Maintenance time cut by 50%: US Navy uses 3D printing to repair F/A-18 composite components

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When F/A-18s are grounded due to damage to composite components, the Navy loses frontline air combat capability. Traditional repair methods rely on highly specialized technicians and extensive supply chains, often requiring the aircraft?or the removed parts?to be transported back to rear-area bases for servicing. Composite repairs are particularly challenging; addressing issues such as laminate cracking, delamination, and impact damage requires precise control over temperature, pressure, and curing cycles?capabilities not typically available in a standard frontline hangar. Under traditional procedures, damage to composite components like engine access panels meant the fighter jet would remain grounded for an extended period. The solution proposed by NAWCAD and FRCSW is to bypass the need for sourcing replacement parts from the rear or sending components back to the factory, instead directly 3D-printing composite patches on-site at the front line to apply to the damaged area.