(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) — Goodbye Super Hornet… In two years, in 2025, Boeing will end the production of the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter aircraft and will no longer accept orders for it after delivering the last eight aircraft to the United States, as requested by the country’s congress.
According to Boeing, after discontinuing the production of the Super Hornet, they will focus their human resources and facilities on other future projects.
Following the cessation of Super Hornet fighter construction, Boeing will increase production for the T-7A Red Hawk, F-15EX, wing components for the 777X aircraft, and the MQ-25 Stingray drone.
Boeing will also prioritize efforts to develop future programs.
The company is also building three new facilities for both manned and unmanned platforms.
These new facilities, along with the MQ-25 Stingray facility at St. Louis Airport, Composite Fabrication Center in Arizona, and design facilities, represent a $1 billion (RM4 billion) investment by Boeing in the military sector’s future.
Boeing’s announcement about discontinuing Super Hornet production marks the end of the production of these fighter aircraft, which should have happened a few years earlier after the U.S. Navy announced it would no longer purchase them in 2014.
However, the U.S. Congress continued to approve budgets for the purchase of more Super Hornet fighter aircraft, leading Boeing to keep its production facilities open until now.
According to Boeing spokesperson Deborah Van Nierop, the last eight Super Hornet fighter aircraft will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2025, signifying the final production of Super Hornet fighter aircraft.
Over the 30-year production period, Boeing has built a total of 698 Super Hornet aircraft for the U.S. Navy and other militaries around the world.
However, India is still in the process of selecting a fighter aircraft for its aircraft carriers, with the Super Hornet being one of the contenders to supply them.
If India chooses the Super Hornet, Boeing will build the aircraft and close its production facilities after 2027, once the fighter aircraft is completed.
Nevertheless, recent reports from New Delhi indicate that the Rafale aircraft is likely to win the Indian contract.
Despite Boeing losing two major fighter aircraft contracts in the past, involving the Joint Strike Fighter to Lockheed Martin and the B-21 bomber to Northrop Grumman, it has not dampened Boeing’s spirit.
Boeing’s CEO Ted Colbert stated that fighter aircraft remain an essential part of their business, and they are not giving up. In fact, Boeing intends to continue making investments. — DSA
DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA APPS
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