Let’s hope that Boeing does a whole lot better job building the thing than Lockheed has in just about anything they have done since Kelly Johnson died and the stream of bidenites joined the company in a succession of drones. Maybe someone in the US can show we still have people who can do something right besides Space X.
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The 18 is a McDonnel-Douglas airplane so wouldn’t this be one of the first Boeing airplanes for the Navy since the FB series?
Only if you are counting carrier aircraft. Boeing makes the P-8 Poseidon for the Navy, replacing the P-3 Orion.
But given Boeing's track record with military aircraft - their Air Force Tanker program KC-46 has been a disaster with cost overruns and years behind schedule, and a refueling system that doesn't work in many lighting conditions - I wouldn't hold very high expectations from them.