After we introduced Navy fighter pilot Charles to our rockery weekend fun, he showed us how he started the day…. in this F/A-18 Superhornet, the Navy’s newest strike-fighter aircraft, also called the Rhino for the little bump on the nose (aligned with the refueling probe in this shot; see notes above).
After takeoff, the front landing gear you see here would not retract, which was a bit alarming at first, but he got the rear gear back down for a nominal landing.
We then took a tour of Naval Air Station Lemoore, the Navy’s newest and largest Master Jet Base. It now hosts the Navy’s entire west coast fighter/attack capability, with 175 F/A-18 planes. More photos below and on the following pages.
Thank you Charles, for your generosity as host, and for all that you do. We are thinking of you this weekend.
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