Revision of air-to-air armament on the Swiss premium F/A-18C and adjustment of battle rating

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Switzerland, which has operated the F/A-18C/D Hornet since 1997, faced the need to modernize its fighter fleet in the 2010s to maintain combat readiness. The primary efforts focused on upgrading avionics and expanding the weapons arsenal, including the integration of newer air-to-air missiles. The installation of the improved AN/APG-73 radar (replacing the older AN/APG-65) with enhanced detection and tracking capabilities allowed the aircraft to carry more advanced missiles. However, in War Thunder, the premium Swiss F/A-18C is not well implemented.

1. Real Life

The Swiss Air Force upgraded their Hornets to carry:

  • Better radar (AN/APG-73 instead of old AN/APG-65)
  • Improved missiles, aim9m or other one
  • Other small improvements

Official documents confirm they had better missiles by the late 1990s.

2. The Problem in War Thunder

Right now, the Swiss F/A-18C sits at BR 12.7 but has:

  • AIM-9L and AIM-7P missiles (so sad missiles)

  • No good options for close air combat

AIM-9L troubles:

  • Get fooled by just 1 flare
  • Can’t turn well, enemies easily dodge them
  • Have short range

3. Why This Sucks

Flying this plane feels unfair because:

  • You face jets with R-73, Python 3, AIM-9M
  • Your missiles miss 80% of the time
  • Even if you fly perfectly, you lose to worse pilots with better missiles

4. The Fix Is Simple

Just give it the better missiles it had in real life, like aim120B

This would:

  • Make the plane actually playable
  • Keep it historical, Switzerland DID use these missiles

5. Conclusion

The current implementation of the F/A-18C does not reflect its real combat capabilities. Adding new missiles like AIM-9M and AIM-120B is necessary change to restore balance without disrupting gameplay. This adjustment aligns with both historical facts and fair gameplay principles.

I would also like to mention that even at 12.3, there are aircraft with very good missiles, such as the MiG-21 Bison or the French Mirage with Matra Magic 2.

2

Aislop

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Swiss Air Force never had AIM-9M. We used AIM-9P-5 on the Hornet before they were replaced by the AIM-9X. The first AMRAAM-variant we got was AIM-120B, not A. Today we got AIM-120C-7.

Yep.

Nope.

5 Likes
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See also here: [Dev] Swiss F/A-18C’s missing AIM-9P-4/5 Sidewinders // Gaijin.net // Issues

5

First off all it never had those missiles
Second of all there is a Swiss hornet at 14.0 with those missiles and all the upgrades you are asking for

6

Reminder that the US F/A-18C Early sits at the exact same price and BR with far inferior equipment, if the Swiss hornet is somehow suffering worse you are doing something wrong.

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7

no he is asking for the 12.7 hornet to get everything the 14.0 ones have (while staying at the same br i assume)

which is just crazy

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  • AiM-7P were chosen instead of AiM-120B in order to keep the BR low and make the Aircraft actually usable (the TT one isn’t as good because of it’s 14.0 BR)

  • you’re right, Switzerland didn’t use AiM-9L, instead they used the Much worse AiM-9P4/5

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regardless of anything you say, the premium f18s are the way they are because gaijin wanted them to be 12.7, you just dont want to grind to the 14.0 hornet like a normal person would

and they have significant downsides that allow for them to be at those BRs with said missiles, downsides that the F18 does not share

10

i wouldn’t call the p5 a worse 9l, it has a 9m seekerhead

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9M seeker but 9J Motor and control surfaces

it definitely is worse than 9L