The latest aircraft to join the U.S. Air Force fleet, the F-15EX Eagle II, is scrambling to set a new bar in aerial firepower to potentially become the most heavily armed fighter jet in existence. A new iteration of the advanced, superpower-extended F-15 family, the F-15EX, dubbed the “Super Eagle,” has lately shown its terrific characteristics during a test flight over Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.
On August 30, the U.S. Air Force’s 53rd Wing flew an F-15EX configured with a mix of three Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles and an unprecedented 12 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles. That configuration unveiled the F-15EX’s ability to act as a “missile truck,” bearing varied and large assortments of weaponry that were otherwise unlikely to be carried by stealth fighters like the F-35 Lightning II, which has internal weapon-related space constraints.
The F-15EX Eagle II is a direct descendant of the original F-15 Eagle, an air superiority fighter first fielded in 1972. That was followed in 1986 by the multi-role F-15E Strike Eagle, then in 2021 by its younger brother, the F-15EX. To the casual observer, the F-15EX may appear much like its forebears, but internally it features significant improvements. It comes with digital fly-by-wire flight controls, large interactive touchscreens in the cockpit, and the fastest mission computer ever to be installed in a fighter jet. It also comes with an Eagle Passive/Active Warning System sandwiched with the Eagle Survivability System for electronic protection, the Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System, and an open mission system configured to support painless software and hardware upgrades.
This extra payload capacity is delivered through new missile racks, known as the Advanced Missile and Bomb Ejector Rack (AMBER), which gives the F-15EX the ability to carry 50% more air-to-air missiles than the older models, totaling 12 AMRAAMs. The F-15EX also has 23 weapon stations, as compared with only 17 on the older F-15E.
The F-15EX’s configuration for the Eglin tests is the rawest in capability involving the heaviest armed fighter aircraft ever flown. Assuming modest probable kills per AMRAAM missile at 50%, there would be at least six enemy fighters that the F-15EX would be able to shoot down in one sortie. Its three JASSM cruise missiles, with their 250-mile range and stealth shaping, give it the wherewithal to strike well-defended targets with confidence.
While other aircraft, both older, like the Strike Eagle F-15E, and even newer, like the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, can carry more bombs or more explosives in weight, the ordnance delivery mix is what truly separates the F-15EX. That sets the F-15EX apart from every other fighter, engaging both air-to-air and air-to-ground targets with no need to switch its weapon load.
The lack of stealth design in the F-15EX, unlike the F-35, does mean this aircraft can hold a much larger weapons bay. The disadvantage is that it will, in turn, be slower and less maneuverable. Yet the F-15EX has been proposed to be an adjunct “missile truck” to the F-35, able to launch AMRAAMs from beyond visual range at targets singled out by the stealth fighter.
“The over 75 ranges that we have in the Indo-Pacific, that span tens of millions of square miles with many of them contested; it demands the operational flexibility of range and weapons loadout that need to be built into any aircraft that operates in that theater to maintain air superiority and do long-range missions in that region,” said General Kenneth Wilsbach, commander of the Pacific Air Forces. The service will procure a total of 144 F-15EXs to supplement and ultimately replace its geriatric F-15C/D fleet.
The F-15EX Eagle II makes an overall great enhancement of air combat capabilities by integrating unprecedented firepower, avionics, and other systems. As the Air Force drivingly incorporates this breathtaking aircraft into the fleet, the F-15EX is well positioned to play a pivotal role in future conflicts sure to enter into hotly contested environments in a world requiring agility and firepower.