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Описание: [ Equivalent to F-18A-16-MC when delivered. With No. 410 Squadron in 1980s. To Doha, Qatar for use by "Desert Cat" detachment in 1990/1991. Took part in destruction of Iraqi patrol boat TNC-45, later received "kill" marking. With No. 421 Squadron, 1st Canadian Air Division at CFB Solingen, Germany in 1991. Reported stored at Canadair in February 1995. Operated by No. 416 Squadron at CFB Cold Lake, Alberta in August 2007. At Cold Lake in 2010 and 2011, operated by No. 409 Squadron. Reported active at CFB Cold Lake in April 2016, with 5,587 airframe hours. ] Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif. - Service members with 4 Wing, Royal Canadian Air Force, conduct exercise "PUMA STRIKE" with 24 McDonnell Douglas CF-188 "Hornet" fighter aircraft board Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., Oct. 31. Twice a year, 410 Tactical Fighter (Operational Training) Squadron deploys to locations in the southern United States to conduct fighter training operations. The McDonnell Douglas CF-18 "Hornet" (official military designation CF-188) is a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) fighter aircraft, based on the American McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 "Hornet" fighter. In 1980, the F/A-18 was selected as the winner of the New Fighter Aircraft Project competition, and a production order was awarded. The Canadian Forces began receiving the CF-18 in 1982. CF-18s have supported North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) air sovereignty patrols and participated in combat during the Gulf War in 1991, the Kosovo War in the late 1990s, and as part of the Canadian contribution to the international Libyan no-fly zone in 2011. CF-18s were also part of the Canadian contribution to the military intervention against ISIL, "Operation Impact". New Fighter Aircraft program Main article: New Fighter Aircraft program In 1977, the Canadian government identified the need to replace the NATO-assigned CF-104 "Starfighter", the NORAD-assigned CF-101 "Voodoo" and the CF-116 "Freedom Fighter" (although the decision was later made to keep the CF-116). Subsequently, the government proceeded with the New Fighter Aircraft (NFA) competition, with a purchase budget of around C$2.4 billion to purchase 130–150 of the winner of the competition. Candidates included the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, McDonnell Douglas F-15 "Eagle", Panavia "Tornado", Dassault Mirage F1" (later replaced by the "Mirage 2000"), plus the products of the American Lightweight Fighter (LWF) competition, the General Dynamics F-16 "Fighting Falcon", the F/A-18 "Hornet", and a de-navalized version of the "Hornet", the F-18L. The government stressed that the winner of the competition be a proven off-the-shelf design and provide substantial industrial benefits as part of the order. By 1978, the New Fighter Aircraft competitors were short-listed to just three aircraft types: the F-16 and the two F-18 offerings. The F-14, F-15, and the Tornado were rejected due to their high purchase price, while Dassault dropped out of the competition. The F-18L combined the systems and twin-engine layout of the F-18 that Air Command favored with a lighter land-based equipment setup that significantly improved performance. Northrop, the primary contractor for the F-18L version, had not built the aircraft by the time of the NFA program, waiting on successful contracts before doing so. While Northrop offered the best industrial offset package, it would only "pay off" if other F-18L orders were forthcoming, something the Department of National Defence (DND) was not willing to bet on. The F-14 almost entered Canadian service through the backdoor due to the Iranian Revolution. In the aftermath of the revolution, the United States cut off all military supplies to Iran, which meant that the Iranians' new fleet of F-14s would potentially be rendered unflyable due to a lack of spares. The Canadians offered to purchase them at a steeply discounted price. Negotiations ended before a deal was reached as it was revealed that Canadian involvement was crucial in the smuggling of American embassy personnel out of the new Islamic Republic. In 1980, the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 "Hornet" was declared the winner of the New Fighter Aircraft competition. The order included 98 single-seat variants and 40 dual-seat variants, for a total of 138 purchased, plus 20 options (which were not exercised). The F/A-18 "Hornet" was then dubbed the CF-188. Outside official military documents, the aircraft are referred to as CF-18 "Hornet's". Reasons for the selection listed by the Canadian Forces were many of its requested features were included for the U.S. Navy; two engines for reliability (considered essential for conducting Arctic sovereignty and over-the-water patrols), an excellent radar set, while being considerably more affordable than the F-14 and the F-15. The CF-18 was procured from 1982 to 1988, at a total capital cost of $4 billion in 1982 dollars. The original CF-18 as delivered is largely identical to the F/A-18A and B models. A total of 80 CF-18s, consisting of 62 single-seat and 18 dual-seat models, were delivered. Many features that made the F/A-18 suitable for naval carrier operations were retained by the Canadian Forces, such as the robust landing gear, the arrestor hook, and wing folding mechanisms. CF-18 design changes The most visible difference between a CF-18 and a U.S. F-18 is the 0.6 Mcd night identification light. This spotlight is mounted in the gun loading door on the port side of the aircraft. Some CF-18s have the light temporarily removed, but the window is always in place. Also, the underside of the CF-18 features a painted "false canopy". This is intended to momentarily disorient and confuse an enemy in air-to-air combat. Subsequently, the U.S. Marine Corps Aviation and the Spanish Air Force F/A-18s also adopted this false canopy. Upgrades The need to upgrade the CF-18 was demonstrated during the Gulf War I deployment and during the 1998 Kosovo conflict as advances in technology had rendered some of the avionics on board the CF-18 obsolete and incompatible with NATO allies. In 2000, CF-18 upgrades became possible when the government increased the defence budget. In 2001, the Incremental Modernization Project was initiated. The project was broken into two phases over a period of eight years and was designed to improve air-to-air and air-to-ground combat capabilities, upgrade sensors and the defensive suite, and replace the datalinks and communications systems on board the CF-18 from the old F/A-18A and F/A-18B standard to the current F/A-18C and D standard. Boeing (merged with McDonnell Douglas) the primary contractor and L-3 Communications the primary subcontractor, was issued a contract for the modernization project starting in 2002. A total of 80 CF-18s, consisting of 62 single-seat and 18 dual-seat models were selected from the fleet for the upgrade program. The project is supposed to extend the life of the CF-18 until around 2017 to 2020.

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