McDonnell Aircraft formalized the concept for the F-15 in 1967 when the
company was selected to enter the second phase of the U.S Air Force's FX
competition. Competing against Fairchild Hiller and North American
Rockwell, McDonnell used lessons learned during the Vietnam War on the
changing nature of jet age air-to-air combat, given that the F-4 Phantom
II was earning its reputation as a formidable fighter. On Dec. 23,
1969, after more than two years of intensive testing and evaluation, the
Air Force awarded McDonnell Douglas the F-15 Advanced Tactical Fighter
contract. The McDonnell Douglas team had placed first among the three
competitors in all phases of the competition and had the lowest contract
price.
The F-15 is a twin-engine, high-performance, all-weather
air superiority fighter known for its incredible acceleration and
maneuverability. With a top speed in excess of Mach 2.5 (more than 1,600
mph or 2575 kph), it was the first U.S. fighter with enough thrust to
accelerate vertically. The F-15 carries a large complement of missiles —
including AIM-9 Sidewinders and AIM-7 Sparrows; the Boeing-built Small
Diameter Bomb I, Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) and Laser JDAM
weapons; and an internal 20 mm Gatling gun — all vital for modern
engagements.
On June 26, 1972, James S. McDonnell, founder of
McDonnell Aircraft, christened the F-15 "Eagle." Test pilot Irv Burrows
took the first F-15 Eagle to the air on July 27, 1972, at Edwards Air
Force Base in California. Six months later, the Air Force approved the
Eagle for full-rate production.
In early 1975, flying out of
Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota, an F-15A known as Streak
Eagle set many time-to-climb world records. Between Jan. 16 and Feb. 1,
1975, the Streak Eagle broke eight time-to-climb world records. It
reached an altitude of 98,425 feet just 3 minutes, 27.8 seconds from
brake release at takeoff and coasted to nearly 103,000 feet before
descending.
Eagles flown by Israel's air force were the first to
face a true adversary in the air. They downed more than 50 Syrian
fighters with no losses of their own. In service with the U.S. Air
Force, the F-15 Eagle downed MiG fighters during the Balkan conflict and
the majority of Iraq's fixed-wing aircraft during Operation Desert
Storm.
To meet the U.S. Air Force requirement for air-to-ground
missions, the F-15E Strike Eagle was developed. It made its first flight
from St. Louis in December 1986. The Strike Eagle can carry 23,000
pounds of air-to-ground and air-to-air weapons and is equipped with an
advanced navigation and an infrared targeting system, protecting the
Strike Eagle from enemy defenses. This allows the Strike Eagle to fly at
a low altitude while maintaining a high-speed, even during bad weather
or at night.
The F-15 has been produced in single-seat A model
and two-seat B versions. The two-seat F-15E Strike Eagle version is a
dual-role fighter that can engage both ground and air targets.
F-15C,
-D, and -E models participated in Operation Desert Storm in 1991. F-15
downed 32 of 36 U.S. Air Force air-to-air victories and struck Iraqi
ground targets. F-15s served in Bosnia in 1994 and downed three Serbian
MiG-29 fighters in Operation Allied Force in 1999. They enforced no-fly
zones over Iraq in the 1990s. Eagles also hit Afghan targets in
Operation Enduring Freedom, and the F-15E version performed
air-to-ground missions in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Boeing has
continued to evolve the F-15 with advanced technology, and it is
undefeated in air-to-air combat — 101 aerial victories and 0 defeats.
Production continues today with advanced models for several
international customers.
In all models, more than 1,500 F-15s
have been built. F-15 will be a major player in the U.S. Air Force air
superiority and dominance arsenal through the 2040 timeframe using
leading-edge technology and capabilities that will keep the Advanced
F-15 and its mission systems current.
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