F/A-18E/F SUPER HORNET PRODUCTION TO CONTINUE FOR NAVY, BOOSTING F414 TURBOFAN DEMAND
NEWTOWN, Conn. -- GE continues to produce the F404 and F414 military engines for several aircraft programs.
The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler electronic warfare variant have accounted for a huge number of F414 engines produced over the past decade, but production has fallen. The U.S. Navy is facing a looming fighter gap as it waits for the Lockheed Martin F-35C carrier variant to complete development, and the service and Boeing have successfully lobbied Congress to extend production of the Super Hornet to keep the F/A-18 line open in case the F-35C is delayed even further. The service procured 24 aircraft in FY19 and plans to acquire at least 84 more from FY20-FY24.
We expect the Navy to continue to extend production until it has a firm handle on the F-35's production schedule and life-cycle cost estimates, since, if the F-35 proves an expensive aircraft to maintain on carrier fleets, the Navy may need to continue to procure both aircraft into the late 2020s.
Meanwhile, Kuwait ordered 28 Super Hornets in March 2018 - 22 single-seat E models and six dual-seat F models. These will be delivered in 2019-2021. The desert kingdom may add to its order in the future. The F414 is also used by Saab's next-generation Gripen fighter. Saab had garnered orders for 96 Gripen NGs by late 2017: 60 Gripen E single-seaters for the Swedish Air Force and 28 Gripen E and eight Gripen F two-seaters for the Brazilian Air Force.
Production of the F404 engine now involves two applications: the Korean-made T-50 jet trainer and its FA-50 light fighter variant, and India's Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA). Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has made inroads into the world jet trainer/light attack market with the T-50, an aircraft it developed with the assistance of Lockheed Martin.
The Indian Tejas program has suffered from long delays and is now ramping up production of an initial overweight and underpowered "Mk 1" version of the light fighter. The Indian government is currently planning to acquire over 100 LCAs in the coming years. This initial version of the aircraft is the subject of an ambitious weight-cutting program to increase performance. While even the lighter Mk 1A variant is not suitable for full-spectrum operations, the Indian Air Force is truly desperate to replace its fleet of old MiG 21s and will have to deal with the aircraft's limitations. HAL is developing an upgraded "Mk 2" version featuring the more powerful F414 engine, but it is increasingly likely that this variant will never enter service. We no longer forecast production of the F414 for this application.
One major new application for the F404 is the Boeing/Saab T-X trainer that will replace the U.S. Air Force's fleet of over 400 elderly T-38 jet trainers. The T-X program will create demand for hundreds of new F404 engines during its production run. The aircraft, which will eventually receive a new designation from the Air Force, will also be a strong competitor on the world jet trainer market.
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