U.S. Navy test pilot Cdr. Tom Gurney was at the controls of F/A-18F1 as the aircraft soared through the 1,000 flight-hour barrier at 1:30 EDT. Gurney's flight lasted 2.3 hours.

"The Super Hornet continues to perform in an outstanding manner, and the Integrated Test Team at Patuxent River is doing a superb job," said Capt. James Godwin F/A-18 program manager for the U.S. Navy.

Flights earlier in the day by Lt. Cdr. Dave Dunaway, Lt. Frank Morley, and McDonnell Douglas test pilot Dave Desmond, set the stage for Gurney's milestone flight by bringing the flight-hour total to 998.6 hours.

The ITT achieved another breakthrough in the flight test program on May 5 when McDonnell Douglas test pilot Phil Pirozzi fired an AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) from F/A-18F2.

The F/A-18E/F Super Hornet has consistently demonstrated high performance, first in clearing the supersonic flight envelope, then during initial carrier sea trials aboard the USS John C. Stennis in January.

The Super Hornet ITT is now evaluating the weapon release envelope. For example, the Super Hornet added yet another page to naval aviation history when test pilot Lt. Tom Hole fired an AIM-9 missile from F/A-18F2 on April 5. It was the first missile launched from a Super Hornet.

The Super Hornet team has also fired AIM-7, AIM-120 and ALE-47 (flares), and has released a SLAM missile; a Harpoon missile; a ripple of 10 Mk-82 bombs; MK-83 bombs; 480-gallon tanks, from both the aircraft's centerline position and wing stations; and dual loads of CBU-100s (Rockeyes). The Super Hornet has also successfully deployed the ALE-50 towed decoy.

Now in the second year of a three-year flight test program, development of the Super Hornet remains on schedule and on budget.