--- title: "F/A-18 Legacy Hornets Have Left The Navy’s Carrier Decks For The Last Time" description: "U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18C Hornets returned home after the type’s final carrier deployment aboard USS Nimitz." date: "2021-02-26" modified: "2021-02-26" authors: - name: "Thomas Newdick" job_title: "Staff Writer" link: "https://www.twz.com/authors/thomas-newdick.md" url: "https://www.twz.com/39490/legacy-hornets-have-left-the-navys-carrier-decks-for-the-last-time" categories: - "Air" - "F/A-18" - "F/A-18A-D" - "Fighters" - "Naval Aviation" - "Navies" - "Sea" - "U.S. Navy" tags: - "Classic Hornet" - "Death Rattlers" - "F-35B" - "F-35C" - "F/A-18" - "F/A-18C" - "F/A-18D" - "Legacy Hornet" - "Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323" - "Miramar" - "US Marine Corps" - "US Navy" - "USS Nimitz" - "VMFA-323" --- # F/A-18 Legacy Hornets Have Left The Navy’s Carrier Decks For The Last Time ![]() *www.twz.com* F/A-18C/D Hornets have ended their almost four-decade tenure aboard the aircraft carriers of the U.S. Navy. The final carrier deployment by the "Legacy Hornet" has officially concluded after the return of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323, or VMFA-323, the “Death Rattlers,” from its final cruise [aboard the supercarrier USS *Nimitz*](). The squadron had been part of Carrier Air Wing 17 (CVW-17) embarked aboard the *Nimitz* during a mammoth 10-month deployment that saw the carrier operate primarily in the Middle East and Pacific regions. Ahead of the flattop’s imminent return to its homeport in Washington State, VMFA-323’s jets flew off the carrier and touched down at [Marine Corps Air Station Miramar]() in California yesterday. The “Death Rattlers” are based there, assigned to Marine Aircraft Group 11, part of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. ![message-editor%2F1614361556247-inlinemarinecorpslegacyhornetvmfa-323.jpg]() *An F/A-18C from VMFA-323 moments before launching off the flight deck of the USS *Nimitz* on February 19., *U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Charles DeParlier** The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group had [originally departed San Diego]() on June 8 last year, ultimately completing five [dual-carrier operations]() in the Western Pacific with the Ronald Reagan and Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Groups. It also supported Operations Freedom’s Sentinel in Afghanistan, Inherent Resolve in Iraq and Syria, and [Octave Quartz in East Africa](). VMFA-323 was the last of the Marine Corps Hornets squadrons committed to the TACAIR Integration agreement with the Navy, which involves the Marines providing carrier-capable squadrons that are integrated within carrier air wings. VMFA-323’s commander for its final cruise was Lieutenant Colonel William J. Mitchell. “It’s my pride and joy,” Mitchell [told]() the *San Diego Union-Tribune* about the legacy Hornet. “I was the last aircraft off the deck today and my entire maintenance department, all my Marines, were lined up along the foul line and rendering a salute as I got shot down \[catapult\] 3 one more time. That was one of the more emotional moments. Knowing it’s the end of an era is certainly bittersweet.” Now that the Hornet has bowed out of the TACAIR Integration initiative, its place will be taken by the F-35C, the first of 67 examples of the [carrier variant of the Joint Strike Fighter]() for the Marine Corps having arrived at Miramar in January last year. VMFA-314, the [initial Marine F-35C squadron](), is scheduled to deploy within a carrier air wing in 2022; eventually, there will be four such Marine F-35C squadrons available https://twitter.com/_/status/1365093465206362114 It’s fitting that the “Death Rattlers” flew the flag for the final Legacy Hornet carrier deployment as the squadron had also been the first in the Marines to take the F/A-18 aboard a carrier, going to sea on USS *Coral Sea* in October 1985. That same Mediterranean cruise also culminated in the Hornet’s combat debut, which involved attacks on Libyan patrol boats and the [Operation El Dorado Canyon raids]() on Libya. ![message-editor%2F1614361035513-dn-sc-93-00829.jpg]() *An F/A-18A from VMFA-323 assigned to the USS *Coral Sea* keeps a close eye on a Soviet Navy Il-38 May maritime patrol aircraft in 1986., *NATIONAL ARCHIVES** At that point, VMFA-323 was flying the first iteration of the Hornet, the F/A-18A, which the squadron had begun flying in September 1982, making it one of the very first operators of the type anywhere. In fact, the Marines got their hands on Hornet before the Navy, with VMFA-314 being the very first unit to attain operational status with the type, at MCAS El Toro in California in January 1983. The U.S. Navy followed the Marines’ lead, establishing its first two frontline squadrons with these aircraft later the same year. Before its tenure with the Hornet, the famous legacy of the “Death Rattlers” stretched back to August 1943, when it was established at Cherry Point in North Carolina. Between April 1945 and the surrender of Japanese forces in August, the squadron was credited with shooting down 124 Japanese aircraft in aerial combat without a single loss to an enemy pilot. Equally important was its provision of close air support to Marines on the ground in the final months of the war in the Pacific. Since then, the squadron has flown the F4U Corsair, F9F-2 Panther and F9F-8 Cougar, FJ-4 Fury, F8U-1 and -2 Crusader, [F-4B and N Phantom II](), and the F/A-18A and C Hornet. ![message-editor%2F1614362498215-210219-n-jx182-1148.jpg]() **U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Charles DeParlier** ![message-editor%2F1614361651846-210219-n-eb640-2044.jpg]() **U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Bryant Lang** ![message-editor%2F1614361706170-210219-n-jx182-1119.jpg]() **U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Charles DeParlier** ![message-editor%2F1614361794459-6527615.jpg]() **U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Olivia Banmally Nichols** For its part, the U.S. Navy’s last Legacy Hornet carrier deployment was by Strike Fighter Squadron 34 (VFA-34), which returned home in April 2018 from a deployment with CVW-2 on board USS *Carl Vinson*. VFA-34 gave up its last F/A-18C in February 2019 and then transitioned to the F/A-18E Super Hornet. You can read about the last days of that squadron’s legacy Hornet operations [here](). Meanwhile, at least for now, legacy Hornets still remain in the Navy inventory for a variety of second-line roles, including with [reserve and aggressor squadrons](). While we’ll never again see Legacy Hornets operating from carrier decks, VMFA-323 is also set to continue flying the type from the land. Once [Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 101]() (VMFAT-101) is decommissioned in Fiscal Year 2023, the “Death Rattlers” will take on its training role and will continue preparing the last generations of Marine Hornet pilots to fly the type until it’s finally withdrawn for good, something that is presently scheduled to occur 2030. Before then, however, VMFA-323 will trade its legacy Hornets for the short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) [F-35B variant]() of the Joint Strike Fighter. According to the [latest]() Marine Corps Aviation Plan, released in 2019, this should happen by 2028, a timeline that squadron boss Lieutenant Colonel Mitchell [confirmed]() yesterday. ![message-editor%2F1614361851879-190306-m-wi555-0324.jpg]() **PUBLIC DOMAIN** ![message-editor%2F1614361900480-190306-m-wi555-0385.jpg]() **PUBLIC DOMAIN** ![message-editor%2F1614361944423-190306-m-wi555-0396.jpg]() **PUBLIC DOMAIN** ![message-editor%2F1614361991076-190306-m-wi555-0458.jpg]() **PUBLIC DOMAIN** Up until the final retirement of its Legacy Hornets in 2030, the Marines will benefit from additional capabilities that are being added to these venerable jets. Around 84 Hornets have been selected for a series of upgrades that will see them out to 10,000 flight hours while introducing new technology that will enable them to bridge the gap to 2030. You can read all about these wide-ranging improvements in this [previous *War Zone* story](). So, while it might not yet be the end for the Legacy Hornet in U.S. service, a significant chapter in naval aviation has now come to an end. But, in the form of the [F/A-18E/F Super Hornet]() and the [EA-18G Growler](), the DNA of the versatile and powerful F/A-18A-D Hornet will continue aboard Navy carriers for many years to come. *Contact the author: thomas@thedrive.com* ## Author Thomas Newdick is a staff writer at *TWZ*, where he covers military aviation, defense technology, weapons systems, and international security. Based in Berlin, Germany, he reports on conflicts, military modernization efforts, and emerging aerospace technologies around the world, with a particular interest in airpower and its role in contemporary warfare. His reporting is informed by deep expertise in modern and historical airpower, particularly in Europe, with a focus on military aviation, air campaigns, and aerospace developments across the continent and beyond. Over a journalism career spanning more than 25 years, Thomas has become known for making complex defense and aerospace topics accessible to a broad audience. His reporting combines technical expertise, historical context, and a focus on the real-world operational and strategic implications of military developments. ### Author social links [Twitter]()