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Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price has announced that the first of two F/A-18A Hornets has arrived in Canberra for heritage display at the Australian War Memorial.
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Two ‘Classic’ Hornets have been allocated to the Australian War Memorial for heritage display, with the F/A-18A Hornet A21-022 arriving at the Treloar Technology Centre in Canberra from RAAF Base Williamtown on Tuesday, 27 October.
The aircraft was partially disassembled for transport and will be reassembled by Boeing Defence Australia over the month of November before delivery to the War Memorial at an official handover ceremony in December.
Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price noted the historical significance of the aircraft, adding that its arrival at the War Memorial marks a major step in the preservation of Australian war history.
“This is a special aircraft for the RAAF,” Minister Price said.
“It employed the first Australian weapon on Operation Falconer in 2003, and was also deployed on Operation Okra in 2016-2017.
“It is very fitting that it will now spend its next life on permanent display at the Australian War Memorial.”
The minister added: “This will be a fantastic opportunity for generations of Australians to view and appreciate [an] example of Australian Air Force capability.”
The A21-022 was decommissioned on 14 May 2020, after 30 years in service and 6,131.5 flying hours with the RAAF.
[Related: RAAF P-8A Poseidon completes air-to-air refuelling test]
