Boeing Pitches ‘Super’ Super Hornets to Replace F-35
22:54
05.04.2017(updated 03:09 06.04.2017)
Boeing is
making a rare bid to sell the US Navy newly unveiled Block III F-18 jets to
replace the F-35Cs transported on aircraft carriers.
The
Chicago-based defense and aerospace company says the latest production model
of F/A-18s improves upon previous versions of the F-18 in a
multitude of ways. The jets carry more fuel, a greater payload, and
feature new stealth sensors for China’s J-20 stealth fighter and Russia’s
PAK-FA.
The original
contract for all three variants awarded to Lockheed gave the company
exclusive right to sell F-35s as a winner-take-all type deal. But
since US President Donald Trump berated the F-35 and asked Boeing
to price out a Super Hornet, Boeing may find a way to sell more
F-18s to the Pentagon.
The
company is confident a “general acceptance” exists among procurement
officials to buy several hundred Block III F/A-18 for carrier wings
instead of Lockheed’s F-35C, a Boeing vice president told the National
Interest on Tuesday.
On April 1,
Sputnik reported that a document had been circulating
in Washington touting the F/A-18s ability to fill “significant
capabilities gaps” left behind by the F-35. The F/A-18s would be an
“affordable solution to the inventory challenge” currently staring
down the Navy, Boeing’s lobbyists contended in the white paper passed
around Capitol Hill.
The Navy
initially agreed to buy 2,158 F-35s over the program’s lifetime.
Buying F/A-18
and F-16s instead of F-35s saves $48 billion over a 10-year period,
according to a Congressional Budget Office analysis from October
2014.
As the
competition between Lockheed and Boeing intensifies over who will
supply the US Navy with its future carrier fleet, Boeing argues its newly
unveiled Block III F-18s have better range and payload capacity,
despite lacking the F-35’s stealth characteristics.
One feature
on which Boeing is trying to sell officials is that flying
with other F-35s requires less stealthiness for other aircraft
in the fleet. At the Red Flag battle simulation held at Nellis Air
Force Base outside Las Vegas, officials noted that the F-35’s scouting
ability comprised one of its most valuable features. Once the joint strike
fighter shot all its munitions, it hovered around the area
to identify multiple threats at once. This allowed F-22s and other
legacy fighters to clean up the rest.
Original
post: sputniknews.com
Related post:
Navy
F/A-18s face persistent oxygen issue – flightglobal.com
F/A-18E/F &
Block III: Details
No comments:
Post a Comment