PHILADELPHIA, Pa. –
On Aug. 3, a first-production F/A-18 Super Hornet found a new home at the National Museum of Transportation, where a formal dedication ceremony took place.
It’s path to St. Louis, Missouri, began with Boeing and the F/A-18 and EA-18G Program Office formally requesting a first-production aircraft for display. At that point, the Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support (NAVSUP WSS) team in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, became involved.
The NAVSUP WSS Industrial Support team serves as the U.S. Navy’s stricken aircraft managers. A “stricken aircraft” is a retired aircraft that has been removed from the active-duty inventory.
“Not many people know that we are responsible for the management of all stricken aircraft in the Navy,” said John Tantoco, NAVSUP WSS Stricken Aircraft Manager. “Industry and many organizations within the Navy coordinated their efforts to put the aircraft on display. Boeing, the National Museum of Naval Aviation and [the program office] did a lot of the heavy lifting.”
After an aircraft is officially retired from service, several options exist. Parts can be retained from stricken aircraft and returned to the Naval Supply system to support current or future needs of existing fleet aircraft; the aircraft can be sent for storage at Davis Monthan Air Force Base, Tucson, Arizona; it can be transferred to training commands; or—as in this case—it can be lent to museums.
The Super Hornet, a U.S. Navy carrier-based supersonic fighter jet, was built by Boeing in St. Louis, and flew operationally in the fleet before being acquired and rebuilt by Boeing employees.
“At any given time, our office is managing several hundred stricken aircraft,” Tantoco said. “We take our responsibility to manage the inventory seriously, and we’re glad so many people came together to find a good home where this aircraft can be seen and celebrated.”
From Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support. 