F-15 Eagle Thread
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timepass
Brigadier
>> Few minutes of Havoc . . . Presenting McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle . . .
TerraN_EmpirE
Tyrant King
The Air Force is still thinking about retiring the F-15 — and it could happen sooner than you think
By: 1 day ago
fighters — and it could happen by the end of the next decade.
Air Force officials said in March 2017 that it was considering fighters and replacing them with F-16 Fighting Falcons.
Lt. Gen. Jerry Harris, the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and requirements, told Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., during a Senate Armed Services air land forces subcommittee hearing Wednesday that the service is still ― especially as it brings the newest F-35 fighters on board.
“There’s nothing off the table,” Harris said. “We’re looking at, as we bring F-35s in, can we grow our capacity rather than just replace one-for-one? If we can’t do that, what’s our least-capable asset to retire, based on the value that it would provide for us?”
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A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle taxis the runway Nov. 12, 2015, at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey. (Staff Sgt. Eboni Reams/Air Force)
Harris said it remains unclear whether the F-15 will last until the end of the 2020s, and that it’s also looking at other older aircraft as well.
“We’re looking at our F-16s, our A-10s, and our F-15s to make sure that we have the best, capable Air Force,” Harris said. “The F-35, as a multi-role airplane, is very capable of some of the things the F-15C, the F-16 and the A-10 do.”
Lt. Gen. Arnold Bunch, the military deputy for the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, said that the Air Force is continuing to conduct tests on potentially rolling the new Eagle Passive/Active Warning and Survivability System defensive program to the F-15C, as well as the F-15E.
However, the Air Force is holding off on actually installing the EPAWSS on the F-15C until it decides whether it will keep it, Bunch said. He could not give Warren a potential timeline on that decision.
“We have not closed the door on that, that [testing] is something we are doing to make sure we have that flexibility,” Bunch said.
Bunch said the Air Force will keep the F-15E Strike Eagle fleet, and is concentrating its fiscal 2019 funding on paying for upgrades to those fighters.
The generals also updated lawmakers on the Air Force’s effort to fix the alarming shortfall of pilots, especially those who fly fighter jets.
Maj. Gen. Brian Robinson, the Air Force’s assistant deputy chief of staff for operations, told Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, that the service is about to start studying an aviation-only technical track, and whether that could be a solution.
The Air Force hopes the four- to six-month study would help it see if allowing pilots to concentrate almost entirely on flying ― and not other responsibilities such as leading other airmen ― would entice more aviators to stay.
Subcommittee Chairman Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, compared such a flying-only option to the Army’s warrant officer program. The Air Force is now finalizing a report considering whether it should re-establish its warrant officer program.
Robinson said Air Force Sec. Heather Wilson set a goal of getting pilot manning levels — especially fighter pilots ― back up to 95 percent by the end of fiscal 2023.
But the Air Force is now a long way from meeting that goal.
The Government Accountability Office said in a report released April 11 that the active-duty Air Force’s fighter pilot ranks were 73 percent manned at the end of fiscal 2017, special operations pilots were 86 percent manned, and bomber pilots were 85 percent manned.
Active-duty mobility pilots, on the other hand, were overmanned at 105 percent, and active-duty surveillance pilots were 128 percent manned.
Robinson told Cruz that the Air Force may ask Congress for additional authorities or changes to policies such as pilot compensation or bonuses, if necessary to meet that goal.
But he said that of all the steps the Air Force has taken to improve retention, the most effective have been non-monetary options, such as providing pilots more input on their next assignments, or allowing them to stay in their assignments longer under the Second Assignment In-Place program.
timepass
Brigadier
How an Old F-15 Just Might Kill Russia's New Stealth Su-57 in a 'Dogfight'...
"The venerable Boeing F-15C Eagle has long been hailed as the world’s greatest air superiority fighter given its lopsided combat record of 104 kills to zero losses, however, the aging jet is likely near the end of its operational life. Nonetheless, it remains a potent fighter even as it likely heads toward retirement.
Lockheed Martin is currently developing the Legion pod, which will afford the F-15C a long wave Infrared Search and Track (IRST) capability. Lockheed Martin expects to produce more than 130 Legion pods, which are equipped with the company's IRST21 infrared sensor and advanced data processing capabilities to provide long-range detection and tracking of airborne threats in “radar-denied environments.” Boeing, which serves as the U.S. Air Force's prime contractor, is expected to award Lockheed Martin an engineering, manufacturing, development and production contract for the Legion pod sometime this year."
"The venerable Boeing F-15C Eagle has long been hailed as the world’s greatest air superiority fighter given its lopsided combat record of 104 kills to zero losses, however, the aging jet is likely near the end of its operational life. Nonetheless, it remains a potent fighter even as it likely heads toward retirement.
Lockheed Martin is currently developing the Legion pod, which will afford the F-15C a long wave Infrared Search and Track (IRST) capability. Lockheed Martin expects to produce more than 130 Legion pods, which are equipped with the company's IRST21 infrared sensor and advanced data processing capabilities to provide long-range detection and tracking of airborne threats in “radar-denied environments.” Boeing, which serves as the U.S. Air Force's prime contractor, is expected to award Lockheed Martin an engineering, manufacturing, development and production contract for the Legion pod sometime this year."
timepass
Brigadier
The F-15 Eagle aircraft crashed at about 6.40am on Monday local time, about 80km south of Naha city in the island's south.
The plane was from the US Air Force's Kadena Base, which said on Twitter that its pilot successfully ejected and was safely recovered by search and rescue teams.
Reports say the pilot suffered a broken leg and was taken by helicopter to a nearby US naval hospital.
The air base said the man's condition was "unknown" but thanked Japan's Self-Defense Force search and rescue team, saying: "Your quick response proves once again how valuable an asset you are to the US/Japanese alliance."
The plane was from the US Air Force's Kadena Base, which said on Twitter that its pilot successfully ejected and was safely recovered by search and rescue teams.
Reports say the pilot suffered a broken leg and was taken by helicopter to a nearby US naval hospital.
The air base said the man's condition was "unknown" but thanked Japan's Self-Defense Force search and rescue team, saying: "Your quick response proves once again how valuable an asset you are to the US/Japanese alliance."
timepass
Brigadier
Boeing Pitches to Pentagon the F-15X, the Eagle that can fire 24 Air - To - Air Missiles...
The F-15X will carry more than two dozen air-to-air missiles and has modern flight controls, cockpit displays, and radar.
The F-15X will carry more than two dozen air-to-air missiles and has modern flight controls, cockpit displays, and radar Marcus Weisgerber reports on Defense One that Boeing is quietly peddling a new variant of its F-15, dubbed F-15X, to the Pentagon. The F-15X will carry more than two dozen air-to-...
The F-15X will carry more than two dozen air-to-air missiles and has modern flight controls, cockpit displays, and radar.
The F-15X will carry more than two dozen air-to-air missiles and has modern flight controls, cockpit displays, and radar Marcus Weisgerber reports on Defense One that Boeing is quietly peddling a new variant of its F-15, dubbed F-15X, to the Pentagon. The F-15X will carry more than two dozen air-to-...
TerraN_EmpirE
Tyrant King
Unlikely to move the Airforce, if they could convince the USAF to buy more birds the better choice would be updated Raptor.
Outside of that find more cost effective upgrades for the F15 C/D and E models.
Otherwise Boeing is spinning it's wheels.
Outside of that find more cost effective upgrades for the F15 C/D and E models.
Otherwise Boeing is spinning it's wheels.
