Hobby Master Archive

Hobby Master 1/72 Air Power Series HA3544 McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A BuNo 162875, NSAWC 55, 2004-2006

Professionally painted Great attention to detail All markings are Tampoed (pad applied) Option to display the model on a stand that is provided Model can be shown with the landing gear in the down or up positions Canopy can be displayed open or closed Extremely heavy metal with a minimum of plastic Highly collectable

The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic twin engine all-weather night fighter and attack aircraft. The F/A-18s first flew in November 1978 and the first production flight on April 12, 1980. The first 380 aircraft were F/A-18As and in September 1987 production switched to the F/A-18C. Variants A and C are single-seat aircraft while B and D are tandem- seats. The Hornet can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases with the capability of in flight refueling. A total of 1,480 A-D variants were built.

In 1986 F/A-18A 162875 joined VFA-192 “World Famous Golden Dragons” and eventually became part of NSAWC (Naval Strike Air Warfare Center) and assigned #55. In 1996 the NSAWC came about as the result of consolidating three USN units, the Naval Strike Warfare Center, the Navy Fighter Weapons School and the Carrier Airborne Early Warning Weapons School and locating it at NAS Fallon, Nevada. The markings on the tail represent the combined Strike and the Fighter Weapons School. The NSAWC has since been re-designated NAWDC (Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center).

Specifications for the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A/B Role - Fighter/Attack Manufactured - 1980 to 1987 Numbers Produced A - 371 B - 40 Crew A - 1 B - 2 Dimensions Length - 56 ft 0 in (17.07 m) Wingspan - 40 ft 8 in (12.4 m) Height - 15 ft 4 in (4.66 m)

Weight Empty - 28,000 lbs (12,700 kg) Gross - 38,000 lbs (17,240 kg) Maximum Take-off - 56,000 lb (25,400 kg)

Performance Engines - 2 X GE F404-GE turbofans producing 10,600 lb.s.t. dry & 15,800 lb.s.t with afterburning per engine Fuel Internal - 1,670 U.S. gal (6,322 l) External - As many as 3 X 330 U.S. gal (1,249 l) drop tanks Maximum Fuel - 2,660 U.S. gal (10,070 l) Maximum Speed - Mach 1.8 1,190 mph (1,915 km/h) @ 35,000 ft (10,670 m) Landing Speed - 150 mph (241.4 km/h) Combat Ceiling - 50,000 ft (15,240 m) Maximum Range - 2,875 miles (4,627 km) ARMAMENT 1 X 20 mm M61A1 cannon in nose PLUS Hard Points 4 X under-wing 2 X fuselage corner stations 1 X center-line 2 X wing-tip To carry AIM-9 Sidewinder Missiles Or AIM-7 Sparrow Missiles Plus Up to 3 external fuel tanks and other assorted ordnance