F/A-18E Super Hornet

[bootneck]

F/A-18E Super Hornet

1:144 Revell

The Boeing F/A-18E Super Hornet single seater is a supersonic fighter/ground-attack aircraft. The Super Hornet entered service with the United States Navy in 1999, replacing the F-14 Tomcat since 2006 and will serve alongside the original F/A-18C Hornet. The Super Hornet was ordered by the U.S. Navy in 1992 and flew for the first time on 29 November 1995. Initial production on the F/A-18E (single-seat) and F/A-18F (two-seat) variants began in 1995, followed by U.S. Navy operational testing and evaluations in 1999 and receiving approval in February 2000.

Despite having the same general layout and systems, the Super Hornet differs in many ways from the original F/A-18 Hornet. It is informally referred to as the "Rhino" which is used to distinguish it from earlier legacy Hornets and prevents confusion in radio calls. The airframe is 20% larger than the standard Hornet and can carry 33% additional fuel internally which can increase mission ranges by 40% with a larger payload. The U.S. Navy currently flies the F/A-18E in combat roles, taking the place of the retired F-14 Tomcat; A-6 Intruder; S-3 Viking and KA-6D Intruder Tanker.

The fuselage halves are moulded in the top/bottom format which seems to becoming a popular method of assembly, although the nose is of the standard vertical assembly. This means that there is not the inevitable seam or mis-register all the way down the spine as can be found on earlier models. Another bonus with this type of assembly is that the tailplane unit comes as a one piece item which fits between the fuselage halves; the benefit being that the tailplane is moveable and can be set to a desired angle.

Panel lines and demarcations are recessed but not overly so. The engine intakes have representations of the fan assembly which is another improvement over earlier kits that had vacuous gaps or even a blanking plate with no detail in place. Construction of the landing gear is very nicely produced with each unit consisting of three pieces: strut, extension arm and wheel; however these pieces are tiny and will be very delicate when assembled. The wheel wells are nicely detailed and the wheel doors come as a one-piece item (doors closed) with grooves to mark the areas for cutting if required open with gear down.

The cockpit area consists of 5 parts including the cockpit well, seat, instrument panel and joystick and is a great improvement on the cockpit details on earlier 1:144 aircraft kits. As well as this detailed cockpit area, there is an infill piece that goes behind the seat, which leaves the possibility for a future two-seat (F/A-18F) version?

The weapons sprues look to be well detailed and consist of AIM-9X Sidewinders; AIM-120C AMRAAM; MK 83 GP Bombs; GBU-31 JDAMs also AN/ASQ-228 Advanced FLIR and external tanks. The instruction sheet provides diagrams for two recommended weapon loadouts and choices of either centre-line or underwing tanks.

The canopy is provided as a two-part element consisting of the front screen and the lifting canopy and allows for the model to be posed with the canopy closed or open. This is a real bonus as trying to saw or cut through a one-piece canopy in such a small scale as 1:144 could ruin the whole finish to a kit. The label on the sprue (Single) again leaves the hint of a possible forthcoming two seat variant as in the F/A-18F.

The decal sheet is quite colourful and has markings for VFA-31 'Tomcatters' 75th Anniversary Scheme 2010, NAS Oceana, USA. Although the decal sheet is quite small, it measures only 11cm x 8cm, it is packed with no less than 75 decals; not only for the aircraft but also the weapons. There are some very good images of Super Hornets in this livery on the CombatAce Forum.

Conclusion

This looks to be a very nice kit of the single-seat Super Hornet with a nicely loaded sprue of weapons. Revell have certainly packed a fair bit of detail into this tiny 62 piece kit and it should make up into a very nice and detailed looking model of the Super Hornet. It is interesting to note that the sprue is marked for F/A-18E and F and the clear canopy sprue is marked Single. Hopefully this presumes that we should see a two-seat version in the not too distant future to add to the collection of 1:144 Hornets available

Review sample from my collection.

[Julien]

That looks like a nice kit, some super detail for 1.144.

looks like a 2 seater and maybe a Growler could come from those molds.

Julien

[Paul A H]

Nice review Mike! Looks like a neat little kit.

[bootneck]

Nice review Mike! Looks like a neat little kit.

Thanks Paul,

this is my first go at doing a review so I appreciate the positive response.

cheers

Mike

[Julien]

Thanks Paul,

this is my first go at doing a review so I appreciate the positive response.

cheers

Mike

Credit where its due a nice review. Not my scale but the kit does look good.

Julien