Research an aircraft Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Research an aircraft - Essay Example raft is a combination of advanced aeronautics, electronics, and is the pinnacle of maritime multirole fighter aircraft; which is why I have chosen the F/A-18 Hornet. The F/A-18 Hornet was developed by McDonald Douglas in order to fulfill the US Navy’s requirement of an advanced carrier borne multirole fighter. The ageing fleet of the US carrier aircraft consisted of the F-14 Tomcat, A-4 Skyhawk, A-7 Corsair and the F-4 Phantom II; these aircrafts were unable to adapt to the fast paced developing world of maritime warfare.2 This was evident from the casualties that were suffered in the Vietnam War at the hands of the MiG-17 and MiG-21 fighters. Furthermore, an aircraft with longer range, higher payload and better avionics was needed to complement and replace the ageing F-14 Tomcat.1 This is where the F/A-18 Hornet was introduced. The development of the F/A-18 was brought about as a result of pressure from the congress to attain carrier aircrafts to supplement the F-14 Tomcat. The US Navy initiated the experimental Naval Fighter-Attack (VFAX) program to seek the desperately required aircraft. However, in August 1973 the congress urged the Navy to pursue a low cost alternative to the F-14.2 The United States Navy consulted with the Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation and McDonnell Douglas for proposals. Both proposed aircrafts that were as expensive as the F-14. Alongside these developments, the air force was filtering companies to design aircrafts for their Light Weight Fighter (LWF) program. The Air Force for its LWF program decided upon two companies; the Northop and General Dynamics. Both companies lead on to manufacture YF-17 and YF-16 respectively. The US Congress and Senate and House of Representatives of Armed Forces Committees insisted that the Navy chose the YF-16 from the Air Forces LWF program; just as the Air Force had done. However, the Navy was keener towards designing and manufacturing of their own aircraft, which would be tailored for their