44.9 feet (13.68 meters)

Performance

Ceiling: 50,000+ feet

Speed: Mach 1.8+
Crew: A,C and E models: One

B,D and F models: Two

Armament

One 20mm MK-61A1 Vulcan cannon; External payload: AIM 9 Sidewinder, AIM 7 Sparrow, AIM-120 AMRAAM, Harpoon, Harm, Shrike, SLAM, SLAM-ER, Walleye, Maverick missiles; Joint Stand-Off Weapon (JSOW); Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM); various general purpose bombs, mines and rockets.
First Flight December 1995

F/A-18 Hornet
Unit Cost: $ 24 million
Propulsion: Two F404-GE-402 enhanced performance turbofan engines
Thrust: 17,700 pounds (8,027 kg) static thrust per engine
Dimension
Length: 56 feet (16.8 meters)
Height: 15 feet 4 inches (4.6 meters)
Weight
A/C Empty 10455kg (23,050lb)
Normal Take off – fighter mode 16652kg (36,710lb)
Normal Take off – Attack mode 23541kg (51,900lb)
B/D Normal Take off – fighter mode 15234kg (36,585lb)
Max Take off – Attack mode 21319kg (47,000lb)
Maximum Take Off Gross Weight: 51,900 pounds (23,537 kg)
Wingspan: 40 feet 5 inches (13.5 meters)
Performance
Range (w/external tanks):
A/C Combat Radius Over 400nm in a fighter mission
B/D Combat Radius 550nm in a attack mission
Ceiling: 50,000+ feet
Speed: Max. 1.8 mach (1,033kt,1915km/hr)
Crew: A,C and E models: One
B,D and F models: Two
Armament:
One 20mm MK-61A1 Vulcan cannon; External payload: AIM 9 Sidewinder, AIM 7 Sparrow, AIM-120 AMRAAM,Harpoon, Harm, Shrike, SLAM, SLAM-ER, Walleye, Maverick missiles; Joint Stand-Off Weapon (JSOW); Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM); various general purpose bombs, mines and rockets.
B61 tactical nuclear device
Date Deployed: First flight November 1978
Operational, February 1981

peruse at will, know its allot of info-although i did cut out large chunks of text!

oh, and this, as a bit of fun and objectivity. from CLW-council for a livable world and i quote

“The Council for a Livable World, the Council for a Livable World Education Fund and PeacePAC are committed to ridding the world of weapons of mass destruction and eliminating wasteful military spending. The Council and PeacePAC are also political lobbies which endorse candidates for the Senate and House of Representatives.”

Capabilities:

The multi-mission F/A-18E/F “Super Hornet” strike fighter is an upgraded version of the combat-proven night strike F/A-18C/D. The Super Hornet is supposed to have superior range, endurance, and ordnance carriage capabilities than the C/D.

The F/A-18E/F aircraft are 4.2 feet longer than earlier Hornets, have a 25% larger wing area, and carry 33% more fuel which will purportedly increase mission range by 41% and endurance by 50%. (However, the E/F does not have the range or payload of the F-14 and A-6, the aircraft it is replacing.)

The Super Hornet also incorporates two additional weapon stations (which holds the bombs or missiles under the wing). This allows for increased payload flexibility by mixing and matching air-to-air and/or air-to-ground ordnance. The aircraft can also carry the complete complement of “smart” weapons, including the newest versions of weapons.

Although newer U.S. military aircraft have and will incorporate a modicum of stealth or low observability technology, the F/A-18E/F will not.

Problems:

Operational testing in January 1999 indicated that the E/F version may actually be less capable than the C/D in some key measurements of warfighting. For example, the F/A-18E/F is slower to accelerate to supersonic speeds in level flight compared to the F/A-18C/D. Pentagon reports also cite 28 other major deficiencies in the aircraft.

The Pentagon hoped to upgrade the Super Hornet in five major categories: range, payload, weapons “bringback,” growth and survivability. However, the Pentagon report suggests that although the F/A-18E/F can carry more weapons than the plane it replaces, the modest improvements are undermined by the other deficiencies in the Super Hornet.

As a bomber, the F/A-18E/F has only modest payload and range, especially when compared to the Navy A-6 or Air Force F-15E.

Although intended as a carrier based fighter, the single-seat F/A-18E could not meet the C version’s performance ability in some key dogfighting areas, including the fighter escort mission.

Additionally, the E/F has had problems with a “wing-drop” while simulating combat maneuvers. While the Navy claims to have fixed this problem, recent tests show that the wing still dips. Although this supposedly does not effect the combat effectiveness of the aircraft, it could become “tiring and distracting” to the pilot, according to the Pentagon.

Costs:

Even if the Navy has indeed managed to correct the wing-drop and the E/F does realize its intended marginal improvements over the C/D, it costs 69% more per copy than its $50 million predecessor. Comparatively, the estimated $30 million a copy Joint Strike Fighter is slated to replace the F/A-18C/D possibly as early as 2005. However, since the Quadrennial Defense Review hinges the purchase of 237 extra E/Fs on when the JSF comes online, it implies that the E/F can be replaced by the JSF. Thus, the $84 million a copy F/A-18E/F is seen as a stop-gap aircraft.

sorry for the text content, but hope it wraps it up.

coanda:7