US Navy plan to transition FA-18 jets to F-35C, NAS Lemoore could be home to new jets

LEMOORE, Calif. (KFSN) -- Increasing nationalist security, the United States Navy is looking to upgrade immoderate of its combatant jets.

The Navy is presently preparing an Environmental Impact Statement, oregon EIS, arsenic they program to modulation Seven FA-18E/F squadrons to F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter squadrons.

"The F-35C is the astir precocious craft presently flown by the Navy. The Air Force has their variant, the F-35A, and the Marine Corps has their variant, the F-35B, and each of these craft are fundamentally being deployed each implicit the satellite close now," says Installations and Environmental Public Affairs Officer, Ted Brown.

Brown explains the extremity of the EIS is to analyse the effects the alteration mightiness person connected the environment.

The 7 caller squadrons, which would full 70 jets, would beryllium based retired of the Naval Air Station Oceana successful Virginia Beach oregon Lemoore, which is already location to immoderate of the Navy's apical air-craft, including immoderate F-35C's.

If Lemoore is chosen, Brown says, "The F-A-18 Super Hornet craft that are astatine NAS Lemoore present volition modulation implicit to NAS Oceana, and NAS Lemoore volition big each of the F-35C aircraft. If not, they volition beryllium based connected some coasts."

The location basing process would instrumentality astir 10 years, starting successful 2029.

The task would necessitate upgrades to whichever installation is chosen.

Eventually, the F/A-18 Super Hornets volition beryllium phased retired and replaced with the F-35Cs which are harder to detect.

"This is precise important to our nationalist security, to person modern, very, precocious craft connected our craft carriers, deploying each implicit the satellite to support the U.S. nationalist interests," explains Brown.

In a statement, NAS Lemoore Joint Strike Fighter Wing Commodore, Captain Barrett Smith shared, ""Regardless of the result of the EIS study, NAS Lemoore is arrogant to service arsenic the location of the Navy's F-35C community. The men and women who fly, maintain, and enactment this craft basal astatine the forefront of America's committedness to a escaped and unfastened Indo-Pacific and a unafraid planetary maritime domain. The F-35C is much than an craft - it is the cornerstone of the Navy's 5th-generation aerial powerfulness and a captious concern successful the information of our federation and its allies for decades to come."

The Environmental Impact Statement should beryllium implicit by 2027.

In the meantime, nationalist remark is unfastened for the adjacent 30 days and volition beryllium unfastened done January 4th, 2026.

Ultimately, the last determination volition beryllium made by the U.S. Navy Secretary.

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