Summary
- F-15EX and F-35 fighters have different strengths, so Air Force plans to utilize both jets for future conflicts.
- F-15EX offers increased range and payload compared to F-35, while F-35 designed for stealthy, high-threat environments.
- Pairing of B-21 Raiders and B-52 Stratofortresses show similar strategy of maintaining old and new aircraft in Air Force fleet.
Which jets are better for the Air Force? Is the fifth-generation F-35 stealth fighter or the latest iteration of the F-15 family – the F-15EX Eagle II – the smarter choice? The answer appears to be both. The question is not so much about which fighter jets the US Air Force should buy as it is a debate about the right mixture of the two jets for expected future conflicts and budgetary realities. As the first air wings receive the first F-15EXs, Lockheed Martin has announced it has delivered the 1,000th F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
Why the Air Force brought back the F-15
In the 2000s, it was envisioned that the future backbone of the US Air Force would be F-22 Raptors complemented with multi-role F-35s. However, the F-22 Raptor was prematurely canceled, with only 187 production aircraft built. Of these, around 183 still exist, and only around 120 are actual combat aircraft after trainers are excluded.
Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying
Current US Air Force fighters:
- F-16 family
- F-15 family (including F-15EX)
- F-22 Raptor
- F-35 Lightning II
The cancellation of the F-22 program forced the Air Force to rely on the venerable F-15 family and develop the modernized F-15EX. This means that the F-15 family has outlived its intended successor.
F-15EX – a 4.5th generation fighter
Air and Space Forces Magazine states, “The F-15EX comes with nearly all the bells and whistles Eagle drivers have ever wished for: fly-by-wire flight controls, two new weapon stations, a new electronic warfare suite, advanced radar, a hyper-fast computer, conformal fuel tanks, and a strengthened structure.”
Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying
The F-15EX is leaps and bounds more advanced than the original F-15 Eagles. Those were made with 1970s and 1980s tech. The F-15EX is a modern fighter (although it stops short of being a fifth-gen fighter).
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The F-15EX will be deployed to protect homeland defense and used as support for the F-22 and F-35.
Cost comparisons are complicated and misleading
It may come as a surprise, but over the last few years, the basic per-unit costs of the F-15EX have increased, and the costs of the F-35 have decreased. Now they cost about the same. In November 2023, the National Interest reported that the flyaway costs of an F-35A were around $82.5 million, while the costs of the F-15EX had ballooned to between $94 and $97 million.
Fly away costs of F-35s and F-15EX (per National Interest):
- F-15EX: $94-97 million (Lots 3 & 4)
- F-35A: $82.5 (Lots 15-17)
- F-35B: $109 million
- F-35C: $102 (Lots 15-17)
Photo: US Air Force
However, there is much more to consider; these jets are extremely complicated machines. The cost and time to train the pilots and the maintainers, the infrastructure needed, the available build capacity, the operational lifespan hours, and much more must be considered.
As Boeing claims, “The F-15EX can shoot from a significantly increased range – farther than any other fighter in the U.S. Air Force arsenal.” Additionally, the F-15EX is expected to have an operational lifespan of 20,000 hours, while the F-35 is expected to have just 8,000.
F-35 to be the tip of the spear
The F-35’s stealth is a proverbial double-edged sword. The F-35’s stealth imposes limitations (including a limited payload by carrying munitions internally – at least if stealth is to be maintained). The pairing of the F-35 with the F-15EX is perhaps not the match made in heaven the Air Force would have wanted, but it is a pairing that works with funding constraints and the cancelation of the Raptor.
|
F-15EX |
F-35 |
|
|---|---|---|
|
Operational lifespan hours: |
20,000 |
8,000 |
|
Flyaway costs: |
$94-97 million |
$82.5 (F-35A) |
|
Internal payload: |
not applicable |
5,700 lbs (max 6x AIM missiles) |
|
Total payload: |
29,500 lbs |
18,000 lbs (F-35A) |
|
Max speed: |
Mach 2.5 |
Mach 1.6 |
Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying
The F-15EX enjoys greater ranges and greater payloads than the F-35, and while it is not nearly as stealthy as the F-35, it is far less than the original Eagles. Forbes says, “The new Eagle II is not a stealth fighter. But it very likely is a stealthier fighter. And that could matter a lot in wartime.”
The F-15EX is not a stealth fighter and never will be. Therefore, it can not be used as the tip of the spear in a high-threat environment. The F-35 (and F-22) are built to excel at that role. The F-35 can conduct penetration and surgical strikes and pave the way for the F-15EX to come in with greater payloads and range after reducing the threat environment.
Looking forward, if the Air Force’s NGAD fighter jet really does come into service in the 2030s, then the F-15s are expected to start retiring. The vision is for the Air Force of the later 2030s and 2040s to be NGAD complemented by F-35s (and likely also F-22 Raptors after the Air Force said NGAD is no replacement for the Raptor).
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Why The US Continues To Dissect Plans For Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) Platform
The US Air Force at Secretary Frank Kendall’s direction is ensuring that NGAD’s components meet the US Air Force’s needs.
The pairing of B-21 Raiders with B-52 Stratofortresses
Perhaps a somewhat similar pairing can be seen with the US Air Force’s bomber fleet. As the new B-21 Raider strategic bomber comes into service, the Air Force will retire its fleet of supersonic B-1 Lancers and keep its ancient B-52 Stratofortresses in service. In fact, the B-52s may outlive the B-2 Spirits. If that happens, then they would have outlived the successors (B-2s) of their successors (B-1s).
Photo: VanderWolf Images l Shutterstock
Whatever the B-21 is (cutting-edge, stealthy, etc.), the B-52 is not. However, the low cost, high payloads, and other advantages give the B-52 a place in the 2040s alongside the B-21s. Still, the contrast is not nearly as stark between the F-35 and F-15EX, and the F-15EX is a formidable fighting machine in its own right.