More Super Hornets to undergo life extension
F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. (Photo: Boeing)
Boeing is extending the service life of USN-operated F/A-18E/F aircraft.
Boeing will extend the service life of 32 F/A-18E/F Super Hornet aircraft for the USN, under a $366.46 million modification to a previously awarded IDIQ contract.
Work under the latest award Naval Air Systems Command will be performed in San Antonio, Texas (80%) and St Louis, Missouri (20%), for completion in May 2024.
Boeing delivered the first Super Hornet to the USN in February 2020 under the Service Life Modification (SLM) Block III conversion programme.
The initial Super Hornets delivered under SLM extended the aircraft’s service life from 6,000 to 7,500 flight hours.
However, future modification plans in the early 2020s will incorporate new Block III capabilities and enable the aircraft to fly 10,000 hours.
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