Official Freewing F/A-18C Hornet 90mm EDF Thread

[Evan D]

I flew my 7 year old C model yesterday, still in mint condition and flying awesome.

[jetpltrich]

I attended a talk by Chuck Yeager years ago. He was discussing the instability designed into modern fighters to make them extremely agile.

He said (about the ship he was discussing…some F-xx fighter and I think it was the F-18);

Paraphrasing:
- There are redundant flight control computers. If they fail, you punch out. It is impossible to manually control the fighter. If you try to manually fly it, you will have success for only a VERY few seconds. -

—GG

In my initial class at Southwest Airlines the senior member of the class was a former Navy pilot who flew F-18's. He had a complete ADFCS failure of after launch off a carrier in an F-18A and managed to fight the plane to a shore station, I think NAS Norfolk. If I can find the story I will share.

Rich

[Airguardian]

I'd love to read that!

[Hugh Wiedman]

Since converting/purchasing 90mm EDF's to 8S and using SMC HiV packs, the increased thrust/heat has really started to affect the exhaust nozzles and they are exhibiting extreme heat discoloration!
😇

Just messing around to see if I can get the heat staining somewhat in the ballpark. Got a long way to go and definitely need more practice, so I'm telling my CO that I must buy more EDF's to further my research! 😏

She hasn't "bought" the argument yet, so if there's a sale, I can "save" money like she does on thousands of dresses, purses and shoes. My front door is a dumping ground for UPS and each time I hear how much she is saving, only for some reason, I never see a credit on my cards, only debits! Guess I just don't understand "Macro Economics". 🤑

Seriously, I probably went slightly overboard (like the sinking of the Titanic), but I like to say "Go Loud and Proud"! 😎

Life in the Fastlane, Don't it Make You Lose Your Mind! 🤯

The 1st is my "Hopped Up" 8S F18 Canadian, with Tailerons. Ohhh Canadaaa, there goes Lake Ontario 👱♂️💪
The 2nd is an 8S F16 V1, with Flaperons & Tailerons
The 3rd is a dual battery SU-27, also with Flaperons & Tailerons

[Elbee]

Hugh Wiedman

I'd say your CO might need a night out on the town.

Wink, wink, hint, hint...sometimes a little bribary, flattery, and fun goes a long way.

This is a matter of nat'l security after all, so we need those jets.

Best, LB

Ps: your heat staining is lookin' good, Sir.

[Hugh Wiedman]

Hugh Wiedman

I'd say your CO might need a night out on the town.

Wink, wink, hint, hint...sometimes a little bribary, flattery, and fun goes a long way.

This is a matter of nat'l security after all, so we need those jets.

Best, LB

Ps: your heat staining is lookin' good, Sir.

Thanks for the boost to my overblown ego.

Great advice on the bribery front, though after decades of serving under my CO, and always receiving the same "Your such an Idiot" comment, I've finally learned and accepted my place in the Universe. Just want to be The Best Idiot I can!

[Elbee]

Thanks for the boost to my overblown ego.

Great advice on the bribery front, though after decades of serving under my CO, and always receiving the same "Your such an Idiot" comment, I've finally learned and accepted my place in the Universe. Just want to be The Best Idiot I can!

Well, you'll get no argument from me. ROFL

[Hugh Wiedman]

After getting both my 8S F-18's dialed in with the best gains on the AR 8360T Plus RX, and trying out the new SMC V3 HiV 5100 (850gr), I have to say these have turned out to be at the top of my list for "easy" flying, smooth take -off on grass (thanks to 8S) and VERY easy nose up slow landings. Most of that is due to the programming of the Plus RX, but the 8S setup with a n incredibly powerful SMC pack made all the difference in the world. Never thought I'd be saying that about this aircraft when I first got the 6S versions. 🤗 It is now at the top in those three flight categories along with the 8S F22 (that was expected) and the 8S F4 (somewhat surprised by that one, and it flies just as well on a 5900 & 6400 😲). On the 5100 pack, I'm getting 6-7 minutes of aggressive flying. Always land when my in-flight pack voltage telemetry tells me I'm down to 3.75 V per cell. These high output, HiV packs are sensitive, but if handles properly (storage and never draining them too much), they last. Many have been abusing them, then complaining that they are puffing. Bone Heads! 😵

Unfortunately I only bought 1 of Danny's 8S V3 5100's as it was a replacement for the 4900, which I have plenty of. But the new 5100 blows even those away. Of course, they flew off the shelves early and they're out of stock, along with all his other HiV packs. So I contacted him directly and he found a couple spares hiding out in his closet just for me. Whoopi (and not the Goldberg kind!) Those are perfect for the EuroFighter, F16, F18 and F22, which total 6 birds in my inventory all fighting over 1 battery! I'm Back In The Saddle Again! 🤠

If anyone wants my assistance in setting up their F18, I'd be glad to help. Man is she quick and now solid as the proverbial Rock!

[xviper]

Rumour has it that a 12S, 110mm F-18 could appear in the New Year.

[Hugh Wiedman]

Rumour has it that a 12S, 110mm F-18 could appear in the New Year.

Mark me down for that Bad Boy! 😁

[xviper]

Mark me down for that Bad Boy! 😁

Hehe, they'll sell 3 of them just to our small flying bunch.

[Airguardian]

Great pics Hugh!
I'm also in for the larger (Super)hornet! :D

[jetpltrich]

Great pics Hugh!
I'm also in for the larger (Super)hornet! :D

I will be as well.

I asked AI about my classmate who Faught an F-18 back to shore after FCC cat launch during CQ events and this is what I got. The pilot was a classmate of mine in initial training at Southwest Airlines, and he was a hero by me and others but very humble about the event. He was a super great guy and sadly he passed away from cancer a few years before I retired.

In the early Lot F-18A, if you lost both 1553 MUX channels or had dual FCC fails after launch, you went to DEL - Direct Electric Link. No augmentation, no auto-trim, no yaw damper. The jet becomes very sensitive in pitch, and in roll it feels like it's hunting because the aileron and differential stab aren't scheduled together anymore.

At low altitude right after a cat shot - you're heavy, around 250-270 knots climbing out - that's the worst place to get it. You have to hand-fly pitch attitude with the stick force feeling all wrong and keep the beta under control with rudder because the yaw CAS is gone.

Guys who went through it described it as "balancing on a basketball." You can do it, but it's full-time work, and any PIO will overstress the airframe. The fact he got it to a field and landed out of it clean - no runway overrun, no ejection - means he never let it diverge.

That's why people remember it. It wasn't a flameout where you just glide - you had to actively fly a broken jet for 15-20 minutes.
No wonder your Southwest classmates still talk about it.

Even if the paperwork is buried in a 1984 HAZREP filing cabinet at Oceana, the story fits perfectly.

Early Lot F-18A, cat launch off Indy during CQ off Virginia Capes, FCC/DFCS drops to DEL / degraded right after rotation, pilot has to hand-fly it with no dampers, bingo's to a Cecil/Oceana shore field and saves the jet.

For 1984 that was a big deal - they were still writing the book on that airplane. The fleet fix later improved the FCC fail-op logic, but at that time saving one in that mode was a legitimate save.

Richard.

[Airguardian]

I can imagine the difficulty. With the aggravating factor of being INSIDE the plane. Not just the risk, but the nasty Gs.

Certainly not a fun position to be in.