Lesser-known facts about the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle
McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is the tactical jet fighter that was designed to serve the USAF as their air superiority jet fighter back in 1967. The aircraft made its debut flight back in 1972 and entered the service of the USAF in 1967. The aircraft is one of the few jet fighters that have the perfect kill record with 0 losses in combat and has been heavily exported to countries like Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Japan.
For our readers today, we have decided to let you be known to some of the lesser-known facts about the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle.
Pulse-Doppler Radar
The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle has been equipped with the Pulse Doppler Radar which is the AN/APG-63 radar that was developed by the Hughes Aircraft which is now known as Raytheon. This radar is one of the most amazing features of the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. Hughes made upgrades in the radar programs and made it AN/APG-70 radar which has now been fitted in every F-15 in service.
As per USAF, the radar is able to not only see the high flying targets but also the low flying targets without suffering from ground clutter. The information from the radar is fed tot eh central computer which then chooses the delivery of the effective weapon.
Speed
The one thing that the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle has been famed for is its nimbleness which made it one of the best air superiority jet fighters of its era. The aircraft at its top speed can fly at about Mach 2.4 and it is even said that it can go a tad beyond that.
The speed of McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle allows for it to be behind only a handful of the following American made jet fighters.
- SR-71 Blackbird
- Lockheed’s YF-12
- XB-70 Valkyrie
F-15 Variants
The very first of the F-15 Eagle was designated as the F-15A which was training aircraft and flew for the first time in July of the year 1972. This aircraft went on to become the F-15B and then flew in July of 1973. By the year 19798, McDonnell Douglas had produced other variants of the F-15 Eagle which were F-15C and F-15D. The difference between these models is that the variants F-15B and the F-15D has twin seats whereas the F-15A and the F-15C had the single-seat design.
Another model designated F0-15E was delivered to USAF back in the 1980s and was one of the most active-duty F-15 Eagle models in the USAF service. The aircraft saw extensive action during the 1991’s Operation Desert Storm.
Background
The reason that the F-15 Eagle is loved by millions of aviation enthusiasts around the world is simple; it has been around for longer than any other jet fighter. It flew through the skies back in 1972 when the Vietnam War was in full blow and was a competitor against the MiG-25 Foxbat.
The very first combat mission of the F-15 Eagle took place in 1976 and after that, it went on to be part of the many of the other world conflicts such as the Operation Inherent Resolve that took place in Iraq.
Range
If the 3 external fuel tanks of the F-15 Eagle are considered in its entirety for the ferry range, the aircraft has a range of about 3450 miles or 3000 nm. There is this point to be mentioned here that the F-15 Eagle has the aerial refueling capabilities and its range can be made unlimited with the fuel tanker aircraft in the skies available for it.
Mission Computer
The mission computer of the F-15 Eagle is known as the “Advanced Display Core Processor II” and it was fitted in the F-15E models of the F-15 Eagle and was first officially tested in 2016. This mission computer is the one thing that ensures that the F-15 Eagle stays for a long time in air warfare.
This ADCP II is the main thing that has happened in the upgrades of the F-15 Eagle to allow for its air superiority. This mission computer allows for the processing capacity of the missions for the following advanced capabilities.
- Eagle Passive/Active Warning Survivability System
- long-range infrared search and track capability
- high-speed radar communications
- future software suite upgrades
Armament
The models of the F-15 Eagle; F-15A, B, C, and D all contain the same 20 mm cannon along with following armaments for assisting in the air-to-air combat missions.
- AIM-120 (AMRAAM) missiles
- AIM-9 (Sidewinder) missiles
- AIM-7 (Sparrow) missiles
As for the F-15E model of the Eagle, it contains the precision-guided armaments along with a wide range of bombs and missiles. In addition to this, F-15E also uses the same AMRAAM Missiles that other models of the F-15 Eagle use.
Other Countries that have F-15
Although the F-15 Eagle was designed specifically to serve the United States and its air force, the aircraft went on to become a beloved fighter jet across the globe. The aircraft was heavily exported and is now currently being used by the following countries.
- Japan
- Israel
- South Korea
- Saudi Arabia
- Singapore
- Qatar
Although the internationally exported variants of the F-15 Eagle different from the ones used in the US, they are essentially the same in the airframe and other design features. Till this date, an estimated 1500 F-15 Eagles have been developed for the use of not the only the US but also many other world Air Forces.
Engine
The F-15A and B variants of the F-15 Eagle were powered by the twin General Electric F110 turbofan engines whereas the variants F-15C, D, and E are fitted for power with twin Pratt & Whitney F100 engines.
Each of these engines of the F-15 Eagle weighs about 3800 pounds while creating a thrust of 29160 pounds.
Perfect Kill Record
The one other major thing that made the F-15 Eagle one of the most sought out jet fighters in the world by other countries is that the aircraft never suffered mission losses and had a mission completion record of near perfection during eh following conflicts.
- Gulf War
- Lebanon War
- Syrian Border Crisis
During the last two missions mentioned above, the F-15 Eagle was used extensively by the Israeli Air Force and had a kill record of 100 kills with 0 losses.
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