1/48 F/A-18F Super Hornet
Item #85813

The F/A-18E/F Super Hornet is a larger and more advanced variant
of the F/A-18C/D Hornet. An early version was marketed as Hornet
2000 in the 1980s. The Hornet 2000 concept was an advanced
version of the F/A-18 with a larger wing, longer fuselage to
carry more fuel and more powerful engines.
The F/A-18E/F fuselage was stretched by 860 mm to make room for
fuel and future avionics upgrades and increased the wing area by
25%. However, the Super Hornet has 42% fewer structural parts
than the original Hornet design. The F414 engine, developed from
the Hornet's F404, has 35% more power. The Super Hornet can
return to an aircraft carrier with a larger load of unspent fuel
and munitions than the original Hornet. The term for this ability
is known as "bringback". Bringback for the Super Hornet is more
than 9,000 pounds (4,100 kg).

The Super Hornet first flew in 1995. Full-rate production began
in September 1997. The Super Hornet entered service with the
United States Navy in 1999, replacing the F-14 Tomcat since 2006.


Photo etched upgrade parts & Vinyl tube
Wings can be open or folded