Spanish EF-18M Hornets to continue operations until 2035

The Ejército del Aire y del Espacio (EdAE, Spanish Air and Space Force) will continue operating their fleet of EF-18M/BM Hornets until 2035.

In 2023, the Spanish Ministry of Defence initiated three contracts to supply materials for the EF-18M Hornet fleet. The latest contract, approved this week, is valued at 40 million euros and will provide the necessary materials to sustain the fleet for the next 10 years. The overall plan included the acquisition of 20 General Electric F404 afterburning turbofan engines, with the first eight already delivered to Zaragoza Air Base.

The second-hand engines are acquired through the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program from the US Navy and sourced from the 309th AMARG facility at Davis-Monthan AFB (AZ). The engines were selected by the US Navy and inspected by Spanish Air Force personnel.

The Hornets are flown by Ala 12 at Torréjon Air Base and Ala 15 at Zaragoza Air Base. According to the Scramble Magazine military database, the two Fighter Wings currently have 62 operational Hornets.

Credit photo: Jose Damian Gonzáles (Scramble Archive)