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United States Boeing
F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
Carrier-based twin-engine multirole strike fighter and the U.S. Navy's primary fleet defense and strike platform, enlarged and re-engined from the legacy Hornet. Forms the baseline for the EA-18G Growler electronic-attack variant.
In service since 1999 · 3 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-01
1,915
km/h
2,346
km range
15,000
m ceiling
8,050
kg payload
0.93
T/W
💲 ≈ $66,900,000 — Approximate flyaway unit cost, recent U.S. Navy lots
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
US ITAR-controlled
Export needs U.S. State Dept (DDTC) approval; end-use & re-transfer restrictions apply.
Channel: Foreign Military Sales (FMS) or Direct Commercial Sale
Fielded & proven
Limited · 3 operators
In service since 1999. Status: active · ~620 built.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$167M – $234M
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost — operating & support dominate over ~30 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price.
Interoperability
Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Full specifications
Performance
Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.
- Max speed
Maximum level speed. For aircraft this is at optimal altitude; for ground vehicles, top road speed. Higher means faster response and better kinematic performance.
- 1,915 km/h Stronger than 26% of fighters
- Max speed (Mach)
Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.
- 1.8 Mach Stronger than 31% of fighters
- Range
Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence.
- 2,346 km Stronger than 26% of fighters
- Combat radius
Distance an aircraft can fly, complete its mission and return without refueling. Roughly a third of ferry range.
- 722 km Stronger than 29% of fighters
- Service ceiling
Maximum operating altitude. Higher gives energy advantage and sensor horizon.
- 15,000 m Stronger than 13% of fighters
- Rate of climb
How fast the aircraft gains altitude. Higher means better energy recovery in combat.
- 228 m/s Bottom 6% of fighters
- Thrust-to-weight
Engine thrust divided by loaded weight. Above 1.0 the aircraft can accelerate going straight up.
- 0.93 Stronger than 24% of fighters
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
- Main armament
Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.
- 20 mm M61A2 Vulcan rotary cannon
- Hardpoints
External stations for weapons and pods. More means bigger and more flexible loadouts.
- 11 Stronger than 76% of fighters
- Weapons payload
Maximum ordnance weight the platform can carry. Higher means more strike capacity per sortie.
- 8,050 kg Stronger than 70% of fighters
Protection
Armor, countermeasures and survivability.
- Countermeasures
Self-protection: chaff, flares, DIRCM, towed decoys, smoke dischargers, jammers.
- ALQ-214 integrated defensive countermeasures, chaff, flares, ALE-55 fiber-optic towed decoy
Physical
Dimensions, weight and crew.
- Length
Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.
- 18.31 m
- Wingspan
Wingtip-to-wingtip span.
- 13.62 m
- Height
Overall height. Lower profile is harder to spot and hit for ground vehicles.
- 4.88 m
- Empty weight
Weight without fuel, ammunition or crew.
- 14,552 kg
- Combat weight
Fully loaded weight. Lighter eases transport and bridging limits; heavier often means more armor.
- 29,937 kg
- Crew
Personnel required to operate. Fewer reduces exposure; autoloaders trade a loader for mechanical complexity.
- 1
Propulsion
Engine, power and fuel.
- Engine
Powerplant model and type.
- 2x General Electric F414-GE-400 afterburning turbofans
- Engines
Number of engines. Twin-engine gives redundancy at higher cost.
- 2
- Thrust
Total engine thrust (with afterburner where applicable).
- 98 kN Stronger than 49% of fighters
- Fuel capacity
Internal fuel volume.
- 6,060 L
- Propulsion type
Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…
- Turbofan
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
- Radar
Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.
- AN/APG-79 AESA
- Sensors
IRST, EO/IR turrets, laser designators, sniper pods, thermal sights.
- AN/ASQ-228 ATFLIR targeting pod, joint helmet-mounted cueing system
- Datalink
Network connectivity: Link 16, MADL, national datalinks. Enables cooperative engagement.
- Link 16, CEC
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
- Unit cost
Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper.
- $66,900,000 Stronger than 38% of fighters
- Units built
Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability.
- 620 Stronger than 78% of fighters
- Operator countries
Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.
- 3 Stronger than 61% of fighters
Specifications compiled from public Boeing and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-01.
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See how it stacks up
Dassault Aviation Rafale F4 Frequently asked questions
What is the top speed of the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet has a maximum speed of 1,915 km/h.
What is the range of the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet has a maximum range of 2,346 km.
What is the weapons payload of the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet can carry up to 8,050 kg of weapons payload.
How much does the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet weigh? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet has a combat weight of 29,937 kg.
How many crew does the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet require? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet requires a crew of 1.
What is the main armament of the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet's primary weapon is the 20 mm M61A2 Vulcan rotary cannon.
What engine does the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet use? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet is powered by the 2x General Electric F414-GE-400 afterburning turbofans.
What is the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet used for? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet is a fighter aircraft typically used for multirole combat, air superiority, close air support, deep strike.
How many countries operate the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet is operated by 3 countries.
How much does the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet cost? +
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet has an approximate unit cost of 66,900,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration — treat this as directional.
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