The subsidiary question is I suppose how many legacy Hornet squadrons are there in the fleet
3 active and 1 reserve squadrons. That’s 48 aircraft - the number being purchased next year. Every one after that are attrition/fatigue life spares.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...raft_squadrons
“.....The F-35C is a fifth-generation strike fighter that was originally planned to replace the F/A-18C Hornet, but expiring F/A-18C service life and delays in F-35C procurement forced the Navy to increase its buy of F/A-18E and F Super Hornets to replace F/A-18C Hornets while awaiting the arrival of the F-35C. As of 2018, all but three active component F/A-18C Hornet squadrons and the single reserve component Hornet squadron had transitioned to the F/A-18E or F Super Hornet. The first deployable squadron to transition to the F-35C is a Super Hornet squadron. Ultimately the three active component Hornet squadrons will transition to either the Super Hornet or F-35C......”
I suppose they could use the few F-35Cs they’ve bought as replacements for their
aggressor Sqns....
The question is what happens to the planned USMC F-35C squadrons (not B). The USN buy their aircraft, will they press on with a stand-alone force where the USMC will be the sole customer, or switch some of those to new Super Hornets as well?
The 2 EW squadrons would seem logical to switch to F-18G, three of the 10 fighter squadrons have already equipped with the F-35B, so the rest I assume will do likewise. That leaves the 4 AWX squadrons which would seem too small a viable force and could also simply change from the Hornet to Super Hornet. The planned buy of 86 by 2023 would seem adequate/designed to cover that contingency.....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...raft_squadrons