Discuss   Up to OJB's Aircraft List   Return to Previous Page

Hornet

The Royal Australian Air Force sent four F/A-18 Hornet fighters, which are the most modern warbirds ever to fly at the air show.

The photo at the top of the page shows an F/A-18 Hornet releasing flares during its first visit of the day. Flares are used to confuse heat seeking missiles which usually lock onto the aircraft's engines. The flares are much hotter and the missile will usually lock onto that instead, especially if the aircraft changes direction quickly and reduces power.

Getting good photos of the Hornet isn't easy because it does move fairly quickly, according to the commentator one run over the airfield was at 1,000 kilometers per hour. Of course, that's less than half its top speed.

Specifications:
Manufacturer: Boeing (originally McDonnell-Douglas)
Role: Multi-role fighter
Crew: One or two
Engine: Two low-bypass F404-GE-400 turbofans (7,258 kg thrust each)
Airframe: Length: 17.1 m, height: 4.7 m
Wingspan: 12.4m
Weight: 10,660 kg basic, 20,412 kg maximum
Speed: Mach 1.8 (2,200 km/h)
Range Ferrying: 2,700 km (without refuelling)
Range Interdiction: over 1,000 km
Combat radius: 740 km
Ceiling: Above 13,700 m
Missiles: AIM-120 AMRAAM active radar guided missiles
Missiles: AIM-7 Sparrow radar-guided long-range missiles
Missiles: AIM-9 Sidewinder infra-red seeking missiles
Missiles: Harpoon anti-ship missiles
Bombs: Conventional and laser-guided bombs
Cannon: M61 20mm nose-mounted cannon

Sources: Wikipedia, RAAF, Warbirds Over Wanaka 2010 Programme.

I usually write a blog post about once a week. The latest post can be viewed here: Think for Yourself: In the end, everything is just an opinion. Be skeptical, and think for yourself! (posted 2026-04-25 at 21:12:02). Or go to the Home Page of My Blog to choose a post to view.

I do podcasts too! You can listen to my latest podcast, here: OJB's Podcast 2026-04-14 How Far is that Star?: How would we really know how big the universe is? Or subscribe to my podcast RSS feed, on my RSS Feeds page.

If you're not sure what to view from the thousands of pages on my site, here are some suggestions: My Latest Airshow Report (photos and movies from Warbirds Over Wanaka, 2026), My Favourite Wines and Beers (tasting notes for some of my favourites), An Interesting Astronomical Observation (learn a bit about astronomy from these observing notes), See Some Photos (A short rail journey through the Taieri Gorge), Read Some Mac Tips (Learn about how to use your Mac, and fix some problems).

Latest Site News and Notifications (Desktop): You are currently viewing OJB's web site, version 2.4 which has some major changes, and possibly errors! Please report any problems to ojb@mac.com.