Photo: Boeing.Īccording to The War Zone, it is possible that the problem has to do with the ability of a CFT-equipped aircraft to handle the structural stress of landing or taking off from aircraft carriers, as well as the structure of the tanks itself. France's Dassault and the multinational consortium Eurofighter also offered their Rafale and Typhoon fighters with the CFT, but neither made use of the tanks operationally.Īdvanced Super Hornet demonstrator with conformal tanks and “stealth pod”.

Fighters like the F-16, F-15E (and derivatives) and the MiG-29SMT use CFT. The equipment has advantages as it does not generate as much aerodynamic drag as an underwing tank, in addition to freeing up hangers for the use of weapons. The manufacturer's statement that the tanks are still available for Canada and Finland – two countries that will not use the fighter from a vessel – further reinforces that the problem may actually be related to operations on aircraft carriers.ĬFTs are additional tanks mounted on the aircraft fuselage. In January, the Navy told the magazine Aviation Week that technical, structural and sustainment problems arose when CFTs were tested on aircraft carriers.

The two countries are seeking replacements for their F/A-18C/D Hornet fighters, of which the Super Hornet is a 'direct descendant'. 6, 2021, to pause the development of the CFT Engineering Change Proposal, citing struggles with cost, schedule and performance.'īoeing says that even so, the tanks are still available to export customers such as Finland and Canada. Navy spokesperson, 'The US Navy issued stop-work orders to The Boeing Company for work related to Conformal Fuel Tanks (CFTs) on Jan.

Also on the platform, Martin said a Navy spokesperson said the Navy had ordered Boeing to halt development work on the CFT Engineering Change Proposal, citing difficulties with cost, schedule and performance. The information was obtained by Tim Martin, aviation editor of the defense portal Shephard media. On Twitter, Martin said that the manufacturer said that the fighters coming off the assembly line will have provisions to receive the tanks in the future. While Boeing, the maker of the jets, says it does not expect to deliver any CFT Block IIIs to the US Navy, the Navy has also reportedly issued a formal stoppage order on the equipment. The US Navy's F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III fighter jets will no longer have conformal fuel tanks (CFT) installed in the fuselage.

Military jets with wing fuel tanks