The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic twin engine all-weather night fighter and attack aircraft. The F/A-18s first flew in November 1978 and the first production flight on April 12, 1980. The first 380 aircraft were F/A-18As and in September 1987 production switched to the F/A-18C. Variants A and C are single-seat aircraft while B and D are tandem- seats. The Hornet can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases with the capability of in flight refueling. A total of 1,480 A-D variants were built.
McDonnell Douglas F/A-18D Hornet was c/n 1118, BuNo. 164685 and assigned to the USMC. In October 2004 the aircraft became the property of VMFA (AW)-121 “Green Knights” located at MCAS Miramar, California where it became the Boss Bird VK 01. 16485 left VMFA (AW)-121 for VMFA (AW)-242 Bats, VMFA (AW)-533 “Hawks” and in January 2012 F/A-18D Hornet 164685 was transferred to VMFA (AW)- 224 "Fighting Bengals" at MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina marked as WK 10.