Hornet Radar Trainer

An unofficial, interactive trainer for the F/A-18C Hornet's AN/APG-73 radar, for newcomers. It does not depend on any particular flight sim.

New here? Read the User Guide for controls, how to read the display and what each lesson teaches.

What the site includes:

• Radar display (DDI): a simplified B-scope display with its 20 pushbuttons.
• Cockpit controls: throttle and stick controls (TDC, antenna elevation, castle switch, undesignate), plus simple flight.
• Radar modes:
  • RWS / TWS / STT;
  • close-range auto-lock (ACM: BST, VACQ, WACQ);
  • IFF and NCTR identification, shown with HAFU symbols;
  • the Doppler notch.
• Instructor map: a toggleable "truth" map (top-down and side view).
• Learning: a first-visit tutorial, eight lessons, and free play with random encounters, an AWACS tasking, a clock and a score.
• Reference: explainers, a controls reference, a glossary and sources, below the cockpit.

Run it

npm install
npm run dev      # http://localhost:3000
npm test         # simulation, renderer and lesson tests (node:test, needs a recent Node with type stripping)
npm run lint     # eslint
npm run build    # static export in out/

Controls

Key	Control
W A S D (or drag pad)	TDC: move the cursor
Space	Designate / lock
R / F	Antenna elevation
I / K / J	Castle fwd (ACM) / aft (VACQ) / left (WACQ)
O	Castle press: IFF
U	Undesignate / break lock
Arrows	Fly: ←/→ turn, ↑/↓ nose down/up (Shift = fine)
+ / −	Speed
M / P	Instructor map / pause

Project layout

Folder	Contents
lib/sim/	Framework-free simulation: geometry, antenna, detection, trackfiles, identification, ACM, the radar mode machine, pushbuttons, encounters, free play
lib/ddi/	Canvas renderers: DDI, HUD window, instructor map
lib/lessons/	Tutorial and lessons as data, plus walkthrough tests that prove each one can be completed
components/	The cockpit UI and the page sections

Design docs:

• Research: docs/research/apg-73.md
• Spec: docs/superpowers/specs/
• Plans: docs/superpowers/plans/

Every tunable number is in lib/sim/constants.ts; values marked ESTIMATE are not public.

Deploy

The site is a static export, served by nginx in a container on 127.0.0.1:3100. Put your own reverse proxy in front of it (e.g. Caddy: reverse_proxy 127.0.0.1:3100).

docker compose up -d --build

To ship a new version, git pull and run the same command again.

Disclaimer

• Unofficial.
• Built from public sources, with simplified and partly estimated numbers.
• Not affiliated with the US Navy, Boeing, RTX or Eagle Dynamics.
• Not for real-world training.