This may be a necessity for America if the F22 gets canned. Pretty nifty design upgrades. This is also a threat to the JSF as far as customer base goes. It allows modifications where the F-35 does not.
I must confess to bias here. The F-15 has always been my favorite plane. The sleek lines are just too sexy…
The Joint Strike Fighter is expected to suffer another, yet unexpected blow, with the Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] introduction of a new version of the F-15 dubbed ‘Silent Eagle’ (F-15SE). The new stealth configured Strike Eagle is being tailored for an undisclosed international customer, requiring enhanced stealth, and higher survivability level than those provided by current fighters. “The F-15 Silent Eagle is designed to meet our international customers’ anticipated need for cost-effective stealth technologies, as well as for large and diverse weapons payloads,” said Mark Bass, F-15 Program vice president for Boeing. Accordingly, Bass considers the new fighter a ‘balanced, affordable approach designed to meet future survivability needs.’ According to the Korea Times, the Silent Eagle will be Boeing’s bid for South Korea’s third phase F-X fighter jet acquisition program, to begin by 2012. Earlier, Seoul officials said the third phase program would focus on obtaining the so-called fifth-generation stealth fighters. The F-X aims to procure 120 high-end warplanes by 2020, and Boeing already won the previous two deals with its F-15K fighters.
