F15-EX Overview, Specification, Performance

[Scorpio]

Not india, KSA can't say. UAE at this price definetly no. Singapore, Korea and Japan are there as well.

Japan are done with F15 thay have already enough, now there focus is F35. No info about Singapore anf s. korea but to counter china both become potential candidate

Is F15 price is less for UAE standards/status

 

[space cadet]

I believe I read somewhere that the price should be around 60 to 65 mill, per unit once serial production starts, around the same price as F-18 super hornet

 

[Khafee]

I believe I read somewhere that the price should be around 60 to 65 mill, per unit once serial production starts, around the same price as F-18 super hornet

If so , it could be a real contender then.

 

[space cadet]

That St Luis plant is going to be busy, F18's, F15's, and new lines for the Red Hawk, and Stingray

 

[space cadet]

F-15EX Fighters To Get General Electric Engines Under Urgent Purchase By Air Force

The service still plans to hold an open competition to formally decide on what engine will power the bulk of the jets.

www.thedrive.com

F-15EX Fighters To Get General Electric Engines Under Urgent Purchase By Air Force
The service still plans to hold an open competition to formally decide on what engine will power the bulk of the jets.
BY JOSEPH TREVITHICKJULY 2, 2020

The U.S. Air Force is buying an unspecified number of General Electric F110-GE-129 jet engines to power at least some of its future F-15EX Eagle fighter jets. The service says this is an "unusual and compelling urgency acquisition" and comes ahead of a formal competition to decide on the F-15EX's powerplant, with Pratt & Whitney expected to submit their F100-PW-229 engine as an alternative.
The Pentagon first announced the deal for the F110-GE-129s, which also "including installs and spares and modernized engine monitoring system computers," in its daily contracting notice on June 30, 2020. The award is valued at $101,345,500 and the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center expects to have all the engines and associated items and services delivered by Nov. 30, 2022.

The Air Force decided to acquire a fleet of F-15EX fighters, a variant of Boeing's F-15 Advanced Eagle family, in 2018, which you can read about in more detail in these past War Zone pieces. The service subsequently received funding to buy an initial lot of eight jets in the 2020 Fiscal Year budget and is now asking for money to acquire an additional 12 in the upcoming 2021 Fiscal Year. The plan is to ultimately buy 144 of these aircraft, primarily to replace existing aging F-15C/D Eagles.

This initial buy of F110-GE-129s is specifically tied to the Lot 1 aircraft, according to the Pentagon announcement. If it meant to cover all eight of those aircraft, each of which will need two engines, then the contract should include at least 16 of these 29,400-pound thrust class afterburning turbofans.
In January, the Air Force had announced plans to acquire the F-15EXs, along with F110-GE-129s to power them, through sole-source contracts to Boeing and General Electric, respectively. This particular engine is the only one that Boeing has already certified to work with Advanced Eagle models, including Saudi Arabia's F-15SA variant and the newest F-15QA for Qatar. The F-15EX is derived from the F-15QA, which is presently the most advanced F-15 variant in production. The F110-GE-129 also powers South Korea's F-15K Slam Eagles and Singapore's F-15SGs.


However, the Air Force subsequently changed course after it became apparent that Pratt & Whitney planned to protest the sole-source contract award and it will now hold an open competition. Pratt & Whitney is expected to pitch the afterburning version of its F100-PW-229, which is in the 29,160-pound thrust class, and is also already found on late-model Air Force F-15E Strike Eaglesand the Israeli Air Force's F-15Is. It's also worth noting that the Air Force also flies Block 50 and 52 F-16C/D Viper fighter jets that use the F110-GE-129 and F100-PW-229, respectively.
The most immediate issue, of course, is that the competition for the F-15EX's engine, as well as the time it might take to certify the F100-PW-229 on those jets, something the Air Force says Pratt & Whitney would have to pay to do itself, could easily push back these jets' entry into service. Mitigating delays in the development of the F-15EX variant itself over the engine issue is very likely the "unusual and compelling urgency" that Air Force officials cited when seeking approval to buy at least some F110-GE-129s now.
The Air Force could eventually buy as many as 480 of whatever engine type it picks in the end making this a very lucrative competition. Winning could be especially important for Pratt & Whitney, which is facing the prospect of losing other engine business with the Air Force in the coming years, including with respect to the service's B-52 bombers and its F-35A Joint Strike Fighters.
Pratt & Whitney remains the prime contractor supporting the sustainment of the TF-33 engines for the B-52s, but the Air Force now has a re-engining effort underway. The Connecticut-headquartered engine-maker had initially lobbied for simply continuing to use the aging TF-33s, but now plans to submit the PW815, which is Canadian subsidiary produces, to the competition. General Electric and Rolls-Royce are also vying for that contract, which is set to be extremely profitable for whoever wins given that each of the 76 bombers will need eight new engines.

The F-35 Joint Program Office is also set to release an F-35 Propulsion Road Map for 2035, which might include an option to re-engine F-35As, as well as B and C models, as well as supply new engines for future Joint Strike Fighters. This could apply to Air Force F-35As, as well as U.S. Marine Corps F-35Bs and U.S. Navy F-35Cs, along with variants in service or on order elsewhere around the world.
Pratt & Whitney presently supplies the F135 engines that power all three variants, but General Electric and Rolls-Royce would be sure to compete to build a new engine. The latter two companies had previously won a deal as a team to produce an alternate F136 engine for the F-35 family, work on which was canceled in 2011.

The jet engine industry, worldwide, is facing a seriously uncertain future in general amid the global economic downturn as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The air travel industry has been particularly hard hit, which has had second-order impacts on the aviation industry, as a whole.
It remains to be seen how all of this may or may not impact the decision on what engine will ultimately power the bulk of the F-15EX fleet, as well as the schedule for the program as a whole. What is clear is that the Air Force believes it is an urgent necessity to buy some F110-GE-129s now to keep everything on track.
Contact the author: [email protected]

 

[Armchair]

• The Air Force has said it will issue two contracts related to acquisition of a new version of the F-15 Eagle fighter jet.
• One contract will be for the new jet itself, called F-15EX, and the other will be fore the new jet's F110 engines.
• Both contracts, for Boeing and General Electric Aviation, respectively, have a February 7 due date for response.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The US Air Force is moving forward with plans to purchase a new F-15 Eagle fighter jet, initiating its first fourth-generation fighter program in more than 20 years.
In a presolicitation notice recently posted on the government's acquisition and awards website, beta.sam.gov, the service announced it will sole-source two contracts, one for the F-15EX and the other for its F110 engines.
The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center "intends to award a sole source indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (ID/IQ) contract to The Boeing Company for a refresh to the F-15C/D fleet and augment the F-15E fleet," one solicitation reads. The Defense Department expects a response from Boeing by February 7.
The center also intends to award another ID/IQ contract to General Electric Aviation "to provide F110 propulsion systems to meet the F-15EX weapons system requirement," according to the second notice, which has the same response due date.

The Air Force wants at least eight new F-15 "fourth-plus" variants in its inventory. Boeing has said the fighter will be equipped with better avionics and radars and could carry more than two dozen air-to-air missiles.
In December, Congress signed off on the plan, but with a caveat: The Air Force requested $1.05 billion for eight aircraft, but lawmakers are limiting the buy to just two at first, according to the fiscal 2020 defense appropriations bill.

An F-15 Eagle in Afghanistan. US Air Force
"Of the funds provided in Aircraft Procurement/Air Force for the remaining six F-15EX aircraft, no more than $64,800,000 for long-lead materials may be obligated until the Secretary of the Air Force submits a report" regarding the program's strategy and future schedule, the bill stated.
The Air Force expects to keep a well-rounded mix of fourth- and fifth-generation aircraft through the 2030s, including the F-35A Joint Strike Fighter, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-22 Raptor, A-10 Thunderbolt II and F-15 Eagle/Strike Eagle, officials have said.

Then-Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson told reporters at the annual Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium last year that the service needed to boost its fighter inventory to stop the average age its aircraft inventory from increasing.
The service has estimated it needs to buy 72 new aircraft per year to replace those old planes; officials just didn't expect to do so with the F-15EX.
"Our budget proposal that we initially submitted did not include additional fourth-generation aircraft," Wilson said February 28, 2019, adding that supplemental decisions must support the "overall presidential budget."
The Air Force has been on a quest to replace its aging F-15C models. Officials in 2017 voiced concerns about the aircraft's longevity.

"We are already having serious problems with that airframe, with metal fatigue within the longerons on the side of the aircraft," Wilson said during a forum last May.
Senior defense officials with the Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation office told reporters that they arrived at the Boeing-made F-15EX decision because the aircraft would help keep a "robust industrial base" and provide "a higher-capacity" combination alongside Lockheed Martin's F-35.
"One of the considerations was the diversity of the industrial base," a senior defense official said at the Pentagon on March 22, 2019.
"Maintaining a diverse industrial base is in the best interest of the Department of Defense. The more diversity, the more competition ... and the better prices we have," the official said.

— Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214.

The Air Force is issuing contracts for its new F-15EX fighter jet

The F-15EX will be the Air Force's first fourth-generation fighter program in more than two decades.

www.businessinsider.com

 

[Armchair]

It is quite fascinating to see USAF going for the F-15EX. F-15s were designed in the 1970s! Surely, a better design could have been thought up today.

F-15s can only do 7.5Gs and are aerodynamically inferior to the Russian FLANKER series. However, they still have massive space for fuel, equipment an weapons load.

 

[Scorpio]

It is quite fascinating to see USAF going for the F-15EX. F-15s were designed in the 1970s! Surely, a better design could have been thought up today.

F-15s can only do 7.5Gs and are aerodynamically inferior to the Russian FLANKER series. However, they still have massive space for fuel, equipment an weapons load.

Really, please correct me if i am wrong from F15C onwards there G limit is 9

 

[Armchair]

It was conceived in TAC's darkest hour, developed out of a revolutionary concept, designed without role compromise and created for its pilot above all. The F-15 Eagle has since matured and it is without doubt the world's foremost air superiority fighter, having destroyed scores of opponents, from Foxbats to F-4s, in aerial combat without ever sustaining losses. It is the Ultimate MiG-Killer.
The F-15 Eagle was born as FX or Fighter eXperimental and just like its nominal predecessor, the F-111, it was another child of the USAF Tactical Air Command (TAC). The Vietnam war was a very rude awakening for TAC, which eventually bore the brunt of the sustained air war. TAC was originally equipped fo rtactical nuclear strike, with a fighter force built around the Republic F-105 Thud (see Profile, June 1984) and future plans revolving about the GD F-111. Both of these aircraft were primarily nuclear bombers, by design optimised for low level penetration and precision strike.
Thoroughly steeped in the nuclear strike oriented doctrine of the late fifties, TAC only very reluctantly accepted the F-4C Phantom into its inventory, as the US government re-oriented its strategy toward conventional rather than nuclear warfare. Vietnam provided the US with an opportunity to exercise its new approach toward lesser than global conflicts. TAC was very rapidly involved flying sorties both within South Vietnam and against the North. Rolling Thunder in the 1965-68 period and subsequently Linebacker in the 1970-73 period were both major air offensives directed against the North's infrastructure and military facilities. Both offensives demonstrated that something was radically wrong with TAC's inventory and aerial combat tactics.
The air-air kill ratio in the first offensive was only 2.3:1, however Linebacker even bettered that with a mere 2:1 exchange rate. The MiG-17s and MiG-21s were unsophisticated and crude aircraft in comparison with the F-105 and F-4, but many were well flown and this, coupled with their better turning ability and gun/heat-seeking missile armament, accounted for TAC's inability to effectively assert itself (the USN managed a 12.5:1 kill ratio in Linebacker I/II).
This was further exacerbated by the shocking unreliability and performance limitations of the early AIM-9 and AIM-7 missiles (65% of the AIM-9s and 45% of the AIM-7s failed). Of the TAC's 137 kills 42 were made with guns, significant as only the very late F-4E had the opportunity to effectively use the weapon. Virtually all kills were in dogfight engagements. It was this major problem which provided the USAF with a reason to justify the development of a dedicated air superiority fighter.
The idea of an air-air fighter was under consideration as early as 1965, but the subsequent FX study generated by USAF Systems Command created the concept of a 60,000 lb swing wing machine much like the F-111, already under criticism for its inability to do what it wasn't built for.
At this stage a Major John Boyd was appointed to rework the FX study and generate a workable solution. Boyd was an outstanding air combat tactician and the originator of the concept of energy manoeuvrability. The concept revolves about the necessity for an aircraft to maintain a maximum amount of kinetic/potential energy in a dogfight, to be able to retain as much agility as possible.
Aircraft which 'bleed' energy quickly due to drag and lift induced drag in turns will quickly run out of speed and invariably lose the initiative in the engagement (the reason for the MiG-17 being more successful than the MiG-21 over Hanoi was due to its lower energy bleed). The aircraft most successful in a dogfight (pilot ability aside) is the aircraft with the highest thrust to weight ratio, lowest wing loading and thus the ability to out-accelerate and out-turn its opponent.
Boyd rapidly sunk the idea of a swing wing, on grounds of extra weight and complexity. He then proceeded to optimise the engine (turbofan being then the in thing) bypass ratio concluding that a turbojet is best, but accepting 1.5 as a reasonable compromise (later reduced).
By early 1967 Boyd had a very agile 40,000 lb fighter on paper. Requests For Proposals were released to industry in August 1967, one month after the Russians exposing the Mach 3 Foxbat. Boyd and his supporters tried to further improve FX, creating FX^2, a 33,000 lb machine with 40% better turning and 90% better acceleration performance than FX/F-15, but this was rejected as TAC was unrelenting in its demands for range and avionic capability (note that were the F-18L fitted with more powerful engines, it could fall into this class).
Study contracts on FX were awarded to McDonnell Douglas and General Dynamics, the former winning the design contract in December 1969 after 10,000 hours of wind tunnel testing on the MCAIR 199/F-15. The 199 flew 900 hours of dogfights against known and projected threats, using the two-dome simulator at the MDC St Louis facility. The design was extensively evaluated at high angles of attack, resulting in a very simple wing with no leading edge devices and high camber. Structurally, high emphasis was placed upon survivability with a titanium wall between the engines, fire resistant blankets in the engine bay, no aft fuel stores, redundant load bearing structural elements and a redundant hydraulic and control system.
The engine battle was fought over by General Electric and Pratt & Whitney, as it was to provide a common core for the 22,000 lb FX engine and the 28,000 lb F-14B engine. The PW F-100 was subsequently selected.
The new F-15 was to carry several important new systems. The trusty M-61 20 mm Gatling gun was to yield to the new 5 barrel Philco Ford 25 mm GAU-7, firing faster and heavier caseless ammunition. The AIM-9 Sidewinder was to yield to the new all aspect AIM-82 IR missile, with a 50 degree off-boresight lock-on ability. A new digital pulse doppler radar, heavily automated, was also selected after competition between Westinghouse and Hughes. The former two flopped, the latter lived on.
The first F-15A took to the air on July 27, 1972, flown by MDC's Irv Burrows.

McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle - The Ultimate MiG-Killer

McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, history, analysis

www.ausairpower.net

 

[space cadet]

It is quite fascinating to see USAF going for the F-15EX. F-15s were designed in the 1970s! Surely, a better design could have been thought up today.

F-15s can only do 7.5Gs and are aerodynamically inferior to the Russian FLANKER series. However, they still have massive space for fuel, equipment an weapons load.

G's really don't matter much today, with look and shoot off bore site missiles it's more about weapons load out and electronics,(with stealth aircraft you do need to worry about getting a cannon kill, they don't carry many missiles) stealth is nice also, which it is not, but most missions don't require it. What is really nice about the F-15 is that it's big and can carry almost any weapon, or a massive amount of weapons which stealth fighters can't, it has a huge radar antenna, and was built before fly by wire, it's a naturally stable platform.

 

[Scorpio]

G's really don't matter much today, with look and shoot off bore site missiles it's more about weapons load out and electronics,(with stealth aircraft you do need to worry about getting a cannon kill, they don't carry many missiles) stealth is nice also, which it is not, but most missions don't require it. What is really nice about the F-15 is that it's big and can carry almost any weapon, or a massive amount of weapons which stealth fighters can't, it has a huge radar antenna, and was built before fly by wire, it's a naturally stable platform.

Additionally semi sealth variat also available in F15 now. Is know as F15SE (silent eagle).

 

[Scorpio]

The Boeing F-15SA is described as one of the most capable versions of the Eagle ever produced. The F-15SA gives Saudi Arabia an aircraft that offers improved performance, superior weapons load, enhanced situational awareness and better survivability – all at an affordable price. Here are some of the features that make SA a “Super” Eagle.

 

[space cadet]

Let's Talk About The Air Force Potentially Replacing The F-15E With The F-15EX

It seems like a straightforward idea, but it would be controversial and it points to a bigger role for the F-15 in the U.S. Air Force of the future.

www.thedrive.com

Let's Talk About The Air Force Potentially Replacing The F-15E With The F-15EX
It seems like a straightforward idea, but it would be controversial and it points to a bigger role for the F-15 in the U.S. Air Force of the future.
BY TYLER ROGOWAY AND JAMIE HUNTERAUGUST 2, 2020

The U.S. Air Force could expand its current F-15EX procurement plans in order to replace its F-15E Strike Eagles, according to official documentation. The service currently aims to recapitalize its aging F-15C/Dair superiority fighters with the new F-15EX as a priority, but it has also left the door open to replacing its Strike Eagles with the type. Such an initiative wouldn't come without controversy though, especially in terms of threatening the Air Force's long-held, but often questioned F-35A procurement number goal of 1,763 airframes.

The Justification and Approval (J&A) document lays out the USAF’s case for buying the F-15EX. It says: “The objective of this program is to rapidly develop, integrate, and field the F-15EX weapon system to refresh/replace aging F-15C/D aircraft. A decision to also refresh F-15E aircraft has not yet been made, but remains an option.”

The report sets out the Air Force's reasoning for the sole-source contract being awarded to Boeing for F-15EX, and it was signed off by USAF acquisition chief Dr. William Roper in August 2019. It carefully lays out the urgent plans to replace an F-15C fleet that it is running out of airframe hours. It adds: “The F-15 fleet is in dire need of a refresh, in particular the F-15C/D fleet, which without an expensive service life extension, will run out of airframe flying hours in [redacted}.” In keeping with major recapitalization projects, the timing would suggest that, when it comes, the need to replace the Strike Eagle will be just as urgent as it is currently for the F-15C/D.

The first production-standard F-15E Strike Eagle made its maiden flight on December 11, 1986, from McDonnell Douglas’ St Louis, Missouri, plant. The first of 236 production Strike Eagles was handed over to the 461st Tactical Fighter Training Squadron “Deadly Jesters” on April 12, 1988. The first operational unit — the 336th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) “Rocketeers” —started to receive Strike Eagles at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina, in December 1988. The type was famously thrust into combat for Operation Desert Storm in 1991.

Strike Eagle serial 89-0487 from Seymour Johnson became the first example to reach 12,000 flight hours on August 16, 2016. The F-15E was beefed-up in comparison to the F-15C in order to carry a heavy weapons loads, however, like the Eagle, the youngest of which is 35 years old, the Strike Eagles are aging airframes.

The small 219-strong Strike Eagle fleet remains in high demand with an enduring commitment in the U.S. Central Command region that leveragesmany impressive niche capabilities. With just six front line Strike Eagle squadrons, at least one is always deployed. The F-15E is also capable of delivering nuclear weapons and is the first jet certified to employ the newest variant of the B61 tactical nuclear bomb.

The current F-15E fleet features two different engine classes. The oldest jets feature the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-220E with roughly 23,500lbs of thrust. The younger models feature the P100-PW-229 engines with around 29,000lbs of thrust, making them the most capable of the lot by a serious margin. They are also the most numerous. The F-15EX is set to receive the F110-GE-129 engine that also has 29,000lbs of thrust.

Buying more F-15EXs to replace the current F-15E would be hugely significant. USAF Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein has made regular assertions that the F-15EX will not impact the F-35 Lightning II program, but switching later F-35 procurement targeted at replacing the F-15E to the F-15EX could impact the overall F-35A projected inventory requirement. Moreover, the Boeing fighter has been used as a means to pile competitive pressure on Lockheed Martin to reduce F-35 procurement and through-life costs.

The J&A report underscores the reasoning behind purchasing the F-15EX in terms of ease of transition: “Refreshing the existing F-15 fleet (versus transitioning to a new advanced fighter aircraft) with F-15EX will dramatically reduce disruption to the logistics and sustainment infrastructure, as well as operational training and Mission Ready status of current F-15 units, by taking advantage of inherent familiarity with the existing aircraft, which will allow focus on the new and improved systems.”

The case for the urgent replacement of the F-15C/D includes reasons regarding safety. “The schedule impact if there is no refresh is exacerbated by the fact that the average age of the F-15C/D fleet is 35 years. The fleet’s structural integrity is rapidly degrading due to the high-g flight profile used during training and operations. One wing commander imposed a G restriction due to a loss of confidence in the safety of the fleet.”

The USAF examined a service life extension for the F-15C but this was ruled out as not being cost-effective. The speed with which Boeing can build the F-15EX is cited as another key differentiator. Based on the foreign investment in the Saudi Arabian F-15SA and Qatari F-15QA projects, the USAF’s F-15EX will share “90-95 percent commonality” with the Qatari jets, but it will receive some USAF-specific additions such as Eagle Passive/Active Warning and Survivability System (EPAWSS).

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The report adds that buying the F-15EX “will save the USAF $3 billion over the Future Years Defense Program compared to replacing that fleet with F-35s by avoiding significant transition costs required for a new aircraft.” It adds: “The USAF estimates that it will take six months or less to transition from the F-15C/D to the F-15EX given the significant commonality between the F-15C/D and F-15EX aircraft components and ground support equipment, while the transition time from F-15s to the F-35 (or any other airframe) will take approximately 18 months for an Active Duty squadron and 36 months for an Air National Guard squadron. Accordingly, from both an economic and readiness perspective, no other aircraft will satisfy the USAF requirement to refresh the F-15C/D fleet.”

In addition, the document makes it clear that the premium once placed on an all stealth tactical fighter fleet has eroded: “The USAF has determined that a mix of 4th generation capacity and 5th generation capability is necessary in balancing near and mid-term readiness with future needs.”

These were all reasons we discussed as per the justification for the 'F-15X' when The War Zone broke the story of its existence two years ago.
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There are no official plans to replace the F-15E when it is retired from service, and officially it could remain in service through life-extension programs. Yet, based on the situation facing the F-15C/D, it could be up for replacement as early as the end of the decade. Previously, the War Zone was told that the F-15EX “is intended to directly replace the USAF's entire F-15C/D fleet. It would have no impact on the existing F-15E Strike Eagle fleet or its planned upgrade pathway that is underway now.”

The F-15E shares similar cutting-edge technology as is being fielded in the F-15EX. It has been upgraded with the Raytheon AN/APG-82(v)1 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, the new Advanced Display Core Processor (ADCP) II, and it too is receiving the new EPAWSS self-protection system.

The current F-15EX procurement plan as set out earlier this month could be worth up to $22.9 billion over 10 years. This cost ceiling is based on a March 2019 F-15 SPO Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) estimate for the maximum quantity of 200 aircraft. However, the report says procurement quantities will be established at a Most Probably Quantity (MPQ) of 144 aircraft. Still, this is seen as minimum fleet size, and it is likely to reach near or at the 200 level just in regards to replacing the F-15C/D fully.

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The current F-15C/D fleet of approximately 245 aircraft would be replaced on what would be close to a one-for-one basis if all options are exercised. While the report doesn't discuss actual numbers, it would suggest the similarly sized F-15E fleet could be recapitalized under a very similar model, which would take F-15EX procurement out to roughly 400 aircraft.

A USAF spokesman told Air Force Magazine “That decision has not been made,” regarding the F-15E. A common F-15EX fleet in a merged Eagle community would have its benefits both logistically and operationally. There is also bound to be some tension between the F-15C/D units, the vast majority of which are Air National Guard, and the active-duty F-15E community under the current procurement plan for the F-15EX.

As the plan sits, the F-15EX would equip squadrons whose only missions have been air-to-air combat and air sovereignty with the most advanced and reliable multi-role F-15s in the entire force. In other words, the F-15E community, which is tasked with some of the most complex combat operations abroad, would be flying aging, partially upgraded jets while the Guard has brand new F-15EX with excess capabilities. This has raised the question of why doesn't the F-15E get replaced with the F-15EX and the current F-15C/D community receive surplus F-15Es?

With over 50 years of production, the F-15 is entering into uncharted territory for fighter aircraft manufacturing. Boeing has cleverly retained credibility through reinventing the F-15 via foreign investment. With at least 144 new F-15s entering the Air Force's fleet in the near term, some 16 years after its last new Eagle was delivered, the prospects for follow-on orders are certainly there. This doesn't mean that recapitalizing the Strike Eagle fleet with F-15EX is anywhere near a done deal, but the door is open and it might just prove to be another case of the swiftest, cheapest, and most sensible way to keep some of the Air Force's most important fighter squadrons in business.

Regardless, with the F-15EX's stated service life of a whopping 20,000 hours, the Eagle will be gracing American fighter wing ramps well into the second half the century.

Contact the editor: [email protected]

 

[Armchair]

Problem for USAF is that F-15 is now an equivalent of the J-16 and Su-35. There is no major tech superiority for it against these platforms, perhaps a marginal superiority in electronics against the Russian system, but par against the Chinese.

The USAF has, operationally, only about 100 F-22 Raptors at any given time. This is a tiny number, unable to play a meaningful role, particularly after you discount numbers needed to defend continental US.

We are seeing for the first time in 70 years, a complete shift in the global air dominance posture of the world.

 

[space cadet]

Problem for USAF is that F-15 is now an equivalent of the J-16 and Su-35. There is no major tech superiority for it against these platforms, perhaps a marginal superiority in electronics against the Russian system, but par against the Chinese.

The USAF has, operationally, only about 100 F-22 Raptors at any given time. This is a tiny number, unable to play a meaningful role, particularly after you discount numbers needed to defend continental US.

We are seeing for the first time in 70 years, a complete shift in the global air dominance posture of the world.

That's funny