"The F-15 Silent Eagle is designed to meet our internationalcustomers' anticipated need for cost-effective stealth technologies, aswell as for large and diverse weapons payloads," said Mark Bass, F-15Program vice president for Boeing. "The innovativeSilent Eagle is a balanced, affordable approach designed to meet future survivability needs."
Improvements in stealth include coatings and treatments on theaircraft. With the added advantage of redesigned conformal fuel tanks(CFTs) that allow for internal weapons carriage, theSilent Eagle becomes a very attractive fighter for Boeing's international customers.
Depending on the specific mission, the customer can use the CFTs that are designed for internal carriage or change back to the traditional CFTs for optimum fuel capacity and external weapons carriage. The Silent Eaglewill be able to internally carry air-to-air missiles such as the AIM-9and AIM-120 and air-to-ground weapons such as the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) and Small Diameter Bomb (SDB).
The standard weapons load used on current versions of the F-15 is available with the traditional CFTs installed.
The aircraft's canted vertical tails improve aerodynamic efficiency,provide lift, and reduce airframe weight. Another aerodynamicimprovement is the Digital Flight Control System, which improves the aircraft's reliability and reduces airframe weight.
Survivability improvements include a BAES Digital Electronic Warfare System (DEWS) working in concert with the Raytheon Advanced Electronic Scanning Array (AESA) radar.
Boeing has completed a conceptual prototype of the CFTinternal-carriage concept, and plans to flight-test a prototype by thefirst quarter of 2010, including a live missile launch.
The design, development, and test of this internal carriage system are available as a collaborative project with an international aerospace partner.
A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems isone of the world's largest space and defense businesses specializing ininnovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world'slargest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft.Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems is a $32billion business with 70,000 employees worldwide.
