What is the F-15EX Eagle II? Boeing’s Latest-Generation Heavyweight Fighter, Explained
The Boeing F-15EX Eagle II is the latest production variant of the legendary F-15 family — a four-decade evolution of the platform that has not lost a single air-to-air engagement in combat. Designed primarily for the U.S. Air Force as a replacement for the aging F-15C/D fleet, the F-15EX leverages the airframe and avionics work funded by foreign F-15 customers (Saudi F-15SA, Qatari F-15QA) and adapts them into a U.S.-specific configuration optimized for large-payload, long-range, non-stealth deep strike. With 12 hardpoints capable of carrying 12 AIM-120 AMRAAMs and four AIM-9X Sidewinders simultaneously, the F-15EX is currently the heaviest-armed Western fighter in production.
Key facts at a glance
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | 4.5-generation multi-role heavy fighter |
| Manufacturer | Boeing Defense, Space & Security |
| First flight | 2 February 2021 (Boeing); 7 March 2021 (USAF EX-1) |
| Service entry | 2024 (USAF, 142nd Wing) |
| Crew | 1 (EX) or 2 (EXT trainer) |
| Engines | 2× GE F110-GE-129 or Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 |
| Length | 19.43 m |
| Wingspan | 13.05 m |
| MTOW | 36,741 kg |
| Internal fuel | 6,150 kg |
| External payload | up to 13,400 kg across 23 hardpoints (with conformal fuel tanks) |
| Max speed | Mach 2.5 |
| Combat radius | 1,272 km (high-low-high profile, internal fuel) |
| Service ceiling | 18,288 m |
| Radar | Raytheon AN/APG-82(V)1 AESA |
| EW | EPAWSS (Eagle Passive/Active Warning and Survivability System) |
| Operators | USAF; F-15EX-based exports include Indonesia (selected 2023) |
| Unit cost | ~ USD 90 million (FY2024 USAF) |
Origins: from F-15 Silent Eagle to F-15EX
Boeing’s first attempt at modernizing the F-15 for the post-2000 era was the F-15SE Silent Eagle stealth-shaped variant, which failed to win Korean and Israeli competitions in 2009–2014. Boeing pivoted to a more conservative design optimized around non-stealth missile-truck performance: the F-15SA for Saudi Arabia (84 aircraft, delivered 2014–2020), the F-15QA Ababil for Qatar (36 aircraft, delivered 2021–2023), and the U.S.-tailored F-15EX announced in 2018. First USAF order — 76 aircraft — was placed in 2020; subsequent orders bring the total to 144 aircraft as of FY2025.
What’s new on the EX
- Fly-by-wire flight controls — first F-15 variant to abandon the original analog flight-control system.
- Open-mission-system architecture — the avionics backbone is designed for rapid third-party software upload, supporting Future Vertical Lift and CCA loyal-wingman integration.
- EPAWSS — replaces the Vietnam-era ALQ-135 jamming suite with a modern digital RF management system.
- AN/APG-82 AESA radar — same array as the F-15E Strike Eagle upgrade, with significantly increased detection range.
- 12 air-to-air missile capacity — twelve AIM-120 AMRAAMs (six per inner-wing rail) plus four wingtip AIM-9X — the heaviest fighter air-to-air loadout in production worldwide.
- Hypersonic-missile carriage — the F-15EX is the launch platform for the AGM-183 ARRW hypersonic test program and for the operational HACM air-launched hypersonic.
Weapons
| Role | Weapons |
|---|---|
| Air-to-air | AIM-120D-3, AIM-9X Block II, AIM-260 (planned) |
| Air-to-surface | JDAM family, GBU-31/32/38, SDB I/II, JASSM-ER, JSOW, AGM-65 Maverick |
| Anti-radar | AGM-88E AARGM |
| Hypersonic | HACM (operational), ARRW (test) |
| Cannon | 1× 20 mm M61A1 Vulcan |
Combat record
The F-15EX has not yet been used in combat as of late 2025 — but the platform’s predecessors (F-15C, F-15E, F-15SA, F-15QA) carry the most decorated air-to-air kill record of any post-Vietnam Western fighter, with a publicly tracked record of 104:0 in air-to-air combat as of 2024 across U.S., Israeli and Saudi service.
F-15EX vs. its peers
| F-15EX Eagle II | F-35A | F-22A Raptor | Su-35S | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Generation | 4.5 | 5 | 5 | 4.5 |
| Engines | 2× F110 or F100 | 1× F135 | 2× F119 | 2× AL-41F1S |
| Max speed | Mach 2.5 | Mach 1.6 | Mach 2.25 | Mach 2.25 |
| Combat radius | 1,272 km | 1,240 km | 850 km | 1,500 km |
| Air-to-air loadout | 12 AIM-120 + 4 AIM-9X | 4 internal + 6 external | 6 internal + 2 external | 12 air-to-air mix |
| Stealth | No | Yes (extensive) | Yes (extensive) | Partial |
The U.S. fleet plan
The Air Force originally planned to procure 144 F-15EX aircraft. As of FY2025 the total funded buy is 98 aircraft with options for a further 46. Deliveries are running at approximately 18 aircraft per year. The platform is replacing F-15C/D fleets at homeland-defense alert facilities, beginning with the 142nd Wing in Oregon and the 144th Fighter Wing in California. The platform is also being adapted to host the Increment 1 Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) loyal-wingman drones being developed by General Atomics and Anduril.
Why the F-15EX matters
The F-15EX is the most capable non-stealth fighter Boeing has ever produced. Its enormous weapons load, modern AESA, EPAWSS EW suite and hypersonic-missile carriage put it at the heart of U.S. Air Force fleet planning for the next two decades, particularly for the Pacific theater where range and missile-count matter more than stealth. As the F-22 ages and the F-35 production line saturates, the F-15EX provides the missile-truck and tanker-escort capacity the Air Force needs against the rising threat of Chinese long-range fighters and bombers.
