Navy-Marine Corps Strike-Fighter Shortfall: Background and Options for Congress

Navy and Marine Corps Strike-Fighters. The Navy and Marine Corps, which are both part of the Department of the Navy DON, each operate hundreds of strikefighters, which are tactical aircraft that can conduct both air-to-ground i.e., strike and air-to-air i.e., fighter operations. Strike-fighters constitute the majority of the aircraft in each of the Navys 10 active-duty aircraft carrier air wings CVWs of the 70 or more aircraft typically embarked on a Navy aircraft carrier, 44 are strike-fighters. Strikefighters also constitute a significant portion of the Marine Corps three active-duty Marine air wings MAWs. Some Marine Corps strike-fighters are assigned to Navy CVWs. The principal strike-fighter operated by the Navy and Marine Corps is the FA-18 HornetSuper Hornet, manufactured by Boeing. The older A through D models of the FA-18 are called Hornets, while the newer, larger, and more capable E and F models are called Super Hornets. The Navy operates more than 600 Hornets and Super Hornets, while the Marine Corps operates more than 200 Hornets, plus roughly 130 AV-8B Harriers, which are short takeoff, vertical landing STOVL attack aircraft.