U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet has been loaded up with five AGM-158 Joint
Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles, or JASSMs for the first time.
This was done as part of a proof-of-concept at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
The idea was to increase the JASSM load of F-15E Strike Eagle fighter a part of Project
Strike Rodeo.
While the jet was not flown, it can be assumed that a flight test with this load will be
carried out in near future. The trial was undertaken by the 85th Test
and Evaluation Squadron (TES).
Viewers may note in regular configuration F-15Es are loaded with two JASSMs.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes how F-15E Strike Eagle fighter armed with 5 JASSMs
could enhance the tactical resilience of air to ground missions for U.S. Air Force?
Let's get into the details.
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The test is the outcome of a proposal that envisions a fighter formation carrying out
air to ground strike with a JASSM salvo instead of a single bomber.
U.S. Air Force media release stated this would “reduce the size and complexity of the strike
package,” as well as “distribute mission risk across the force”.
It is to be noted that while a bomber needs fighter escorts in most scenarios, a fighter formation
will self-escort as they can also deploy air-to-air weapons if required.
Also, Bombers like B52, B1B need large bases for operation while fighters can take off
from much smaller obscure once which improves operational flexibility.
This is also in sync with the 'Distributed Lethality' concept of U.S. Military that aims
to disperse firepower across different platforms.
In its conventional layout, the F-15E cannot accommodate JASSMs on its conformal fuel tank
(CFT) weapons stations, since the container from which the missile is loaded onto the
jet won’t fit under the F-15E without hitting the main landing gear.
Lieutenant Colonel Mike Benitez, the 53rd Wing director of staff,
“No one told us to do this". “We saw the need and the opportunity, so we executed.
This infectious attitude drove every unit or office we coordinated with. Everyone wanted
to see if we could do it, and no one ever pushed back and asked for a requirement or
a formal higher headquarters tasking.”
Benitez added further, “This is a squadron innovation effort with
operational and strategic implications. Project Strike Rodeo is all about creating options
for combatant commanders, which ultimately can be used to create multiple dilemmas for
the adversary.”
The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is an American twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter
aircraft designed by McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing).
The Eagle first flew in July 1972 and entered service in 1976. It is among the most successful
modern fighters, with over 100 victories and no losses in aerial combat, with the majority
of the kills by the Israeli Air Force
The F-15 was originally envisioned as a pure air-superiority aircraft. Its platform included
a secondary ground-attack capability.
The aircraft design proved flexible enough that an improved all-weather strike derivative,
the F-15E Strike Eagle, was later developed, entering service in 1989 and has been exported
to several nations.
Serial production of the F-15 is largely driven by foreign sales in recent years.
This has enabled the integration of new technology and weapons and keeps the workforce as well
as the manufacturing facilities fresh.
The AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile is a stealthy and highly precise surface-skimming
cruise missile with a range of 230 miles or 370 km. It uses an inertial and GPS navigation
system. A data link allows the missile to transmit its location and status during flight,
enabling improved bomb damage assessment.
AGM-158B JASSM -ER is the extended range variant of AGM-158 JASSM.
It has a range of 925+ km or 575+ miles.
AGM-158C is developed as an anti-ship variant and is named LRASM by the U.S Navy.
The missile is subsonic and but since it is LO (Low Observable), the enemy warship will
not see it coming till it is very close. The missile uses an inertial and jam-resistant
GPS navigation system for the initial phase of the journey, a two-way data link is present
for mid-course guidance and a radio-frequency & Infra-Red sensor is activated in the terminal
phase. LRASM also deploys electronic counter-countermeasures
(ECCM) to overcome the enemy’s countermeasures. The missile can be deployed in swarm mode
which will enable it to saturate enemy defenses.
In a contested environment, F-15E Strike Eagle could hit enemy assets without getting inside
the rival's engagement envelope using JASSM. This is important since near-peer rivals of
the U.S. like Russia is investing heavily in Air defense systems.
S 300 and S 400 designed by Russia’s Almaz Central Design Bureau are equipped with long-range
radar and missile to take out fighters, bombers, AWACS, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles.
The systems have been sold to China which clearly demonstrates the proliferation of
sophisticated air defense systems.
Even second tire powers like Iran have developed indigenous air defense systems that have decent
capabilities.
For example, Iran has deployed Khordad 15. Khordad 15 is a mobile air defense system
that is claimed to be indigenously developed by Iran.
Speaking at the unveiling ceremony, Brig. Gen. Amir Hatami had said that the system
is capable of detecting fighter jets and combat drones from 150 km or 93 miles away and tracking
them within a range of 120 km or 75 miles.
Keeping these in mind, F-15E Strike Eagle loaded with an enhanced quantity of JASSMs
could be a game-changer.