The DDIs and HUD are generally used to display primary flight condition information such as airspeed, altitude, altitude rate, attitude, heading, RFCS status, etc. Other flight conditions displayed include angle of attack (AOA), Mach number, and load factor. The HUD also provides primary flight condition information to the pilot without having to refer to the DDIs. Select flight controls information also can be presented on the HUD. The twenty pushbuttons located on the periphery of each DDI are used to select a variety of displays for pilot interrogation of F-18 HARV systems. These displays are pilot selectable and menu driven.

Various aerodynamic research experiments were conducted on the F-18 HARV. Switches for control of these experiments were located on the research systems control panel located at the lower center of the instrument panel. These switches operated in conjunction with the gun trigger switch. The configuration of this panel and the function of the gun trigger switch varied with the particular experiment flown.