Summary

• Australia has decommissioned its F/A-18 Hornets as part of the transition to F-35A, meaning that all 75 jets will be gone by 2023.
• Old jets destined for Ukraine were not shipped, some were sold to Canada, some were kept for exhibition purposes and the rest is unclear.
• The remaining F/A-18 Hornets may be stored or scrapped at the US Air Force Base Anderson on Guam.

As the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) moved to its (final fleet) of 72 F-35As, it has retired its ageing F/A-18 Hornets (although it still has 24 Super Hornets and 12 EA Growlers). Australia began phasing out the Hornets in 2017, and the first Australian F-35A entered service in 2018. In 2023, Ukraine asked for the old Australian jets, but now that debate is over and Ukraine will receive F-16s and Mirage 2000-5s (and possibly Saab Gripen later) instead. But what happened to the old Australian Hornets?

Australia’s fleet of F/A-18

F/A-18s formed the backbone of Australia’s fighter aircraft for many years. While the Super Hornets will remain in service for some time, that role is now being passed on to the fifth generation F-35A. Australia purchased a total of 75 F/A-18A/Bs over the years, all of which have now disappeared from the RAAF, bringing the total to 71 Hornets.

“Starting in 1981, Australia ordered a total of 57 single-seat F/A-18As and 18 two-seat F/A-18Bs from the American aerospace company McDonnell Douglas, which later merged with Boeing. Four of these jets were lost in crashes over the years.” – The War Zone

So what happened to them? As recently as June 2023, ABC reported that retired Australian F/A-18 Hornets were “one step closer to joining Ukraine’s war effort.” But that never happened.

Some were sold to Canada

In 2018, SDQuebec reported that Canada would purchase about 25 retired Australian F/A-18 jets (with American approval). Canada also operates a Hornet fleet that would augment Canada’s CF-18s. Originally, Canada planned to purchase 18 jets, and it was assumed that the additional jets would be dismantled (they are almost contemporaneous with the Canadian fleet).

In 2021, the Australian Business Defense Review reported: “12 F/A-18A and six two-seat F/A-18B Hornets will be overhauled and integrated into the Royal Canadian Air Force’s CF-18 Hornet fleet..” The publication noted that Canada had received the last of the Australian jets it had purchased.

Some are in museums in Australia

In May 2024, ABC reported that the Queensland Air Museum was unhappy about not receiving any retired Australian Hornets for its display. The article states that while there are no F/A-18s for Queensland, there are eight for display elsewhere in Australia. ABC says: “.…there were only eight Hornets for the heritage display, and five of them went to Canberra while the other three were loaned to museums across the country.”

Ravn Aerospace tried to buy them

Ravn Aerospace (formerly AirUSA) is an American defense contractor based in Houston, Texas. Ravn Aerospace operates vintage modern trainer aircraft and fighter jets for air assault, close air support, ISR training, and more for the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. Ravn’s collection includes up to four vintage MiG-29 Fulcrums. Ravn is one of several private air forces in the United States that contract with the U.S. Department of Defense.

In March 2020, the Australian Minister for Defence announced that up to 46 former RAAF Hornets (as well as spare parts) were to be sold to Ravn (then AirUSA). However, as of December 2021, the status of the deal was unknown, and the contract expired in December 2023 without any transfers. Ravn’s website lists the aircraft types as BAE Hawk Mk.67, L-39ZA Albatros and MiG29UB. F/A-18s are not listed.

The rest may be stored or scrapped

What happened to the remaining jets? 75 jets were purchased, 4 crashed, 25 were sold to Canada and 8 were donated for museum display, leaving 38 Hornets. In May 2023, the Daily Mail reported that the Australian armed forces had been accused of “Billions of dollars wasted scrapping decommissioned fighter jets in the middle of the Pacific.“This is a strange accusation, because the old jets had reached the end of their useful life.

The article states that the jets are “currently” (May 2023) gathering dust at Guam’s Anderson Air Force Base. It also quotes Malcolm Davis, an analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, as saying he has “no idea” why they were “unceremoniously disposed of.” These jets are known to be in poor condition and represent technology from the early 1980s.

The Australian Department of Defense was opaque about the fate of the jets. The Daily Mail quoted it as saying: “The RAAF fleet of 71 F/A-18A/B Classic Hornet aircraft, along with associated spare parts and support equipment, was phased out of service from January 2019 to December 2021. For confidential business reasons, no further information on the commercial arrangements for the aircraft can be provided..”

It is unclear whether the F/A-18s are still stored in Guam today. Their final fate is also unclear – will they find a second life, be taken to a scrap yard or be scrapped and dismantled into individual parts? Time will tell.