Sunday 27 August 2017

McDonnell Douglas F-15A Eagle, USAF Users part two

The F-15A was the first production version of the F-15 Eagle that was mainly focused on air-to-air combat, hence the armament, that consisted on 4xAIM-7F Sparrow plus 4xAIM-9E/L Sidewinder missiles and additional three external fuel tanks that could carry each of them up to 610 US gallons.
Some F-15As were modified in order to conduct anti-satellite trials equipped with the ASM-135 ASAT missiles on the centreline of the aircraft. As the trials destroyed a satellite they were a success and the programme officially ended in 1988.
The squadrons covered in this post are:

  • 2nd Tactical Fighter Training Squadron: This squadron based in Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, transitioned from the F-106 Delta Dart to the F-15 in May 1984. They continued to training pilots for operations worldwide with the F-15A until it was deactivated in September 2010.
  • 4485th Test Squadron: This squadron received their F-15A in Eglin Air Force Base, Florida in 1972 and kept them until 1988 when they were replaced by the more advanced strike version, the F-15E Strike Eagle.
  • 199th Fighter Interceptor Squadron: This squadron that belongs to the Hawaii Air National Guard, switched their F-4C Phantoms II for the F-15A in 1987. They were used, together with the more advanced F-15C until 2009 when they were replaced by the F-22A Raptor. 
  • 128th Tactical Fighter Squadron: In 1986 this squadron retired the F-4Phantoms and replaced them with the F-15A. They were kept in active service for ten years, until, in 1996, the squadron was reformed and switched them for the B-1B Lancer Bomber.









Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_Douglas_F-15_Eagle
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2d_Fighter_Training_Squadron
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/85th_Test_and_Evaluation_Squadron
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/199th_Fighter_Squadron
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/128th_Airborne_Command_and_Control_Squadron
6. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters

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