Major Antonio “Mancebo” Marin

Major Antonio “Mancebo” Marin is an EF-18M pilot and current squadron leader in the Spanish Air Force who recently conducted an interview with retired Hellenic Airforce A-7 and F-16 pilot Manolis Lourakis on Fighter Pilot X Podcast, during this podcast we learn more about Mancebo and his time in the EF-5M, the EF-18M as well as his deployments for Nato Air policing, what it means to be a squadron leader, as well as some of the history and technical specifics of the Spanish EF-18A and M. “Mancebo” is very active on Social media and posts incredible footage from inside the cockpit enabling viewers to see what life is like flying inside an advanced fighter aircraft on a day to day basis which will be linked below.

The Spanish “Custom” Hornet EF-18M

During the 80’s Spain was looking for a modern fighter aircraft that could serve the Ejército del Aire into the 2000’s and onwards, after testing a few 4th gen aircraft including the F-16, Spain opted to order 60 F-18As and 12 F-18Bs in the early 1990’s, as we hear in the interview with Major Antonio Mancebo Marin, part of this agreement it was decided that Construcciones Aeronauticas SA (CASA) would have access to the source code of the EF-18A which would enable the Spanish Airforce to freely upgrade the EF-18 to keep pace with technological advancements.

After the EF-18 was upgraded in the 1990’s to the F-18C standard (EF-18A+ and EF-18B) the Ejército del Aire decided to further upgrade the Spanish Hornet to the EF-18M standard, this is what the Spanish Airforce is flying today, this upgrade includes many new technologies not available to other F-18 users, Such as the integration of the Diehl IRIS-T short range AAM and the Taurus KPED 350 long range cruise missile, Major Marin also describes the addition of the Scorpion HMS which gives the pilot full color symbology enhancing SA, as well as a new UFC and moving map display. All of these upgrades and features enable the EF-18M to remain at the leading edge of technology and serve the Ejército del Aire into the 2030’s and beyond.

Lack of the Launch Bar on Spanish F-18 Hornets

We hear from “Mancebo” that when the Ejército del Aire first took delivery of the EF-18A, they had the launch bar at the front of the aircraft removed in order to save weight and maintenance time on the hydraulic lines needed to raise and lower the launch bar for carrier operations. This however came with an unintended side effect, It was found that when landing the EF-18A in crosswind conditions, the nose wheel of the aircraft would enter a “shimmy” (Move suddenly and violently back and forth) effect around 75-90 knots. This would also cause more fatigue in the airframe. This problem was later eliminated with the addition of a piece of metal with the exact weight and shape of the launch bar being added to the nose wheel.

You can hear more about the EF-18M, NATO air policing deployments in the interview linked below.

Photo credit: Manolis Lourakis and Antonio “Mancebo” Marin