F-15 Eagle

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F-15 Eagle

Role:	Air Superiority Fighter
Manufacturer:	McDonnell Douglas/Boeing
Real-World Origin:	United States
Variants:	F-15A Eagle F-15B Eagle F-15C/J Eagle F-15D/DJ Eagle F-15E Strike Eagle F-15I Ra'am F-15K Slam Eagle F-15S F-15SG F-15S/MTD F-15 ACTIVE

The F-15 Eagle is an American air superiority fighter. It has several variants, including the F-15E Strike Eagle and F-15S/MTD. The F-15C is featured prominently in Ace Combat Zero as the protagonists' aircraft.

1 Development
2 Design
3 Variants
- 3.1 Variants with separate articles
4 Specifications
5 Operators
- 5.1 Real World
- 5.2 Ace Combat
  - 5.2.1 Player-only
6 See Also
- 6.1 Related Development
- 6.2 Comparable Aircraft

Development

The F-15 Prototype.

During the mid-1960s the U.S. Air Force intelligence was shocked to find that the Soviet Union was building a large fighter aircraft, known as the MiG-25 Foxbat, a predicessor to the MiG-31 Foxhound. 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; as such, its primary asset was speed, not maneuverability. The MiG-25's huge tailplanes and fins hinted at a very maneuverable aircraft, which worried the Air Force that its performance might be higher than its American counterparts. In reality, the MiG's large stabilizer and stabilators were necessary to prevent the aircraft from encountering inertia coupling in high-speed, high-altitude flight.

The Eagle's initial versions were designated F-15A for the single-seat configuration and F-15B for the twin-seat. These versions would be powered by new Pratt & Whitney F100 engines to achieve a combat thrust-to-weight ratio in excess of 1 to 1. A proposed 25 mm Ford-Philco GAU-7 cannon with caseless ammunition was dropped in favor of the standard M61 Vulcan gun due to development problems. The F-15 retained 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. Some questioned if the zoom performance of the F-15 with Sparrow missiles was enough to deal with the new threat of the high-flying MiG-25 "Foxbat"; its capability would eventually be demonstrated in combat.

The single-seat F-15C and two-seat F-15D models entered production in 1978 with the models' first flights in February and June of that year. These new models have Production Eagle Package improvements, including 2,000 lb of additional internal fuel, provision for carrying exterior conformal fuel tanks and increased maximum takeoff weight of up to 68,000 lb.

Design

An F-15C from Langley AFB.

The F-15A/B/C/D were designed with both BVR and WVR combat in mind. A high thrust-to-weight ratio and low weight-to-wing area ratio allow the aircraft to maneuver with a relatively small loss of airspeed. The aircraft's AIM-9L/M Sidewinders and M61 Vulcan are its primary weapons for close range engagements. In Ace Combat Zero, the F-15C also can carry the AIM-9X.

In BVR combat, the F-15's AGP-63/70 radar is used to detect targets. Though outperformed by modern AESA radar, it is still among the best Pulse-Doppler radar systems in the world. A very small number of Eagles in USAF service have been upgraded to AESA radar, however. After target acquisition, AIM-7F/M Sparrows or AIM-120A/B AMRAAMs can be used to destroy them.

Variants

A formation of ANG F-15Cs.

F-15A Eagle - Original single-seat version.

F-15B Eagle - Two-seat version based on the F-15A.

F-15C Eagle - Later single-seat version with a number of avionics upgrades.

F-15D Eagle - Two-seat version based on the F-15C.

Variants with separate articles

F-15E Strike Eagle and variants - Two seat mutlirole aircraft.

F-15S/MTD / F-15 ACTIVE - Technology demonstrators with thrust vectoring.

Specifications

General characteristics

Crew: 1 (F-15A/C/D), 2 (F-15B/D/E)
Length: 63 ft 9 in (19.43 m)
Wingspan: 42 ft 10 in (13.05 m)
Height: 18 ft 6 in (5.63 m)
Powerplant: 2× Pratt & Whitney F100-100,-220 or -229 afterburning turbofans
- Dry thrust: 17,450 lbf (77.62 kN) each
- Thrust with afterburner: 25,000 lbf for -220; 29,000 lbf for -229 (111.2 kN for -220; 129.0 kN for -229) each

Performance

An F-15C's cockpit.

Maximum speed:
- High altitude: Mach 2.5+ (1875 mph (3018 km/h))
- Low altitude: Mach 1.2 (900 mph (1448 km/h))
Combat radius: 1,061 nmi (1,222 mi, 1,967 km) for interdiction mission
Ferry range: 3,100 nmi (3,570 nmi, 5,745 km) with external conformal fuel tanks
Service ceiling: 65,000 ft (20,000 m)
Rate of climb: >50,000 ft/min (254 m/s)
Thrust/weight: 1.12 (-220), 1.30 (-229)