The 'heritage' Hornet's tenure with several air forces is numbered. Replacements have been selected or are sought in a number of cases, and in certain air forces some individual aircraft have already been retired or stripped for spares. But in other air arms, essentially modest upgrade programmes are under way to keep the type in service for years to come, and new ab initio pilots are still being trained for the 'legacy' F/A-18. The story among the export F/A-18 community is, in some respects, similar to the Hornet's future in the US, where the type faces imminent retirement from the US Navy but where it still has another 12 years of service left to complete with the US Marine Corps. Those Hornet operators who are looking to keep it in service for a significant period are examining, or will be forced to consider, similar structural modifications for life extension, plus capability improvements to keep the aircraft viable.
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机译：编号“大黄蜂”的大黄蜂任职期间有几支空军。在许多情况下已经选择或寻求替换，在某些空军中，某些单独的飞机已经退役或剥离以备件。但是在其他空中武器方面，正在进行中的适度升级计划，以使该机型在未来数年保持服役，新的从头算机飞行员仍在为“传统” F / A-18进行训练。在某些方面，出口型F / A-18机队的故事类似于大黄蜂在美国的未来，即该型飞机即将从美国海军退役，但仍需再服役12年才能完成。美国海军陆战队那些希望在较长时间内保持使用状态的大黄蜂运营商正在研究或将被迫考虑对结构进行类似的改造以延长使用寿命，并进行能力改进以保持飞机的生存能力。
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