F/A-18F Super Hornet - 1:72 Revell

[woody37]

F/A-18F Super Hornet

1:72 Revell

The Super Hornet or Rhino as it's officially known on operations is an evolution of the original F-18, a Hornet on steroids you might call it. Development of the E/F models started in 1995, primarily as a replacement for the F-14 in USN service, however the RAAF has since introduced the aircraft as replacements for its F-111 fleet. Although still officially a Hornet, the E/F models are a largely new aircraft. The airframe is 20% larger, 7000lb heavier empty and 15,000lb heavier fully laden. Carrying an extra 33% fuel load, the Super Hornet has a 50% greater endurance too. Despite being larger, it also has an incredible 42% less structural parts than its predecessor and 35% additional power. One of the most noticeable features is the squared intakes designed to reduced its head on radar signature by scattering the radar waves more efficiently than the earlier rounded ones. Its not just the airframe thats been radically upgraded, the avionics have been too. Controlled by a quadruplex FBW system, it also monitors the aircraft for battle damage and makes corrections where necessary. Internally, the latest aircraft use an APG-79 active radar that allows simultaneous air and ground attack capability. It has and advanced FLIR and various threat detection and counter measure systems that can be used in combination with external jammers. With current production orders, the USN will have 515 E/F models delivered when the last order is completed and the RAAF will of had 48 delivered. Despite the significant investment for both the USN and RAAF, the F/A-18 is seen as an interim aircraft until the availability of the F-35.

The kit
Following on from the F/A-18E kit, the F model is in very much the same style but with the addition of a second crew station. Typical of Revells current style, you get the open ending box. On opening the pack, youre presented with four light grey sprues and one clear one as well as an A4 instruction sheet and the decal sheet. The main rival for this kit is the Hasegawa and each kit has their merits so Ill touch on them throughout.

Assembly starts with the cockpits. Unlike the Hasegawa kit, the cockpits do have some surface detail to the panels, so you have the option to sand this off and apply the decals supplied or paint it. The ejection seats come in 3 parts and have moulded in seatbelts and side framework, again better than the rival kit. With the pits assembled and placed into the lower fuselage, effort is turned towards the intakes. Again, this area is better than the Hasegawa kit in terms of internal profile, the intakes are nicely shaped and backed by the engine compressor rather than being void.
Surface detail on the fuselage and wings is in my opinion, a little overdone and comparing the two kits, the Hasegawa one looks slightly more refined. On the Revell kit, the addition of rivets to the panel lines looks a little excessive, however this will probably improve once primed and painted. The main wheel bays are very nicely detailed. If you really want to, you could add additional plumbing in there, but theres enough detail to make it interesting. With the cockpits and intakes fitted to the lower fuselage, the top half is then attached followed by the nose cone. I believe that the nose on the Revell E model is a little thin and less accurate than Hasegawas version, whether this has inaccuracy has been carried over to the F, its difficult to see until its been assembled. The tail panes are connected through the rear fuselage so they can be adjusted to suit the angle you desire. The wings inboard of the wing fold are moulded integral to the fuselage with the outer sections being attached separately, unfortunately they cant be fitted in the folded configuration without some work by yourself. Also the flaps and moveable surfaces (other than the tailplanes) are fixed, so again, theres no option to show them in the parked drooped state.

Moving on to the exhausts and undercarriage. The exhausts are adequate. The plastic is rather thick so Id be tempted to thin the plastic out to give it a more accurate scale thickness. The undercarriage has plenty of detail and a wash will really bring this out after painting.

One of the great features about Revell kits in general is the abundance of ordnance that they include in their kits and this one follows suit. The following is included in the kit:
Aim-9x Sidewinder x2
AIM 120C AMRAAM x2
HARM x2
Mk83 Iron Bomb x2
Wing tanks x2
Centreline tank
AN/ASQ-228 Advanced FLIR pod

The instructions show the various load out options available. The detail in the weapons is quite pleasing, the missile and bomb fins being very thin giving good scale representation. The kit also has the correct 4 degrees of outward sweep to the weapon pylons.

Construction of the kit finishes with fitment the clear parts, various antennas, aerials and boarding ladder which adds a great visual to the displayed kit. The canopy and windscreen are very refined free from distortion. The HUD is rather thick and you may want to replace this with a piece of thin acetate.

The decals
The decal sheet is designed by Daco and has options for two aircraft:

VFA-103 Jolly rogers 200 CAG Scheme 2011-12 NAS Oceana High Vis markings
VFA-11 Red Rippers 106 NAS Oceana Low Vis markings

With over 180 decals included, the detail is very crisp with more than enough stencils and placards to keep you busy for a week ! Whilst the tails of the jolly Roger scheme need to be painted black, the black area around the cockpit can be dealt with by the provided decals however the windscreen section may require some patience and decal setting solution.

Conclusion
On the whole, this is a great kit. Compared to the Hasegawa kit, the surface detail is a little heavy, but you get a lot more detail in the pits, better intakes and a good selection of weapons. Couple this with a more favourable price tag and I should imagine its going to sell very well. Construction is fairly straight forwards and with a parts count of 97, shouldnt take too long to build up either. Another great release from Revell.

Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit

[Julien]

This looks a great kit.

Julien

[Vultures1]

Thank you for this review - very useful.

I had been waiting for Revell to issue the F model ever since the single-seater came out. I picked one up just before Christmas, so your comments are very timely!

[woody37]

Thank you for this review - very useful.

I had been waiting for Revell to issue the F model ever since the single-seater came out. I picked one up just before Christmas, so your comments are very timely!

I haven't got time to do a build review on it, so I'd be interested to see how it builds up if you're going to do it in the near future, cheers

[Stimpy]

I think the skull and cross bones on the tail has a striking resembelance to our very own BORIS JOHNSON!!!

Has anybody else noticed this?.

[Julien]

I think the skull and cross bones on the tail has a striking resembelance to our very own BORIS JOHNSON!!!

Has anybody else noticed this?.

Never noticed that but you are spot on

[orckawolf]

A small question:

According to Revell, the color of the tail is "Anthracite grey" (Revell #9).

To my understanding. it shuold be just black, isn't it?

[Giorgio N]

The tail is black, maybe revell adviced this colour because it's actually a grey so dark it can pass for black. A very dark grey in scale is sometimes better than a true black

[orckawolf]

The tail is black, maybe revell adviced this colour because it's actually a grey so dark it can pass for black. A very dark grey in scale is sometimes better than a true black

Thanks!

[Kiwi Boy]

The tail is black, maybe revell adviced this colour because it's actually a grey so dark it can pass for black. A very dark grey in scale is sometimes better than a true black

A small question:

According to Revell, the color of the tail is "Anthracite grey" (Revell #9).

To my understanding. it shuold be just black, isn't it?

The VFA-103 Jolly Rogers aircraft in this Revell boxing is the CAG (Commander Air Group) for the unit. Like most CAG jets, they are treated like his own private limo and are therefore always more cleaner and sparkly than other jets in the unit. The black on the tail and around the cockpit is actually plain Gloss Black.

Here are some pictures of the actual jet and you can see the heavy reflections coming off it:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/USA---Navy/Boeing-F-A-18F-Super/1337521/L/&sid=e7862f37ab83d4014853e22859790f7a

http://www.airliners.net/photo/USA---Navy/Boeing-F-A-18F-Super/1410067/L/&sid=e7862f37ab83d4014853e22859790f7a

Here is probably where Revell have gone wrong. A couple of VFA-103s line jets do have duller black tail fins which Anthricite Black would be more appropriate:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/USA---Navy/Boeing-F-A-18F-Super/1288608/L/&sid=f100853082b215028dfb5ecebf9ee258

http://www.airliners.net/photo/USA---Navy/Boeing-F-A-18F-Super/1181655/L/&sid=f100853082b215028dfb5ecebf9ee258

The difference being with these more grey looking jets is that in the photos, they have not yet been upgraded with the Bard Stack ECS Exhausts and the ACS Larger rear cockpit instrument panels which are evident on the CAG bird.

Hope this helps to clear that little subject up!!