The company’s fighter has lost several tenders against Lockheed Martin’s F-35A. Most of the users that fly the F/A-18 fleet reorganised the force with Lightening II. Long-standing allies of Boeing, such as Switzerland and Canada, turned their back on the company.
All Block II Super Hornets in Service Life Modification will receive the Block III capability suite over the next decade. As part of the ongoing Growler modifications, Boeing will continue to add advanced electronic attack capability. Boeing has delivered over 2,000 Hornets, Super Hornets, and EA-18G Growlers to customers around the world, including the United States Navy, Australia, Canada, Finland, Kuwait, Malaysia, Spain, and Switzerland since the F/A-18 debuted in 1983.
To support future programmes, the company plans to hire more workers and build three new facilities in St. Louis, where some of Boeing"s defence unit"s operations are already based. Last year, over 900 people were hired in the region.
The closure of the F/A-18 line is a watershed moment for Boeing"s St. Louis-based facilities, leaving the F-15EX as the company"s sole fighter jet in production unless the company wins the US Air Force"s sixth-generation fighter programme.
Little is known about the Next Generation Air Dominance fighter programme, including jet specifications and when the Air Force will select an aircraft manufacturer. Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman also compete at the programme.
