Boeing has delivered the F/A-18 Super Hornet upgraded under its Service Life Modification contract to the U.S. Navy, the company announced on Thursday.

According to Boeing, five more upgraded Super Hornets will be delivered this year, with the second rolling out as soon as the end of February.

"SLM is going to provide a critical resource for the Navy to re-capitalize on long-serving aircraft to return them to the fleet in a near new condition," Capt. Stephen May, co-lead for E/F/G Air Vehicles, said in a statement. "It will reduce burden on our maintainers, our supply system and our depot level assets within the enterprise."

In May 2019, Boeing was awarded $163.9 million to continue modernizing Super Hornets under the service life modification program, which it announced in 2016.

According to Boeing, there are now 15 Super Hornets in the SLM program on production lines in St. Louis and San Antonio, and it takes 18 months to complete modifications on an F/A-18, though that time is expected to decrease as the program progresses.

The SLM programs's upgrades are expected to extend each aircraft's service life from 6,000 to 7,500 flight hours, with future modification plans extending the flight life to 10,000 hours.

In addition to undergoing modifications that increase their flight life, the aircraft will undergo Block III conversion, which includes enhanced network capability, conformal fuel tanks, an advanced cockpit system, signature improvements and an improved communication system.

Related Links
Aerospace News at SpaceMart.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The Space Media Network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceMediaNetwork Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceMediaNetwork Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Virgin Australia axes flights to crisis-hit Hong Kong
Sydney (AFP) Feb 6, 2020
Virgin Australia said on Thursday it would scrap flights between Sydney and Hong Kong, just 18 months after launching the route, blaming reduced demand caused by anti-government protests and the coronavirus outbreak. The airline began flying from Australia's biggest city to Hong Kong in mid-2018, calling its China expansion a "key pillar" of its international strategy at the time, but now admits the route proved "challenging". Virgin Australia Group chief commercial officer John MacLeod said dem ... read more