Looking at the Air Force decision to ground a significant portion of its F-15 fleet, it’s important to keep in mind that it was always part of the USAF’s long-term plan to retain a “golden fleet” of about 185 F-15C/Ds that would supplement its original requirement of 380+ F-22s. These birds would receive a lot of lateral technology upgrades from the F-22 program. While the F-22 is supreme on the enemy’s side of the forward edge of battle area (FEBA), over friendly territory, the F-15 has a lot to recommend it, including a potentially larger missile payload. So, I could see how with the retirement of about 200-300 F-15s, the Air Force would be ideally positioned to reinstate its original fighter roadmap. It will be interesting to see whether, in light of increased Russian excursions over the North Sea, the RAF decides to retain its Tornado F.2s even after acquiring the Eurofighter Typhoon. When it comes to long-range intercept and beyond visual range capability, the Tornado has it all over the Eurofighter. And with the final block of upgrades, it finally becomes the fighter it should have been from the beginning.
