Navy Nears Selection for Stealth Jet to Replace Super Hornet
The U.S. Navy is set to choose between Boeing and Northrop Grumman for its F/A-XX sixth-generation fighter, which will replace the aging F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fleet.
Reuters first reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth approved plans on Friday for the Navy to advance its F/A-XX competition, with the winner expected to be announced as soon as this week.
The F/A-XX will form the backbone of the Navy’s future air wing, operating alongside the F-35C and forthcoming uncrewed combat aircraft. The fighter is expected to feature extended range, enhanced stealth, and AI-enabled mission systems designed to counter China’s expanding air and missile reach in the Indo-Pacific.
Rear Adm. Michael Donnelly, the Navy’s director of Air Warfare, said at the Sea-Air-Space 2025 conference that the F/A-XX will offer “over 125 percent of the range” of today’s carrier-based fighters, surpassing the Super Hornet’s 500–650 nautical mile combat radius.
Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, described the program as vital given “the threat picture out in the Pacific.”
The company has earlier released conceptual renderings of a carrier-launched stealth jet, though design and cost details remain classified.
The F/A-18E/F Super Hornet was primarily designed by American aerospace manufacturer McDonnell Douglas, which merged with Boeing in 1997.
A Boeing win would follow its recent selection for the Air Force’s F-47 program. For Northrop Grumman, a contract would mark a return to prime fighter production since the F-14 Tomcat, the iconic U.S. Navy jet made famous by the 1986 film Top Gun.
