The U.S. Navy calls on students across the Southern Maryland region to draw on their innovation and creativity to design Naval Aviation’s next jet in an inaugural competition by the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD).
The U.S. Navy’s F/A-18 and EA-18G aircraft fleet has surpassed 12 million flight hours, marking an important milestone for one of the most enduring families of aircraft in modern naval aviation. This achievement underscores the capability, reliability and availability of these aircraft, which have served as the backbone of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps air power for decades.
Put into perspective, the aircraft have completed the equivalent of 500,000 days, or nearly 1,370 years, of nonstop flight defending national interests and ensuring global security.
Two U.S. Navy civilians from the F/A-18 and EA-18G Program Office (PMA-265) received the Spanish Air and Space Force’s Excellence in Sustainment Award for Foreign Collaboration in Maintenance, becoming the only Americans honored with the distinction in the award’s 17-year history.
John Smith, international programs manager, and Don Valentine, Canadian and Spanish F/A-18 Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program manager, were recognized for their outstanding work on PMA-265’s F/A-18 FMS team, during a ceremony March 27 at Zaragoza Air Base in Spain.
Checklists, audits and inspections….these checks and balances ensure accuracy and reliability in products delivered while at the same time fostering efficiency, accountability and effectiveness within an organization. Fleet Readiness Center Southwest (FRCSW) underwent a Naval Aviation Maintenance Program (NAMP) audit that concluded on February 11, 2025. The command achieved a 98% success rate (outstanding!) with 3 of the top 4 programs and 5 of the top 10 performing areas located at FRCSW!
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) recently announced that the CF-18 Hornet Extension Project (HEP) achieved Initial Operational Capability (IOC), a significant accomplishment in a five-year collaborative effort with the F/A-18 and EA-18G Program Office (PMA-265). This milestone marks the delivery of the first six HEP2 upgraded fighter aircraft to 3 Wing Bagotville, Canada. In total, 84 aircraft will be upgraded through this project, which will provide all aircraft with HEP 1 interoperability upgrades and 36 aircraft with HEP 2 combat capability upgrades.
The U.S. Navy awarded The Boeing Company a $1.3 billion contract March 19 for the purchase of 17 F/A-18 Super Hornets and delivery of a technical data package vital to the sustainment of the platform.
Fleet Readiness Center Southwest (FRCSW) is ushering in a new era of naval aviation as the Navy continues the gradual retirement of its legacy F/A-18A-D series. The renowned F-16 aircraft is poised to become a major program for the FRCSW Depot team’s operations. The F-16, known as the "Fighting Falcon," has been a mainstay in air forces globally since its inception in the 1970s. Designed as a multi-role fighter, its versatility and state-of-the-art avionics have rendered it indispensable in aerial combat and strategic missions.
Born out of necessity and innovation, the U.S. Navy’s F/A-18 Hornet introduced a level of aircraft superiority that had not been seen before and set the standard for future development of next-gen fighters. Now, celebrating the 45th anniversary of its first flight Nov. 18, the original strike fighter aircraft is affectionately referred to as the “Legacy.”
Appropriately coined, the nickname encapsulates not only the cutting-edge capabilities of the aircraft at the time, but its place in history as the first in its class that would pave the way for future aircraft platforms.
By Janina Lamoglia
FRCSW Public Affairs Office
The F/A-18 and EA-18G Program Office (PMA-265) welcomed a new program manager Aug. 3 when Capt. Michael “Sniff” Burks relieved Capt. Jason “Stuf” Denney as PMA-265's 15th program manager during a change of command ceremony at Naval Air Station Patuxent River.
