A DECADE OF AUSTRALIAN 'RHINOS'

摘要

The Royal Australian Air Force's fleet of Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet strike fighters notched up 10 years of operational service on March 26, 2020. AUSTRALIA HAS A fleet of 24 Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornets, nicknamed 'Rhinos' in both Australian and US Navy service. This year marks a decade since the arrival of the first five aircraft at Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Amberley, south-west of Brisbane, on March 26, 2010. The type was originally acquired as a 'bridging strategy' to mitigate a gap in RAAF long-range strike capability between the premature retirement of the much-loved General Dynamics F-111C in December 2010 and the introduction of the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II, which is now entering service. To fulfil the long-range strike role, Australia has also procured the Raytheon AGM-154C-1 Joint Stand Off Weapon (JSOW) as part of a suite of US Navy weapons to help the 'Rhino' present a suitable replacement to the 'Pig', as the F-111 was known. The Super Hornets came equipped with the Raytheon AIM-9X Sidewinder and AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM), together with a range of Paveway laser-guided and Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) GPS-guided bombs.