Boeing announced new F-15 Stealth as a solution for
countries having budget constraints when considering
a fleet of the fifth generation F-35 platform
- which will run the risks of increasing costs over the
years when numbers ordered are reduced.
Will Singapore favor this new option which Boeing
is offering to current customers at a special price for conversions
of new F-15E ordered ?
Boeing unveils
upgraded F-15 Silent Eagle with fifth-generation
features
www.flightglobal.com ^
| 17/03/09 | Stephen Trimble
Posted on Wednesday, March 18, 2009
4:43:19 AM by Freeport
Boeing today unveiled a new F-15 prototype aimed at the
international market with such "fifth-generation" add-ons as radar
absorbent coatings, internal weapons carriage and integrated
digital avionics, plus featuring a distinctive V-tail.
Improving the fourth generation fighter’s profile on
air-to-air radar is Boeing’s key goal for the F-15SE, which the
company plans to offer to five foreign
countries with an estimated market for 190
orders.
Radar absorbent materials added to leading edges are
designed to soften the F-15SE’s head-on radar signature. Canting
both horizontal stabilizers by 15 degrees is intended to reduce
radar returns to the side.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2208535/posts
Boeing recently unveiled its newest 5th generation fighter the,
F-15SE (Silent Eagle) which could well be a F-35 killer on the
export market. The aircraft is essentially an F-15 with improved
radar and avionics and a modified airframe to add stealth
(resistance to radar detection). Conformal fuel tanks mounted
underneath the airframe create two internal weapons bays. Each bay
has two stores hard points; an upper swing out weapons rack and a
lower trapeze with separate doors. The trapeze can carry a 1000
pound JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition) or an AIM-120 AMRAAM
(Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile). The upper swing out
weapon rack can be fitted with a rail to mount an AMRAAM or smaller
AIM-9X Sidewinder missile. It also can be fitted with a 500 pound
bomb. All four hard points can carry two SDBs (Small Diameter Bomb)
each.
Apart from the internal weapons bays, the major retrofit to the
airframe is the two tail fins canted 15 degrees outwards to
eliminate nose ballast and the trim, reducing the radar cross
section towards the sides. The aircraft’s frontal radar signature
has been further softened out by using radar absorbent coatings to
the airframe, particularly to the leading edges. Boeing claims the
end-result is an aircraft that can match the frontal-aspect stealth
profile of any fifth generation fighter in configurations cleared
by the US government for export release. The US government has very
strict regulations on export of aircraft with low radar signature.
For an example the USAF’s primary air superiority stealth fighter
the Lockheed Martin F-22 is not cleared for export. Boeing
acknowledges the F-15SE’s stealth improvements do not help against
ground-based radar systems, which are critical for waging offensive
strikes against opponents armed with surface to air missile
systems. Lowering the F-15SE’s thermal signature - a critical
stealthy feature for the F-22 - is also not part of Boeing’s
plans. But it says the F-15SE is aimed at international customers
who are more likely to use the aircraft for defensive, counter-air
operations where the aircraft would be harder to detect by airborne
radar of an enemy aircraft.
Another key feature of the F-15SE is its electronic warfare
system. Boeing has selected the BAE Systems digital electronic
warfare system (DEWS), which includes a digital radar warning
receiver, digital jamming transmitter, integrated countermeasures
dispenser and an interference cancellation system. This enables the
aircraft to continue to jam enemy radars even as its own radar and
radar warning receiver (RWR) continues to function. The main sensor
for the aircraft will be the Raytheon APG-63(V)3 active
electronically scanned array (AESA) radar.
Boeing’s estimated cost for a new aircraft is $100 million,
including spares and training. However, if the existing F-15E
customers want to retrofit their aircraft to the F-15SE standard,
the company would undertake same at a much lesser cost. Boeing
plans to offer the aircraft initially to Israel, Japan, Singapore,
Saudi Arabia and South Korea, with all being current F-15
customers.
The unique feature of all the improvements is that the aircraft
can be quickly reconfigurable to its former non stealthy standard.
With its new sensors and the Electronic Warfare suit plus it’s 14
ton payload makes it a front runner in the non stealth multi-role
fighter market at any case.
Although Boeing doesn’t admit the implications of the arrival of
the F-15SE on the export market for the F-35, the shrinking defense
budgets of many counties who were potential customers for the F-35
may be attracted to the new aircraft. Already two customers on the
F-35 prospect list (Israel and Singapore) are on the list of
potential customers for the F-15 SE, and a third, Japan is due to
make a request for proposals for its F-X fighter program. The F-35
still being under the specification and over-budget adds more
weight in to the Boeing’s prospects. Independent analysts also see
potential markets for the SE in Taiwan and in other Middle East
countries such as UAE and Kuwait. However according to Boeing, USAF
the largest F-15 operator, still is not an “official” sales target.
-- Chaminda Perera
http://www.strategypage.com/dls/articles/The-Stealthy-F-15-Battles-The-F-35-4-25-2009.asp
