FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. — The first newly tested Boeing F-15EX aircraft touched down on Thursday, arriving at her new home at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.
Eglin’s 40th Flight Test Squadron took possession of EX1 to begin developmental and operational testing. EX2 is scheduled to be flown to the air base in April, and six more aircraft will be delivered to Eglin between October 2022 through October 2023.
“It’s a special day for the base and our mission,” Eglin’s 96th Test Wing commander Gen. Scott Cain said on Thursday. “We’re very proud to be part of the next evolution of this historic aircraft. I look forward to seeing this unique test collaboration prepare the F-15EX for the warfighter.”
Boeing was awarded a contract of nearly $1.2 billion by the Air Force last July to build the first set of eight EX jets. Boeing and the Air Force hope to see as many as 144 of the advanced aircraft built.
F-15EXs Flight into the Future
The EX1 performed its first test flight from St. Louis-Lambert International Airport on February 2, 2021. Boeing’s F-15 Chief Test Pilot Matt Giese performed a 90-minute flight to check-out the multirole jet’s avionics, advanced systems, and software.
The tandem-seat aircraft can be operated by a single pilot. The EX also has a larger payload capacity over the F-15C/Ds.
The F-15EX includes the newest fly-by-wire flight controls in an all-new digital cockpit. In addition, the EX airframe carries a longer service life of nearly 20,000 flight hours.
“That’s a long time, about double the service life of an F-15C,” Kingsley Field, Oregon’s 173rd Flight Wing commander Col. Jeff Edwards pointed out. He explained that the F-15C/Ds are approaching the end of their operating margins of structural integrity.
The 173rd has also begun to transition as an F-15C/D to an F-15EX training unit. The base is expected to receive their first F-15EXs as early as October 2023.
“Not only is the airframe designed to last for a long time,” Edwards adds. “The F-15EX also has an open mission system which allows the computer and avionics software to be more adaptable and more easily updated in the future.”
“Seeing the F-15EX fly for the first time (in St. Louis) really left me thinking,” Col. Edwards said with a big smile. “‘Wow! We are going to be flying that jet soon at Kingsley, and it’s going to be awesome!’”
(Charles A Atkeison reports on aerospace and technology. Follow his updates via social media @Military_Flight.)
