McDonnell-Douglas F-15B Eagle - Luke AFB, Phoenix, AZ - Static Aircraft Displays on Waymarking.com

The McDonnell-Douglas (now Boeing) F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter with an all-metal semi-monocoque fuselage and a large cantilever shoulder-mounted wing. It was designed 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 studies in 1964–1965, the US Air Force developed requirements for an air superiority fighter in October 1965. Then on 8 December 1965, the Air Force issued a request for proposals (RFP) for the new fighter. The request called for both air-to-air and air-to-ground capabilities. Eight companies responded with proposals. In the following study phase, four of these companies developed some 500 design concepts. The designs were not accepted by the Air Force as they compromised fighter qualities for ground attack qualities.

In 1967, US intelligence was surprised to find that the Soviet Union was producing a large fighter aircraft, the MiG-25 'Foxbat'. It was not known in the West at the time that the MiG-25 was designed as a high-speed interceptor, not an air superiority fighter, so its primary asset was speed, not maneuverability. The MiG-25's huge tailplanes and vertical stabilizers (tail fins) hinted at a very maneuverable aircraft, which worried the Air Force that its performance might be better than its US counterparts. In reality, the MiG's large fins and stabilators were necessary to prevent the aircraft from encountering inertia coupling in high-speed, high-altitude flight.

The F-4 Phantom II of the USAF and US Navy was the only fighter with enough power, range, and maneuverability to be given the primary task of dealing with the threat of Soviet fighters while flying with visual engagement rules. As a matter of policy, the Phantoms could not engage targets without positive visual identification, so they could not engage targets at long ranges, as designed. Medium-range AIM-7 Sparrow missiles, and to a lesser degree even the AIM-9 Sidewinder, were often unreliable and ineffective at close ranges where it was found that guns were often the only effective weapon. The Phantom did not originally have a gun, but experience in Vietnam led to the addition of a gun. An external gun pod was tried and later the M61 Vulcan was integrated internally on the F-4E.

There was a clear need for a new fighter that would overcome the close-range limitation of the Phantom while retaining long-range air superiority. After rejecting the US Navy VFX program (which led to the F-14 Tomcat) as being unsuited to its needs, the US Air Force issued its own requirements for the F-X (read as Fighter-Unknown, sometimes referred to as Fighter-Experimental), a specification for a relatively lightweight air superiority fighter. The requirements called for single-seat fighter having a maximum take-off weight of 40,000 lb (18,100 kg) for the air-to-air role with a maximum speed of Mach 2.5 and a thrust to weight ratio of nearly 1 at mission weight. Four companies submitted proposals, with the Air Force eliminating General Dynamics and awarded contracts to Fairchild-Republic, North American-Rockwell, and McDonnell-Douglas for the definition phase in December 1968. The companies submitted technical proposals by June 1969. The Air Force announced the selection of McDonnell-Douglas on 23 December 1969. The winning design resembled the twin-tailed F-14, but with fixed wings. It would not be significantly lighter or smaller than the F-4 that it would replace.

The F-15's maneuverability is derived from low wing loading (weight to wing area ratio) with a high thrust-to-weight ratio enabling the aircraft to turn tightly without losing airspeed. The F-15 can climb to 30,000 ft (10,000 m) in around 60 seconds. The thrust output of the dual engines is greater than the aircraft's weight, thus giving it the ability to accelerate in a vertical climb. The weapons and flight control systems are designed so that one person can safely and effectively perform air-to-air combat. Visibly, the F-15 has a unique feature vis a vis other modern fighter aircraft in that it does not have the distinctive turkey feather aerodynamic exhaust petals covering its engine nozzles. This is because the petal design on the F-15 was problematic and could fall off in flight; therefore, they were removed, resulting in a 3% drag increase.

The Eagle's initial versions were the F-15A single-seat variant and F-15B twin-seat variant. The F-15B was originally designated TF-15A, but this was dropped, as it is fully combat-capable. These versions would be powered by new Pratt & Whitney F100 engines to achieve a combat thrust-to-weight ratio in excess of 1. A proposed 25 mm Ford-Philco GAU-7 cannon with caseless ammunition suffered development problems. It was dropped in favor of the standard M61 Vulcan gun. The F-15 used conformal carriage of four Sparrow missiles like the Phantom. The fixed wing was put onto a flat, wide fuselage that also provided an effective lifting surface. The first F-15A flight was made in July 1972 with the first flight of the two-seat F-15B following in July 1973.

The F-15 has a "look-down/shoot-down" radar that can distinguish low-flying moving targets from ground clutter. The F-15 would use computer technology with new controls and displays to lower pilot workload and require only one pilot to save weight. Unlike the F-14 or F-4, the F-15 has only a single canopy frame with clear vision forward. The USAF introduced the F-15 as "the first dedicated USAF air superiority fighter since the F-86 Sabre."

The F-15 was favored by customers such as the Israel Air Force and Japan Air Self-Defense Force. Criticism from the fighter mafia that the F-15 was too large to be a dedicated dogfighter, and too expensive to procure in large numbers, led to the Lightweight Fighter (LWF) program, which led to the USAF General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon and the middle-weight Navy McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet.

The single-seat F-15C and two-seat F-15D models entered production in 1978 and conducted their first flights in February and June of that year. These models were fitted with the Production Eagle Package (PEP 2000), which included 2,000 lb (900 kg) of additional internal fuel, provisions for carrying exterior conformal fuel tanks, and an increased maximum takeoff weight of up to 68,000 lb (30,700 kg).[19] The increased takeoff weight allows internal fuel, a full weapons load, conformal fuel tanks, and three external fuel tanks to be carried. The APG-63 radar uses a programmable signal processor (PSP), enabling the radar to be reprogrammable for additional purposes such as the addition of new armaments and equipment. The PSP was the first of its kind in the world, and the upgraded APG-63 radar was the first radar to use it. Other improvements on the C and D models included strengthened landing gear, a new digital central computer, and an overload warning system, which allows the pilot to fly the fighter to 9 g at all weights.

The F-15 Multistage Improvement Program (MSIP) was initiated in February 1983 with the first production MSIP F-15C produced in 1985. Improvements included an upgraded central computer; a Programmable Armament Control Set, allowing for advanced versions of the AIM-7, AIM-9, and AIM-120A missiles; and an expanded Tactical Electronic Warfare System that provides improvements to the ALR-56C radar warning receiver and ALQ-135 countermeasure set. The final 43 F-15C's included the enhanced-capability Hughes APG-70 radar, which was developed for the F-15E. These 43 F-15C's with APG-70 radar are sometimes referred as Enhanced Eagles. Earlier MSIP F-15C's with the APG-63 were upgraded to the APG-63(V)1 to significantly improve maintainability and enable performance similar to the APG-70. Existing F-15's were retrofitted with these improvements.

In 1979, McDonnell-Douglas and F-15 radar manufacturer, Hughes, teamed to privately develop a strike fighter version of the F-15. This version competed in the Air Force's Dual-Role Fighter competition starting in 1982. The Boeing F-15E strike variant was selected for production in 1984. Beginning in 1985, F-15C and D models were equipped with the improved P&W F100-220 engine and digital engine controls, providing quicker throttle response, reduced wear, and lower fuel consumption. Starting in 1997, original F100-100 engines were upgraded to a similar configuration with the designation F100-220E starting.

Beginning in 2007, 178 USAF F-15C's were retrofitted with the AN/APG-63(V)3 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar. A significant number of F-15's are to be equipped with the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS). Lockheed-Martin is working on an IRST system for the F-15C. A follow-on upgrade called the Eagle passive/active warning survivability system (EPAWSS) was planned but remained unfunded.

Since the 1970's, 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.

Source: Wikipedia

Type of Aircraft: (make/model): McDonnell-Douglas F-15B Eagle Tail Number: (S/N): s/n 73-0108 Construction:: original aircraft Location (park, airport, museum, etc.): Located at the Air Park, Luke AFB, Phoenix, AZ inside / outside: outside Access restrictions: Located at the Air Park, Luke AFB, Phoenix, AZ Other Information:: Not listed

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