The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is an American twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter aircraft designed by McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing). Following reviews of proposals, the United States Air Force selected McDonnell Douglas's design in 1967 to meet the service's need for a dedicated air superiority fighter. The Eagle first flew in July 1972, and entered service in 1976. It is among the most successful modern fighters, with over 100 victories and no losses in aerial combat, with the majority of the kills by the Israeli Air Force.

The Eagle has been exported to Israel, Japan, and Saudi Arabia. The F-15 was originally envisioned as a pure air-superiority aircraft. Its design included a secondary ground-attack capability that was largely unused. The aircraft design proved flexible enough that an all-weather strike derivative, the F-15E Strike Eagle, an improved and enhanced version which was later developed, entered service in 1989 and has been exported to several nations. As of 2017, the aircraft is being produced in different variants.

While some of the F-15C/Ds have been replaced by the F-22 Raptor, there is no slated replacement for the F-15E in its primary "deep strike" mission profile. The Strike Eagle is a more recent variant of the F-15, and has a sturdier airframe rated for twice the lifetime of earlier variants. The F-15Es are expected to remain in service past 2025. The USAF has pursued the Next-Generation Bomber, a medium bomber concept which could take over the Strike Eagle's "deep strike" profile. The F-35A Lightning II is projected to eventually replace many other attack aircraft such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon and A-10 Thunderbolt II, and may also take over much of the F-15E's role; however, the F-15E has better combat range under payload.

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale diecast replica of a USAF Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle multirole fighter that was attached to the 492nd Fighter Squadron "Madhatters", then employed during Operation Inherent Resolve in 2020. Pre-order! Ship Date: 3rd Quarter 2026.

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 7-inches
Length: 10-1/2-inches

Release Date: ?

The program also redesignated many of the Air Force's units by dropping the "Tactical" from their names. Thus on October 1st, 1991, the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing was redesignated the 48th Fighter Wing, and the 492nd, 493rd, 494th and 495th became simply Fighter Squadrons. The 495th FS inactivated on December 13th, 1991.

In the midst of the organizational changes, the wing switched aircraft again, exchanging the F-111Fs for the F-15E Strike Eagle. On February 15th, 1992, the first F-15E landed at Lakenheath, with the last F-111F departing for units within the US on December 16th, 1992. The final F-15E arrived in June 1993 (actually early 2000s), and the wing achieved initial operational capability on October 1st, 1993. With this mission change, the 493rd Fighter Squadron inactivated on January 1st, 1993, only to reactivate again on January 1st, 1994. The squadron received its first maintenance trainer F-15C Eagle on January 10th, 1994, then its full complement of F-15C & D aircraft by July 22nd, 1994. This marked the first time that the 48th had flown a specifically air-to-air weapon system, after flying for more than 50 years with an air-to-ground mission.

Since September 2001, in response to the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11th, 2001, various units of the 48th Fighter Wing have deployed to Afghanistan to support Operation Enduring Freedom and to Iraq to support Operations Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn, and also to various other US allies such as the South Korea.

The wing participated in Operation Odyssey Dawn in Libya in March 2011. One of the wing's F-15E aircraft crashed in Libya after an unapproved flight maneuver on March 21st, 2011, but both crew members survived with minor injuries.