F-15 Eagle

[anthonyp]

F-15 with the swing wing from an F-14, F-111 or a larger scale Tornado.  Since there have been several fixed wing WHIF versions of the F-14, why not a swing wing version of the F-15?

You mean like this:



From my Swinging F-15N thread.

Built with F-111 wings.

[elmayerle]

F-15 fuselage with the wing from the F-22.  Alternative would be to use the horizontal surfaces in place of the F-15 components.  Wingtip mounted missile launch rails would be an option.  

Variations within these ideas were proposed as the F-15XX and F-15U programs.  I intend to do both of these as part of a whif Eagle collection, along with several F-15M/MU navalized, non-VG, Eagles.  Acquiring a suitable collection of base kits, now.

[PolluxDeltaSeven]

As I enjoy "near future Whifs", I wrote something about a possible refit of F-15C and F-15D, called F-15F/G Wild Eagle  :

History and Mission:
-After the first F-22 and F-35 deliveries, the USAF officials succeeded in convincing the Congress that a hundred of decommissioned F-15 just had to be modernized in a new standard, in order to give a real SEAD/DEAD ability to the USAF.

Indeed, since the 2012's events in South China Sea, it appears that the US Navy Prowler and Growler are insufficient to assure a good level of security for both USN and USAF.

A short but animated debate happened between the US Navy who wanted more EA-18G for the USAF, arguing that they could be use on the CVN in case of emergency (and  that it could lower the unit price of its own Growler), and the USAF, who wanted a dedicate variant of the F-15 or the revival of the EB-52, arguing that refit aircrafts are cheaper.
Finally, the USAF point of view won.

-Both single-seater F-15F and two-seater F-15G are used for both SEAD and jamming missions, but also for DEAD missions, according the new definition of this mission (no nuke, but heavy cruise missiles with EMP)
20 of the 70 F-15G are also mainly used as Agressor, in order to simulate Russian Su-34 and Chinese J-8KM SEAD aircrafts.

Modernization:
-The planes received a new electronic and avionic suite derived from the F-15SG, F-15K and EA-18G ones. The new glass cockpit is derived from the F-35's with a side stick ala F-16.

-The radar is a APG-84, a mix between the APG-70 and the APG-81. It's a AESA radar with very good jamming abilities.
The electronic suite is quite the same than the Growler one, but with much more internal and miniaturized parts. The antennas of the jammers, which are fitted in the wing tip pods on the EA-18, are integral antennas on the F-15F/G.

-The engines are the F110-GE-144 (a dedicate variant of the F110-GE-132, a little more powerful but with less consumption)

Weapons and external load
-The plane could carry all the USAF weapons, just like the F-15E, but had some particularities. One of the major change on those variants are the four stations under the wings (the two external hard points being re-opened for those variants)

-For SEAD missions, the F-15F/G could carry 6 AARGM under the wings (or 2 AARGM + 2 belly tanks) and 8 more under the conformal tanks.
Most of time, two jamming pods are carried on the old LANTIRN stations, and the 2 AARGM on the external wing pylons are often replaced by 2 additional jamming pods.
A belly tank is often carried under the fuselage and 4 air-air missiles are always carried.

-For DEAD missions, the F-15F/G Wild Eagle carry 3 belly tanks, 2 jamming pods under the inlets, 4 air-air missiles and 4 EMP cruise missiles under the conformal tanks.
Two AARGM or two jamming pods could be fitted under the external wing pylons.

-For jamming missions, one or three bigger jamming pods could be carry for offensive jamming.


Performances:

-The F110-GE-144 engines allowed the F-15F/G to have the same speed and acceleration than a F-15E, even if the structure is heavier.
Nevertheless, the aircrafts are less maneuverable than standard Strike Eagle, even if they are still good fighters. A vectorized thrust nozzle was proposed by GE, but never integrated.

[elmayerle]

Heh, I've got a few ideas for EF-15s, combining "hunter" and "shooter" capabilities as well as dedicated RF-15Ds and recce-capable F-15Es.

Oh, the radar would likely be an AN/APG-71V1 as the ASEA variant of the AN/APG-63 on the "Golden Eagle" upgrades of the F-15C/D is the AN/APG-63V3.

[nev]

I've got a picture somewhere of an F-15 in the 70s with French roundels (!)

[Jeffry Fontaine]

I've got a picture somewhere of an F-15 in the 70s with French roundels (!)

I remember seeing that image back in the day.  Air superiority blue F-15 it was.  Now if you can fast forward that to now and have an F-15E(F) armed with the ASMP for the nuclear strike mission and the SCALP/Apache for conventional missions.  Give it the extra wing pylons for the ECM and chaff pods.  

[elmayerle]

I've got a picture somewhere of an F-15 in the 70s with French roundels (!)

Yep, it was done as part of a sales effort.  Some definite possibilities here, assuming Marcel Dassault's objections were over-ridden.

[Archibald]

I've got a picture somewhere of an F-15 in the 70s with French roundels (!)

Yep, it was done as part of a sales effort.  Some definite possibilities here, assuming Marcel Dassault's objections were over-ridden.

Very unlikely,   considering Dassault best friend was none other than Chirac, prime Minister in the 1974 - 1976 era, then again from 1986 to 1988...

I like this idea of a french F-15, in variants similar to the Mirage 2000
This would give something like

F-15B = two stick trainer
F-15C = fighter
F-15D = conventional strike
F-15N = nuclear strike (the one with ASMP).

[PolluxDeltaSeven]

On a French forum, there was a thread about this F-15 in French colors that was shown in France:




We talk a long time about all the little flag painted under the canopy, and we probably indentify all of them. It gives me a lot of ideas! What if the market of heavy fighters increased in the 1980's??

After all, it could start from nothing: Iraq found the money to by Mirage 4000 to counter Iranian F-14, Saudi Arabia do the same (Mirage 4000, Tornado or more F-15)... Turkey could be tempted to by F-15 in order to replace it's F-4, unable to counter the new heavy planes in the area, which led Greece to by Mirage 4000 etc etc... !!! And it will allowed the sell of Su-27 too!!

Well, speaking only about the F-15, here are the flags we identify and the possible alternate history that could came from them:



Iran
Well... We all know they chose F-14, but the F-15 was evaluated and it is still a good source of possible whiffs!!
There are probably only few things to say. After all, Iranian F-15 will probably have the same carrier than the F-14, with few exceptions:
-Weapons: will they carry only Sidewinder and Sparrow or could they be fitted with AIM-54 Phoenix? It is technically possible (and somehow planned by MDD engineers), and the Iranian had the found for that, but would USA authorized such a modification while the already done Tomcat is able to do the same?
-Life time: even if the F-15 is not a worldwide commercial success (not like the F-16 or F-4), it is much more common than the F-14 (moreover in an alternate universe with a dozen of customers). Maybe it oculd help the Iranian to find parts for repairs in the black market, no?



United Kingdom
Yeah!!! Probably a very good idea, as far as I'm concerned!
The Eagle was a far better aircraft than the Tornado F3, and we could imagine many possibility for a British Eagle:
-Interim solution waiting for the Tornado ADV (poor pilots!! To be transfered from a F-15 to a Tonka is probably more difficult than being retrograded!)
-Replacement for the Tornado ADV. In exchange, the USAF could have bought Tornado ECM in order to replace F-4 Wild Weasel  
-Etc...


Israel
Nothing to add



South Korea
Well, now it is just history! But at this time, it was pure speculative!
A Korean F-15A/C could have been a good idea (and a good excuse for North Korea Su-27 and/or Chinese Mig-31!! )


Canada
I often dream of a Canadian F-15A and a F-15E Strike Eagle with a paint scheme of their own during Desert Storm!!

And what-if a Strike Eagle BEFORE the F-15E??!! The Canadian could have asked for a dedicate variant of the F-15C with few air-to-ground abilities!


Netherlands-Belgium-Denmark-Norway
Well... The deal of the century... Difficult to see the F-15 in those light fighter's users countries, but the true power of whiffing is to make the impossible comes true!!

Norway
Why not?
They probably find the money for that if they really need (and what else than a Finish Flanker could convince them?   )
Whatever, an Eagle in arctic scheme would be a pure beauty!!  

Germany
Yum yum!!! Probably one of the most interesting possibility at this time!!
After all, who could believe in the 1970's that Germany, the first line of Western defenses, will keep antics F-4 and F-104 until the 2000's ??!?!!
And what is the better choice for them than few hundreds of Eagle and Strike Eagle (or at least Eagle, they have the Tornado after all)??

Well, that will be purely awesome!! German F-15 in order to counter German Su-27!!    


Saudi Arabia
Nothing to add


Australia
Another very interesting possibility, specially if we consider a Strike Eagle like variant!
A single plane could replace both the Mirage III and the F-111!! And just imagine a Strike Eagle with a Harpoon or Popeye payload could be cool!


Italy
Same situation than Germany! In the 70s, it was logical to think that they will replace their F-104 one day or another. And the Eagle could be a good contender (with the ADV Tonka as a nemesis).
Other possibility is to imagine F-15 as interim solution between the F-104 and the Typhoon (they chose Tornado and later F-16 instead).

NB: I was not sure if the flag on the F-15 in an Italian or a French one. But Archie already talked about a French Eagle!


Japan
Nothing to add!




We could probably add to them other F-4 users.
Turkey and Greece are the first that came in mind (particulary a greek one, with one of their fancy camo and a anti-ship/anti-radar payload!!)

[dy031101]

I unimaginatively imagined a single-seat militarized F-15 S/MTD or ACTIVE with APG-63(V)3, everything needed to exploit the most out of AIM-9X, and a 25mm or 27mm gun pod under the centerline hardpoint.  Kinda, IMHO, something in the same class as that of Su-37.

But the first F-15 I was thinking about doing would be one I saw in a relatively ancient computer game "Fighter Wing"- one with a camo scheme similar to that of GW USN A-7E and the ability to launch AIM-54.  I bought an Italeri F-15C kit and some Hasegawa AIM-54, hoping one day I might find a pair of CFT used by F-15E without having to buy the whole kit......

[SPINNERS]

How about Eagle F.Mk.1's (F-15A's) replacing the Lightning F.2A's of 19 and 92 squadrons in RAF Germany in 1975-76?

[elmayerle]

I unimaginatively imagined a single-seat militarized F-15 S/MTD or ACTIVE with APG-63(V)3, everything needed to exploit the most out of AIM-9X, and a 25mm or 27mm gun pod under the centerline hardpoint.  Kinda, IMHO, something in the same class as that of Su-37.

But the first F-15 I was thinking about doing would be one I saw in a relatively ancient computer game "Fighter Wing"- one with a camo scheme similar to that of GW USN A-7E and the ability to launch AIM-54.  I bought an Italeri F-15C kit and some Hasegawa AIM-54, hoping one day I might find a pair of CFT used by F-15E without having to buy the whole kit......

What scale Italieri F-15C?  All my 1/72 versions of this kit have the CFTs with the Sparrow/AMRAAM hard points.  And, rather than the stricly 2-D nozzles of the SMTD aircraft, I'd want to use the more versitile AVEN (Axisymmetric Vectoring Exhaust Nozzle) ones demonstrated on an F-16.  The canards on the SMTD aircraft also have the problem of interfering with where the production aircraft have the inflight-refueling receptacle as well as where their gun is mounted.  I'm not trying to be negative, just pointing out things to consider.  The gun could be relocated to a conformal centerline pod, but that loses a hardpoint.  The inflight refueling receptacle is going to require a bit more careful relocation.

[elmayerle]

On a French forum, there was a thread about this F-15 in French colors that was shown in France:




We talk a long time about all the little flag painted under the canopy, and we probably indentify all of them. It gives me a lot of ideas! What if the market of heavy fighters increased in the 1980's??

If you look at the serial number, that's the twelfth and last F-15 prototype, also known as TF2.  I suspect the flags are for all the countries they flew demonstrations for, as you observed.

Lots of potential customers if things had heated up, or even if things had gone a bit differently in the aftermath of the breakup of the USSR.  For instance, Cauldron by Larry Bond has Poland flying second-hand F-15Cs, among other aircraft.  

[dy031101]

What scale Italieri F-15C?

1/72

All my 1/72 versions of this kit have the CFTs with the Sparrow/AMRAAM hard points.

I'm looking for a pair from an F-15E kit because their pylons seem larger (and are therefore better suited to carry AIM-54 IMO).

And, rather than the stricly 2-D nozzles of the SMTD aircraft, I'd want to use the more versitile AVEN (Axisymmetric Vectoring Exhaust Nozzle) ones demonstrated on an F-16.

If I can find a pair without having to buy a kit...... scratch building is not exactly my forte.

The canards on the SMTD aircraft also have the problem of interfering with where the production aircraft have the inflight-refueling receptacle as well as where their gun is mounted.

The gun could be relocated to a conformal centerline pod, but that loses a hardpoint.  The inflight refueling receptacle is going to require a bit more careful relocation.

That's the reason why I mentioned gun pod under centreline hardpoint.  Perhaps some sort of arrangement like proposed IRST for F/A-18E/F or LITE targetting sensors (modified fuel tank with equipment in the front half and a reduced fuel carriage in the aft half) could be made?

Didn't see the refuelling receptacle question coming, though.

[ysi_maniac]

After seeing this pic I thought that F-15E could be a better candidate than Mirage-2000N as nuclear striker.