On December 4, the last active F/A-18 of the Australian Air Force landed at the Williamtown Airport and passed the Watergate. The plane was originally scheduled to transfer on November 30, but was forced to postpone it until December 4 due to mechanical failure and weather. Frequent failures are also an important reason for the Australian army's determination to replac these aircraft. (Photo: Yun Dian)

The "Williamtown" Air Force base, two hours' drive north of Sydney, has been dubbed the "Hive" by local residents because it has deployed the most F/A-18s.

In November 1985, the Australian Air Force received the first Hornet here. By 1989, the Australian Air Force had received a total of 75 Hornets.

On December 4, 2021, with the last "Bumblebee" transferred from "Townsville" in Queensland to "William City", after 36 years, the Australian Air Force finally officially said "goodbye" to the "Bumblebee". -The wealthy Australian Air Force directly replaced all the "Hornets" with F-35s.

But not all countries "have mines at home" like Australia.

In recent years, the air power of many countries has been facing the replacement of the old and the new, but the problem is that the current fighters have been in use for more than 30 years, but the new generation of fighters has been delayed.

Most of the early fourth-generation aircraft were designed and manufactured during the Cold War, and they are now "very old." Not only has all aspects of performance fallen short of the times, but the lifespan of the aircraft is also low, leading to frequent accidents and rising maintenance costs.

On the other hand, the new generation of stealth fighters available for trade on a global scale continue to be "out of stock." After all, the fifth-generation aircraft currently available in the international military trade market is only a "single seedling" of F-35.