McDonnell-Douglas F-15 Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell-Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters, with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights. Following reviews of proposals, the United States Air Force selected McDonnell Douglas' design in 1967 to meet the service's need for a dedicated air superiority fighter. The Eagle first flew in July 1972, and entered service in 1976.
Since the 1970s, the Eagle has been exported to Australia, Israel, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and other nations. The F-15 was originally envisioned as a pure air superiority aircraft. Its design included a secondary ground-attack capability that was largely unused. The design proved flexible enough that an all-weather strike derivative, the F-15E Strike Eagle, was later developed, and entered service in 1989. The F-15 Eagle is expected to be in service with the U.S. Air Force past 2025.
Variants[edit | edit source]
- F-15A: Single-seat all-weather air-superiority fighter version, 384 built 1972–79.
- F-15B: Two-seat training version, formerly designated TF-15A, 61 built 1972–79.
- F-15C: Improved single-seat all-weather air-superiority fighter version, 507 built 1979–86. The last 43 F-15Cs were upgraded with AN/APG-70 radar and later the AN/APG-63(V)1 radar.
- F-15D: Two-seat training version, 104 built 1979–86.
- F-15E: Two-seat all-weather multirole strike version, fitted with conformal fuel tanks. It was developed into the F-15I, F-15S, F-15K, F-15SG, F-15SA, and other variants.
- F-15J: Single-seat all-weather air-superiority fighter version for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force 139 built under license in Japan by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries 1981–97, two built in St. Louis.
- F-15DJ: Two-seat training version for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. 12 built in St. Louis, and 25 built under license in Japan by Mitsubishi during 1981–97.
- F-15N: The F-15N was a carrier-capable variant proposed in the early 1970s to the U.S. Navy as an alternative to the heavier and, at the time, considered as "riskier" technology program, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat. But it did not have a long range radar or the long range missiles used by the F-14. The F-15N-PHX was another proposed naval version capable of carrying the AIM-54 Phoenix missile, but with an enhanced version of the AN/APG-63, designated the AN/APG-64, radar on the F-15A. These featured folding wingtips, reinforced landing gear and a stronger tailhook for shipboard operation.
- F-15SE: Proposed F-15E variant with a reduced radar cross-section.
- F-15 2040C: Proposed upgrade to the F-15C, allowing it to supplement the F-22 in the Air-Superiority role. The 2040C concept is an evolution of the Silent Eagle proposed to South Korea, with some low-observable improvements but mostly a focus on the latest air capabilities and lethality. Proposal includes infra-red search and track, doubling the number of weapon stations, with quad racks for a maximum of 16 air-to-air missiles, Passive/Active Warning Survivability System, conformal fuel tanks, upgraded APG-63(v)3 AESA and a "Talon HATE" communications pod allowing data-transfer with the F-22.
