National Museum of Transportation near Kirkwood in St. Louis County, Missouri — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
F/A-18 E1 Super Hornet
First Flight
Photographed by Thomas Smith, February 8, 2026
1. F/A-18 E1 Super Hornet Marker
The first Super Hornet, F/A- 18 E1 flew from Lambert Field on November 29, 1995 piloted by Fred "Mad' Madenwald. One of seven test aircraft, E1 arrived at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland on Feb 14, 1996. Its primary mission was envelope expansions to test flutter, flying qualities and subsystems functionality. E1 flew its final mission, Flight 573, on May 19, 2005.
The F/A 18 E/F Super Hornet is a U. S. Navy carrier - based supersonic fighter/ attack jet. Built by Boeing in St. Louis, Missouri715 Duper Hornets will be delivered to the U. S. Navy by2027.
Volunteers met on the Museum's campus during 2024to r4eassemble this aircraft. Many of these volunteers worked on F/A - 18 E1 during its original production in the 1990s and find great pride in knowing the cosmetically restored aircraft found a home in the town where it started - St. Louis. It is a labor of love.
[Caption:]
This F/A-18 E1 (BuNo 165164) is on loan courtesy of the National Naval Aviation Museum on behalf of Navy History and Heritage Command
Erected by National Museum of Transportation.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • Military. A significant historical year for this entry is 1995.
Location. 38° 34.395′ N, 90° 27.847′ W. Marker is near Kirkwood, Missouri, in St. Louis County. It is in National Museum of Transportation. It is on Barrett Station Road 0.1 miles Ozark Drive, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2933 Barrett Station Rd, Saint Louis MO 63122, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Greater St. Louis. It is also in the American Midwest, in the Lewis & Clark Corridor, in the Corn Belt, and in the Great River Road Region. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere,
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Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: #J13218 (a few steps from this marker); F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet (a few steps from this marker); Road Rollers (a few steps from this marker); #3 "Aerotrain" (within shouting distance of this marker); St. Joe Minerals Corporation Shovel (within shouting distance of this marker); St. Joe Mining Corporation Ore Train #5441 (within shouting distance of this marker); Museum of Transportation - A Layout of the Land (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Who Is Owney The Dog? (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Kirkwood.
Photographed by Thomas Smith, February 8, 2026
2. F/A-18 E1 Super Hornet Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on June 29, 2026. It was originally submitted on February 9, 2026, by Thomas Smith of Waterloo, Ill. This page has been viewed 75 times since then. Last updated on June 26, 2026, by Garrett Koch of Saint Louis, Missouri. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 9, 2026, by Thomas Smith of Waterloo, Ill. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
Editor’s want-list for this marker. Verification of the marker's actual geocoordinates. • Can you help?
