General Background:
The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic twin engine all-weather night fighter and attack aircraft. The F/A-18s first flew in November 1978 and the first production flight on April 12, 1980. The first 380 aircraft were F/A-18As and in September 1987 production switched to the F/A-18C. Variants A and C are single-seat aircraft while B and D are tandem-seats. The Hornet can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases with the capability of in flight refuelling. A total of 1,480 A-D variants were built.
The Aircraft:
The Spanish Air Force ordered 60 EF-18A and 12 EF-18B (“E” standing for “España”, Spain) Hornets with the first arriving November 22, 1985. The aircraft types were assigned C.15 for the A variant and CE.15 for the B variant. Aircraft C.15–38 number 15–25 was built as c/n 667/A543 and assigned to Ala 15 (15 Wing) comprised of Escaudrillas (Squadrons) 151, 152 and 153. Escaudrilla 151 was assigned all-weather interception roles, 152 suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD) and 153 Operational Conversion Unit (OCU). In 1995 Spain acquired 24 ex-USN F/A-18As.
Features:
- Professionally painted
- Great attention to detail
- All markings are Tampoed (pad applied)
- Option to display the model on a stand that is provided
- Model can be shown with the landing gear in the down or up positions
- Canopy can be displayed open or closed
- Metal with a minimum of plastic
- Collectable