LEMOORE (KMJ) — Crew members at NAS Lemoore have said goodbye to a type of plane first introduced in the 1980s, to be replaced by Super Hornets.
“[We’ll] have the most advanced fighter squadron in the Navy”, says Lt. Chuck Jones, one of the old jet’s pilots who will be transitioning to the new fighter.
“We’ve been operating F18s since 1983, so we’ll be getting the official transition from Legacy Hornets to Super Hornets, which will be an incremental generational change for the squadron in terms of our capabilities and our war fighting capability”.
Lt. Jones is a member of the Stingers, the last squadron at NAS Lemoore to use the old jets.
“This is very exciting. Professionally speaking, I’ve grown up flying F-18Cs. It’s exciting because I’ve gotten to see this legacy platform that’s served the country for several years. I’ve gotten to see it go on to fight again another day.
“But also, it’s exciting for me to look forward and think about how I’m going to be able to fly Super Hornets, which will be that advanced iteration of this aircraft”.
The final F18C based at NAS Lemoore took part in a celebratory fly by, before heading to NAS Oceana in Virginia.
Crews at NAS Lemoore are now transitioning to the new craft, with the old planes set to stay with the Navy and Marines.
The Super Hornets will be complimented by the new F-35Cs early 2017.
Hear the report from KMJ’s Dominic McAndrew as it aired:
