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. The F-15 is expected to be in service with the U.S. Air Force past 2025.

Since the 1970s, the Eagle has also been exported to Israel, Japan, and Saudi Arabia. Despite originally being envisioned as a pure air superiority aircraft, the design proved flexible enough that an all-weather strike derivative, the F-15E Strike Eagle, was later developed, and entered service in 1989.


General characteristics

Crew: 1: pilot
Length: 63 ft 9 in (19.43 m)
Wingspan: 42 ft 10 in (13.05 m)
Height: 18 ft 6 in (5.63 m)
Wing area: 608 ft² (56.5 m²)
Airfoil: NACA 64A006.6 root, NACA 64A203 tip
Empty weight: 28,000 lb (12,700 kg)
Loaded weight: 44,500 lb (20,200 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 68,000 lb (30,845 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × Pratt & Whitney F100-100 or −220 afterburning turbofans
Dry thrust: 17,450 lbf (77.62 kN) each
Thrust with afterburner: 25,000 lbf for −220 (111.2 kN for −220) each
Fuel capacity: 13,455 lb (6,100 kg) internal

Performance

Maximum speed:
High altitude: Mach 2.5+ (1,650+ mph, 2,660+ km/h)
Low altitude: Mach 1.2 (900 mph, 1,450 km/h)
Combat radius: 1,061 nmi (1,222 mi, 1,967 km) for interdiction mission
Ferry range: 3,450 mi (3,000 nmi, 5,550 km) with conformal fuel tanks and three external fuel tanks
Service ceiling: 65,000 ft (20,000 m)
Rate of climb: >50,000 ft/min (254 m/s)
Wing loading: 73.1 lb/ft² (358 kg/m²)
Thrust/weight: 1.12 (−220)

Armament

Guns: 1× 20 mm (0.787 in) M61 Vulcan 6-barreled gatling cannon, 940 rounds
Hardpoints: Total 11 (not including CFTs): two under-wing (each with additional two missile launch rails), four under-fuselage (for semi-recessed carriage of AIM-7 Sparrows) and a single centerline pylon station, optional fuselage pylons (which may include conformal fuel tanks, known initially as Fuel And Sensor Tactical (FAST) pack for use on the C model) with a capacity of 16,000 lb (7,300 kg) and provisions to carry combinations of:
Missiles:
AIM-7 Sparrow
AIM-120 AMRAAM
AIM-9 Sidewinder
Other:
up to 3× 600 US gallons (2,300 L) external drop tanks for ferry flight or extended range/loitering time.
MXU-648 Cargo/Travel Pod – to carry personal belongings, and small pieces of maintenance equipment.

Avionics

Radar:
Raytheon AN/APG-63 or AN/APG-70or
Raytheon AN/APG-63(V)1 or
Raytheon AN/APG-63(V)2 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) or
Raytheon AN/APG-63(V)3 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA)
Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System
Countermeasures:
Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems AN/ALQ-131 electronic countermeasures pod[97]
Hazeltine AN/APX-76 or Raytheon AN/APX-119 Identify Friend/Foe (IFF) interrogator[98]
Magnavox AN/ALQ-128 Electronic Warfare Warning Set (EWWS) – part of Tactical Electronic Warfare Systems (TEWS)
Loral AN/ALR-56 Radar warning receivers (RWR) – part of TEWS
Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems ALQ-135 Internal Countermeasures System (ICS) – part of TEWS
Marconi AN/ALE-45 Chaff/Flares dispenser system – part of TEWS