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No. 20644
ID: 63797f
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, US F-15 C2040 missileer carries 16 AIM-120 AMRAAMs.jpg
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Boeing Unveils a Version of the F-15 With Twice as Many Missles
The F-15 Eagle is America's most storied jet fighter. It has an unbeaten record in the air—104 kills and zero losses—unmatched by any other combat aircraft.
It's also getting long in the tooth—the average age of the 254F-15s serving in the U.S. Air Force service is now 28 years old. That puts it a generation behind the latest planes, from the American F-22 Raptor to the Chinese J-20. The Air Force had planned to replace the F-15 with the F-22 altogether, but stopped production of the F-22 Raptor at just 195 aircraft, as the multi-purpose F-35 Joint Strike Fighter became more politically popular.
Now the plan is for the Raptor and the Eagle to work together in the skies, teaming up to take down enemy fighters. And to make the Eagle more lethal for its share of the task aviation giant Boeing is has introduced an upgrade: the F-15 Eagle C2040.
The Eagle C2040 is designed to be a missileer, carrying up to sixteen AIM-120D AMRAAM radar-guided missiles into battle. That's twice as many as many as existing F-15Es can carry and six more than the current reigning champion in missiles, the Sukhoi Su-35 Super Flanker.
The upgrade also includes the Talon HATE advanced communications datalink, which allows the F-15 to exchange data with the F-22. Boeing almost certainly has in mind a scenario in which stealthy Raptors could fly ahead
undetected, quietly identifying and targeting enemy aircraft for the heavily armed Eagles.
Other upgrades include an improved radar, an infrared targeting system, and improved electronic warfare capabilities. The F-15 would also have conformal fuel tanks attached to the fuselage, giving the plane even longer legs while preserving the Eagle's maneuverability.
The Eagle 2040C is an upgrade package that would be applied to existing F-15s. The package should keep the F-15 lethal until the U.S. unveils its next generation air superiority fighter—right around 2040. http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/weapons/a17395/boeing-unveils-a-missile-slinging-version-of-the-f-15-eagle/
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