Video of the most sierra hotel clips of the the 2016 WESTPAC deployment of the F/A-18Fs from VFA 41 Black Aces
The cool video in this article is the short film that features the most sierra hotel clips chronicling the 2016 Western Pacific (WESTPAC) deployment of the F/A-18F Super Hornets from Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 41 Black Aces aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) aircraft carrier.
Noteworthy Strike Fighter Squadron 41 personnel began the transition from the F-14A Tomcat to the F/A-18F Super Hornet in Dec. 2001 and from Mar. to Nov. 2003, VFA-41 undertook its first WESTPAC cruise since the Vietnam era.
On Jan. 2016 VFA-41 with Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 deployed aboard the USS John C. Stennis, CVN-74 to the South China Sea to ensure Freedom of Navigation. Ports of call during this deployment included Guam, Busan, Singapore, Manila and Pearl Harbor.
In December 2001, the squadron decommissioned their beloved Tomcats to become the first operational F/A-18F Super Hornet squadron, and officially adopting the Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) moniker.
The F/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft the unit flies is the world’s most advanced strike fighter. Designed to operate from a carrier, the Super Hornet is fully capable in both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions.
The Super Hornet is the second major model upgrade since the inception of the F/A-18 aircraft program highly capable across the full mission spectrum: air superiority, fighter escort, reconnaissance, aerial refueling, close air support, air defense suppression and day/night precision strike.
Artwork courtesy of AircraftProfilePrints.com
