aircraft were produced in the US, with the remainder assembled in Australia at Government Aircraft Factories. F/A-18 deliveries to the RAAF began on 29 October 1984, and continued until May 1990. In 2001, Australia deployed four aircraft to Diego Garcia, in an air-defense role, during coalition operations against the Taliban in Afghanistan. In 2003, 75 Squadron deployed 14 F/A-18s to Qatar as part of Operation Falconer and these aircraft saw action during the invasion of Iraq. Australia had 71 Hornets in service in 2006, after four were lost to crashes. The fleet was upgraded beginning in the late 1990s to extend their service lives to 2015. They were expected to be retired then and replaced by the F-35 Lightning II. Several of the Australian Hornets have had refits applied to extend their service lives until the planned retirement date of 2020. Australia has also purchased 24 F/A-18F Super Hornets, with deliveries beginning in 2010. In March 2015, six F/A-18As from No. 75 Squadron were deployed to the Middle East as part of Operation Okra, replacing a detachment of Super Hornets. Australia has sold 25 F/A-18A/Bs to Canada with first two delivered to RCAF in February 2019. By 2021, 12 (A)F/A-18A and 6 (A)F/A-18B (and an additional 7 disassembled (A)F/A-18 for spare parts) were sold to the RCAF. At Wings Over Illawarra 2021, the Hornet performed its last public flying display before retirement. Australia formally retired the Hornet at RAAF Base Williamtown on 29 November 2021. On 30 November 2021, No. 75 Squadron RAAF flew 7 of the last Hornets from RAAF Base Tindal to RAAF Base Williamtown. On 3 December 2021, the last Hornet left RAAF Base Tindal for decommissioning. Due to inclement weather, the Hornet diverted to RAAF Base Townsville and concluded the final RAAF Hornet flight to RAAF Base Williamtown on 4 December 2021. Canada Canada was the first export customer for the Hornet, replacing the Canadair CF-104 Starfighter (air reconnaissance and strike), the McDonnell CF-101 Voodoo (air interception) and the Canadair CF-116 Freedom Fighter (ground attack). The Canadian Forces Air Command ordered 98 A models (Canadian designation CF-188A/CF-18A) and 40 B models (designation CF-188B/CF-18B). The original CF-18 as delivered was nearly identical to the F/A-18A and B models. Many features that made the F/A-18 suitable for naval carrier operations were retained by the Canadian Forces, such as the robust landing gear, the arrestor hook, and wing folding