ST. LOUIS, Nov. 04, 1996 -- The first Swiss-assembled F/A-18 Hornet successfully completed its first flight in Switzerland on Oct. 3. The one hour and 16 minute flight took place over the Bernese Oberland (Interlaken).
Test pilots Res Schmid and Bernhard Berset gave the F/A-18 two-seat aircraft high marks. "A good aircraft in excellent condition," Schmid said.
Final assembly and ramp activities for this and 31 additional aircraft are being done at the Swiss Aircraft and Systems Co. in Emmen, near Lucerne, Switzerland. The aircraft required approximately 17,000 man-hours to assemble and must successfully complete 250 tests before the Swiss Defense Procurement Agency turns over the aircraft to the Swiss air force early next year.
Switzerland has contracted to purchase 34 F/A-18s. Deliveries to the Swiss air force will take place between 1997 and 1999.
The first F/A-18D for the Swiss air force made its first flight on Jan. 20, 1996, and was rolled out at a ceremony at McDonnell Douglas in St. Louis on Jan. 25, 1996.
The second U.S.-produced Swiss aircraft, an F/A-18C, made its maiden flight in St. Louis on April 8, 1996. Both aircraft are undergoing weapons system testing at Patuxent River, Md., and China Lake, Calif., prior to delivery to Switzerland in December 1996 and mid-1997 respectively.
96-279
McDonnell Douglas
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