The F-18 is truly one of my most favorite jets. I love the sleek sexy lines, and I’ve always had a soft spot for dual slanted rudders. The whole picture of the F-18 really works, and when you think about all of the capabilities of the F-18 it’s not hard to fall in love. The F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic, all-weather carrier-capable multi-role jet, designed to attack both ground and aerial targets. The F/A-18 was derived from the YF-17 in the 1970s for use by the United States Navy and Marine Corps. The Hornet is also used by the air forces of several other nations.
It has been the aerial demonstration aircraft for the U.S. Navy’s Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, since 1986. The fighter’s primary missions are fighter escort, fleet air defense, suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD), air interdiction, close air support and aerial reconnaissance. Its versatility and reliability have proven it to be a valuable carrier asset, though it has been criticized for its lack of range and payload compared to its earlier contemporaries, such as the F-14 Tomcat in the fighter and strike fighter role, and the A-6 Intruder and A-7 Corsair II in the attack role.
Designing an EPP Jet
We designed our jet series to have blistering performance using EPP. EPP will take the abuse of day to day flying and is very resistant to the dreaded hangar rash. Many said we could not break the 100mph speed limit using EPP, so I set out to prove them wrong. EPP is a soft gummy material that will flex and move under flight loads. At high speeds this material will succumb to the forces of air pressure, twisting and bending and will eventually cause a crash. Well, since we don’t yet have a wind tunnel for testing I decided to place a camera on an EPP airframe and record just what was going on at high speed. And sure enough, twisting, bending and warping took place in specific areas. After a few flights I had all the data I needed to create a solid EPP airframe that would survive a reasonable crash.
When I painted the EPP I discovered that the paint actually reinforced the material and took away most of its bad habits. I spray painted it heavy so the paint would soak in well on both sides. The paint hardened the material and crash damage stayed the same which was a ripping of the material and is very easy to glue back together. The downside of heavy painting is 2 to 3 days of dry time, but it’s worth it, and the weight reduction after the 2nd day is dramatic. Strategic placement of carbon is also very important for each design and is dictated by the data acquired from the camera. If you watch the 100 mph video you will see there is still some flexing which is ok.
Once the problems were worked out we looked for a motor that could take us to the limit. I had a large ducted fan motor
lying around, so I reversed the shaft and stuck on a prop. Holy Moly that bad boy took us to around 105 mph per radar gun. Not really practical though, too heavy, but we broke the so called limit. I knew I needed to find a lightweight powerhouse. After searching, I finally found a 5.5 wind high 3500 KV 38,000 RPM motor that was originally designed for helicopters, and after some factory modifications I had my motor. Now for the prop testing to keep from burning them up. After several tests and a few burned up motors we found the perfect prop in an APC 5.5 x 2.5, 39A static and a bit lower in the air. This motor is a screamer and light weight as well only 47 grams. It will take all our jets vertical including the SR-71 as if gravity didn’t exist. The F-18 grooves like it’s on rails, rolls are blistering and landings are smooth and predictable. Any intermediate flyer will have no problem flying this bird.
We will be demonstrating all of our EPP jets at Fly Ins across the country so if you have a chance check us out.
