The F/A-18 Hornet: McDonnell Douglas’ Iconic All-Weather Combat Jet

September 28th 1981 – A McDonnell-Douglas F/A-18A-3-MC Hornet, BuNo 160782, out of NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, was conducting a Navair test when it released a vertical ejector bomb rack with an inert Mk. 82 bomb from the port wing. A drop tank from the F-18 shears off the outer starboard wing of Douglas TA-4J Skyhawk camera chase plane, BuNo 156896, which erupts in flame and immediately departs controlled flight. Thankfully, both crew successfully eject from the stricken Skyhawk chase plane be