As a 20+ year F-15 mechanic working everything from 1978 model C's to 2005 SG models, the reliability and ease of maintenance on it is going to be a huge impact in a future air war. I've seen 15s come back with parts missing, hydro systems blown out, flight control cables snapped, generators melted, motors that chewed themselves apart, and that beast of an acft just keeps on trucking and the pilots coming home. Besides all the future tech going in, the ability to turn a jet and make it back on the schedule for the next go is a huge part of the strength of the 15.

15ex are with oregon air national guard. We were the first to get them in USA.  They fly over my house 10 miles outside of Portland oregon and they sound so cool.

Surely in a real war having different assets with different tactics is good, and makes your opponent have to guess that much harder about what is coming next?

yeah, at a distance & keep the beams tight

The F-15EX it’s basically a complementary platform for the fifth generation fighters.

Why the fighter devision works is because it's McDonald Douglas.   The Saint Louis people don't make mistakes.

“It’s not the plane sir, it’s the pilot…”

Do you think we should've bought the block 70/72 viper as well?

The EX is basically the B-1R missile truck that never happened for the Raptor and Fat Amy, and then it can go dump a bunch of ordnance on a target, get shot to shit, lose a wing and bugger off home as if it were an A-10

The EX is in the Mc D division of Boeing

new name for the F15 is the F1 5EX

You totally right regarding Boieng ,the fighter division is so much better than the civlian airliners ! Regarding the F15, for me it will always remain the tank of the sky, robust and efficient , and now much powerful with the EX version with this great technology.

I believe the primary reason that the F-15 has been such a great program is because they've been building it for over 50 years, and it's not a Boeing facility..... It's was originally McDonald Douglas facility. All of McDonnell Douglas  aircraft(s) lol.. have been exceptional, the F4, F18, YF23, MD90, MD11, MD 500, the Apache, C17 and the list goes on, various parts of NASA, even the DC-10. So the young ones understand...the DC 10 has been flying for over 45 years without any major issues with FedEx and as the KC-10. Yes a couple of DC-10s crash, but one of them was extraordinarily unusual and the other was a maintenance issue not manufacturing. McDonnell Douglas management wasn't great but the facilities and workforce culture has always been top-notch.
I believe the last plane that was built by McDonnell Douglas engineers was the 757 up in Washington, and most those boys and girls transferred from Long Beach.

It's a great show as always, love hearing you guys!!
Carl

You had mentioned it in an earlier video and I agree, it would be interesting to know how many McDonnell Douglas guys are still left at Boeing because I think that’s the F-15s  shaving grace is that it’s a McDonnell Douglas design.
Just thinking out loud it’s sad that Boeing has been more focused on money than the aircraft they build and that’s an indictment of their senior executives. It’s just not the company of old that designed the 747 and other famous aircraft.

I’m gonna go lay out on the limb here with this comment. If Boeing wants to do better with the commercial airplanes, then maybe they should take a look at the people who are doing so well with the EX program. Just a thought.

I hear this argument too much, but I see the Mach loop bois flying & I’m like damn you Lakenheath

Regarding Boeing… seems like the P-8 Poseidon program has gone on without any hitches.

Kinda interesting that the F-15 survived to be the EX but the tomcat was cancelled despite the proposed major upgrades (ST21)

Awesome video

Would argue this was an avenue that should have been gone down circa 2006ish when the F-22 was already looking to be wound up and the F-35 was in delay. It was obvious back then that additional batches of 4th gen aircraft would be needed to ensure the current fighter hole would not happen