The McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet is a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) variant of the American McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft. In 1980, the F/A-18 was selected as the winner of the New Fighter Aircraft Project competition and awarded a production order; deliveries of the CF-18 to the Canadian Armed Forces began in 1982. CF-18s have supported North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) air sovereignty patrols and participated in combat during the Gulf War in 1991, the Kosovo War in the late 1990s, and as part of the Canadian contribution to the international Libyan no-fly zone in 2011. CF-18s were also part of the Canadian contribution to the military intervention against ISIL, Operation Impact.
The first preproduction McDonnell Douglas YF-18A Hornet built for the U.S. Navy in October 1978.
The underside of the aircraft, with a false canopy painted on its underside.
The Lockheed Martin Sniper XR on a CF-18
Royal Canadian Air Force
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The Royal Canadian Air Force is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2020, the Royal Canadian Air Force consists of 12,074 Regular Force and 1,969 Primary Reserve personnel, supported by 1,518 civilians, and operates 258 manned aircraft and nine unmanned aerial vehicles. Lieutenant-General Eric Kenny is the current Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force and Chief of the Air Force Staff.
Two armourers of No 440 Squadron RCAF re-arming a Hawker Typhoon in the Netherlands, 1944
An RCAF CIM-10 Bomarc missile on a launch erecter in North Bay. Viewed as an alternative to the scrapped Avro Arrow, the Bomarc's adoption was controversial given its nuclear payload.
An RCAF CF-18 Hornet during Operation Impact, 2015. CF-18s have been used by the RCAF since 1983.
An RCAF CC-150 Polaris refuelling two CF-18 Hornets near CFB Borden