After passing its latest test with flying colors, the F-15EX is living up to the name
“Super Eagle.”
A U.S. Air Force fighter jet recently took to the skies with a mix of missiles that could
make it the most heavily armed fighter ever.
The new F-15EX Eagle II, also known as the “Super Eagle,” carried a mixture of three
JASSM cruise missiles and 12 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles—a potent combination that is likely
unmatched in the world of fighter jets.
The F-15EX is living up to its promise of being a missile truck, hauling large numbers
of missiles into battle in ways that stealthy fighters cannot.
Truckin’.
The F-15EX Eagle II is the latest version of the F-15 Eagle fighter jet.
Originally designed as an air superiority fighter,
the F-15 first flew in 1972.
A multi-role version, the F-15E Strike Eagle, first flew in 1986.
The F-15EX is the latest and greatest version, first taking to the skies in 2021.
The Eagle II resembles previous versions externally, but inside it’s a different story.
The fighter includes digital fly-by-wire flight controls, large interactive cockpit touchscreens,
the fastest mission computer ever installed on a fighter jet,
the Eagle Passive or Active Warning and Survivability System for electronic protection against enemy
air defenses,
the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System, and it’s the first to use the Open Mission System
for easy software and hardware upgrades.
Unprecedented Firepower.
The F-15EX is dimensionally identical to previous F-15s but can carry considerably more firepower.
The F-15A, F-15C, and F-15E maxed out at eight air-to-air missiles,
typically a combination of shorter range AIM-9 Sidewinder infrared-guided missiles and larger.
longer range AIM-7 Sparrow and later AIM-120 AMRAAM radar-guided missiles.
The secret to the F-15EX’s huge payload boost are its new Advanced Missile and Bomb
Ejector Rack (AMBER) missiles racks.
These new racks, which carry missiles and bombs and provide datalinks between the aircraft
and the munition, allow the F-15EX to carry 50 percent more air-to-air missiles, for a
total of 12 in all.
Thanks to Advanced Missile and Bomb Ejector Rack (AMBER), the F-15EX has a total of 23
weapon stations, compared to 17 on the older F-15E.
In terms of raw capability, the F-15EX flown in the Eglin tests does appear to be the most
heavily armed fighter jet of all time.
Even assuming a low probability of kill of 50 percent per AMRAAM missile, the F-15EX
as configured could knock down at least six enemy fighters.
Its three JASSM cruise missiles, each with a range of 250 miles and stealthy shaping
to keep them off enemy radars, mean the F-15EX can strike three heavily defended targets
with a high level of accuracy and confidence.
Other aircraft can carry more bombs or more explosive by weight—the older F-15E Strike
Eagle can carry up to 15 Mk-82 500-pound, unguided bombs or five 2,000-pound, laser-guided
bombs.
Concept artwork for the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet has it carrying up to 14 air-to-air missiles.
But in each case, the aircraft is heavily weighted towards air-to-air combat or air-to-ground
combat.
The F-15EX’s fighting load is balanced, allowing it to unleash its JASSM missiles
at enemy targets and then immediately proceed to take on a totally different mission, like
engaging enemy aircraft.
Why can the F-15EX carry such a ridiculously overpowered load, while the F-35 Lightning
II can’t?
Stealth fighters must carry all of their weapons internally to preserve the advantages of their
anti-radar design.
Hanging bombs, missiles, targeting pods, and fuel tanks off the wings and fuselage of a
F-35 makes them much more detectable by enemy radars.
The F-35 only has so much room inside its internal weapons bays.
The F-15EX isn’t a stealthy design, so it is free to carry whatever it wants—with
the caveat that the more weapons there are on board, the slower the plane will fly and
the less maneuverable it will be.
The Takeaway.
The F-15EX Eagle II has been proposed as a “missile truck” for the lightly armed
F-35, launching AMRAAM air-to-air missiles against targets a hidden stealth fighter can
see.
Alternatively, it could launch air-to-ground weapons against targets discovered by a F-35
flying silently above the battlefield.
While a missile truck may (not?) sound as glamorous or sexy as a stealth fighter, it
could win wars in the future when the Air Force must fight outnumbered, thousands of
miles from home.
Over the few decades the F-15 Eagle and all of its variants have flown, the platform has
achieved an honorable legacy.
The airframe has undergone several facelifts over its lifetime and continues to tout improvements
to its capabilities.
Even following the production of newer fifth-generation platforms like the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning
II, the F-15E Strike Eagle is not going anywhere in the near future.