In 1975 the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps chose the F/A-18 Hornet to replace the F-4 Phantom II, A-4 Skyhawk, and A-7 Corsair II as a multi-role fighter and attack aircraft. Regarded as an affordable single-seat aircraft, it allowed its pilot to shift rapidly between attack and fighter roles. From 1979 to late 1982, the F/A-18A underwent an extensive flight test program centered at NAS Patuxent River. First-generation F/A-18As were later succeeded by increasingly capable versions, including the larger single-seat F/A-18E and two-seat F/A-18F Super Hornets. F/A-18s have seen combat in nearly every U.S. campaign since 1986 and are also flown by the Navy's Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Team and by several foreign countries. Bureau Number 161353 was accepted by the Navy in June 1981 and served with VFA-125, the fleet's West Coast training squadron. In March 1986 it was transferred to the Strike Aircraft Test Directorate of the Naval Air Test Center for mission system testing, then flew with the Blue Angels from March 1990 until September 1991. It was retired in August 1993 and transferred to PRNAM in September 1996.