Boeing F-15EX Eagle II

[mixelflick]

The good news is this: Boeing defense is doing much better. From this week's earnings release..

"Defense segment momentum continued, with backlog reaching a record $76 billion in Q3 2025 and key wins such as the $2.8 billion US Space Force SATCOM contract and multiple multi-year deals". I read somewhere they delivered 30 airframes (mostly SH?) and 2 satellites for the year.

If they can get through the strike, Boeing defense may have just turned a corner. That US Space Force contract, another multi-year deal on PAC-3 and F-15EX deliveries picking up should help them transition, after shuddering the Super Hornet line. The EX in particular is a bridge IMO, until they can get the F-47 line up and running (and they're still in play w/the Navy's F/A-XX).

[jetblast16]

Agreement ends three-month strike at Boeing defense plants

...
Around 3,200 Boeing Defense workers have voted on Thursday to ratify a new collective agreement, ending a strike that halted production for more than three months at the company’s facilities in Missouri and Illinois.

The five-year contract provides a cumulative 24% wage increase and a $6,000 signing bonus, according to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM).

Employees are expected to return to work as early as Sunday, restoring activity on assembly lines for the F-15EX and F/A-18 fighters, as well as weapon systems and the US Navy’s MQ-25 tanker drone.
...[more at source]

Source: https://www.airdatanews.com/agreement-ends-three-month-strike-at-boeing-defense-plants/

[daswp]

Agreement ends three-month strike at Boeing defense plants

...
Around 3,200 Boeing Defense workers have voted on Thursday to ratify a new collective agreement, ending a strike that halted production for more than three months at the company’s facilities in Missouri and Illinois.

The five-year contract provides a cumulative 24% wage increase and a $6,000 signing bonus, according to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM).

Employees are expected to return to work as early as Sunday, restoring activity on assembly lines for the F-15EX and F/A-18 fighters, as well as weapon systems and the US Navy’s MQ-25 tanker drone.
...[more at source]

Source: https://www.airdatanews.com/agreement-ends-three-month-strike-at-boeing-defense-plants/

That's good news.

[mixelflick]

I'm sure there's a good reason (somewhere), but I just don't get the slow roll production/fielding of the EX?

It was supposed to be the "ready now" option. They did get 2 airframes to Eglin pretty quick (for testing), but since then - it's been abysmal. There MAY be 10 jets fielded today.... 4 years later? Recently, I just saw some claim by Boeing that they'll be producing TWO aircraft/month.... by late 2026.

I love the Eagle, but this isn't cutting it.

They had a warm production line, still making the QA so it's not like they're doing this from scratch. Unless the hang up is with the radar, E/W etc or some subcontractor, I sure as hell wouldn't have any confidence in Boeing. Certainly not enough to build the F-47, the lynchpin of future air dominance.

[sprstdlyscottsmn]

So, the 2 test aircraft were actually F-15SA IIRC so they were not new builds, they were already almost done and were just shuffled. The F-15EX was added to the pentagon budget but an acting SecDef who was a former Boeing exec during a time when USAF was pushing for a 100% 5th Gen force. Much like the "totally not a new build aircraft" F/A-18E/F/G, the F-15EX is just Boeing pulling the wool over the eyes of the Pentagon/Congress, selling an inferior product as "low risk and ready" when it simply isn't true.

[nike77]

I'm sure there's a good reason (somewhere), but I just don't get the slow roll production/fielding of the EX?

It was supposed to be the "ready now" option. They did get 2 airframes to Eglin pretty quick (for testing), but since then - it's been abysmal. There MAY be 10 jets fielded today.... 4 years later? Recently, I just saw some claim by Boeing that they'll be producing TWO aircraft/month.... by late 2026.

I love the Eagle, but this isn't cutting it.

They had a warm production line, still making the QA so it's not like they're doing this from scratch. Unless the hang up is with the radar, E/W etc or some subcontractor, I sure as hell wouldn't have any confidence in Boeing. Certainly not enough to build the F-47, the lynchpin of future air dominance.

And yet in our infinite wisdom, we have entrusted Boeing with the F-47 anyway because we can't have Lockheed Martin getting the entirety of the fighter aircraft production pie.

And only two EXs a month but not until late 2026?

The USAF might as well tell Boeing to kick rocks and tell the units that were chosen to get EXs they're getting F-35s instead.

[jetblast16]

U.S. Air Guard gets new advanced Eagle fighter jet

Boeing announced on Tuesday that a new F-15EX fighter aircraft, designated EX15, has been officially delivered to the 142nd Wing of the Oregon Air National Guard, marking the unit’s eighth aircraft of the type and adding momentum to the U.S. Air Force’s growing fleet of upgraded Eagles.

Boeing F-15EX Eagle II

In a statement, the company said: “15 never looked this good! F-15 EX15 has officially joined the 142nd Wing Oregon Air National Guard as their eighth F-15EX. This delivery reflects close collaboration between production, test, logistics, and the Oregon Air National Guard — a true team achievement.”

The F-15EX is the newest variant of the Advanced Eagle family, built on the framework of the F-15E design but incorporating structural upgrades, an improved flight-control system, and modern avionics. As noted by Boeing, the aircraft was originally developed as an export-ready evolution of the Strike Eagle before the U.S. Air Force adopted it to meet its need for a fast-fielding, large-payload tactical fighter.

The aircraft, manufactured by Boeing and operated by the Oregon Air National Guard, is part of a broader Air Force program to acquire a total of 129 F-15EX fighters. These aircraft are intended to replace aging F-15C/D models while expanding the service’s ability to operate across wide areas, carry heavy weapons loads, and integrate with modern air-combat networks.

According to Boeing, the F-15EX “can shoot from a significantly increased range – carry more payload than any other fighter – and provides the unique capability of holding 12 AMRAAMs or other large ordnance.” The company also highlights the platform’s 29,500-pound (13,300-kilogram) payload capacity, which allows the aircraft to support both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions while maintaining long-range persistence.

The new model integrates updated sensors, an advanced electronic warfare suite, modern battle-management systems, and expanded computing capacity designed to support future weapons and effects. These upgrades allow the fighter to present “multiple challenges both inside and outside of threat rings,” Boeing says.

The 142nd Wing, based in Portland, was the first operational unit to receive the F-15EX and continues to build out its fleet. The delivery of EX15 comes as the Air Force moves forward with transitioning additional units and training organizations to the type. The aircraft offers a mix of readiness, high payload, and range that Air Force leaders say is needed to counter modern threats posed by peer air forces.

The Air Force has positioned the F-15EX as a complementary asset within its future force structure, operating alongside fifth-generation aircraft such as the F-35A. The service expects the EX to provide capacity for homeland defense, weapons carriage roles, and missions requiring high speed, long endurance, and rapid response.

Source: https://defence-blog.com/u-s-air-guard-gets-new-advanced-eagle-fighter-jet/

[mixelflick]

We keep hearing "long range". If I'm not mistaken, the EX carries the same 13,500lbs of internal fuel the F-15C does.

Several pilots (and I think Boeing) have claimed it has "better legs" than the F-15C and can get higher/faster. Does anyone know how much longer range (real or theoretical) they're talking about?

With everything else the same, it has to come down to the new GE engines.

[sprstdlyscottsmn]

The EX carries less internal fuel than the C, as does the E. While the GE engines do tend to be a bit more efficient the "longer range" compared to the C comes down to the CFTs which C units almost never had/used.

[disconnectedradical]

The twin-seat Eagle, like the F-15D, E and EX, carries slightly less fuel, about 12,915 lbs while single seat F-15C carries 13,455 lbs. I think original F-15A/B carries 2,000 lbs less fuel than the C/D due to some wing structural differences.

Note this is for JP-4, while current JP-8 fuel is a bit denser so weight is a bit more. Either way the F-15EX carries less fuel than F-15C but not by a lot.

Some two-seat designs lose more fuel than others. Example, on the Super Hornet, the F/A-18F carries 1,000 lbs less fuel than F/A-18E (14,700 lbs of JP-5).

I think another thing to think about is, since the F110-GE-129 with 29,500lbf thrust is much more powerful than the F100-PW-220 with 23,770lbf thrust that the F-15C/D pilots are used to, they don’t have to use afterburner as much, which helps increase range. Especially since the F-15EX is currently flown in operational squadrons like 142 FW, just like their previous F-15C/D for air superiority rather than like the F-15E, so without the super draggy Strike Eagle CFTs.

[f119doctor]

The performance comparisons are never apples to apples. It is:

F-15C with -220 clean or EFT
F-15E with -229 CFT and targeting pods
F-15EX with -129 clean or EFT

The EX /-129 is the best performer in this comparison without a doubt. But the E / -229 is definitely penalized with the CFT and pods

[F-16ADF]

From a performance standpoint the ultimate Eagle, in my opinion, would have been the F-15A/C with the PW229. Unless the EX is relaxed stability, it kind of reminds me of a Block 50 F-16: A lot more thrust, a lot more weight, same size wing.

[f119doctor]

The -229 could have been installed in the A/C model, if the USAF had wanted it, while the -129 would not fit. The E model was the first with the Common Engine Bay that could accommodate either engine.

[disconnectedradical]

That’s news to me. What was the change in the F-15E engine bay that let it accommodate the F110? I’ve read F110 has a bigger diameter fan than F100 despite same inlet flange diameter because of the bulged fan case. The F-15A/B/C/D couldn’t accommodate that?

[f119doctor]

That’s news to me. What was the change in the F-15E engine bay that let it accommodate the F110? I’ve read F110 has a bigger diameter fan than F100 despite same inlet flange diameter because of the bulged fan case. The F-15A/B/C/D couldn’t accommodate that?

That is correct, the F110 did not fit the F-15A - D engine bay. I don’t know the exact changes that were made in the Common Engine Bay introduced with the E model, but that is the first model that could accommodate the F110 engine.