Boeing says RSAF will follow Korea
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With its South Korean win as a template, Boeing is confident that the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) will follow by selecting the F-15T Strike Eagle as its new fighter. With heavy U.S. government support, Boeing clinched the 40-plane, $4.6 billion deal in Korea two years ago and is set to deliver the F-15Ks between November next year and August 2008. Various enhancements and new weapons on the F-15K may also be offered here, in a deal that would be partly foreign military sales, partly commercial.
“We go faster, farther and with more weapons,” claimed F-15T campaign manager Tom Lillis here yesterday. Example: a 1,000-mile range mission at high altitude carrying twelve 500-pound JDAMs plus four air-to-air missiles; a payload of 29,000 pounds if additional wing stations 1 and 9 are activated (otherwise, still 25,000 pounds); and a list of weapons already integrated that is as long as your arm, and to which SLAM-ER (standoff land attack missile extended response) has been added.
Lillis is a former U.S. Air Force jet jockey, and he offered airshow visitors some advice on how to judge the combat jets flying here. “Our contender’s thrust/weight superiority really shows in the vertical climb,” he noted. The Strike Eagle retains all the air-to-air capability of the F-15C interceptor, he added. But isn’t that an old plane, now? “The Strike Eagle is 80 percent different, and it first flew in 1986, about the same time as our competitors.”
Lillis addressed concerns that the Strike Eagle is expensive to operate. The new digital map set, mission computer with commercial off-shelf hardware and APG-63 V3 active array radar (if selected, “would help lower the life-cycle costs.” Furthermore, Singapore could opt for a single-pilot operation on some missions to save on crew costs. “An existing international customer” is already examining that option (this can mean only Israel, Korea or Saudi Arabia).
What about that perennial issue, source code? Singapore is bound to push for maximum technology release, including the ability to reprogram the mission computer in-house. Knowledgeable observers will recall that the U.S. downgraded the radars and electronic warfare systems in Saudi Arabia’s F-15S models for political reasons. “Singapore wants to maintain and adapt the new fighters…(but) we have to abide by U.S. government rules because it owns this stuff, not us,” Lillis admitted. Earlier, Lillis told Aviation International News that “many of the systems being proposed for Singapore are more advanced than those currently installed on U.S. F-15E models.”
With plenty of room for growth (55 percent in power and 26 percent in cooling, and a U.S. Air Force plan to continue flying F-15Es until at least 2030, Boeing insists that the Strike Eagle still has a long way to go. -
I keep having this strong feeling that we might purchase something combat-proven for once.
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yup...Originally posted by LazerLordz:I keep having this strong feeling that we might purchase something combat-proven for once.
most would wanna get the newer airframes...
but the f-15t is good enuff to meet the present threats for years to come
wonder how the black knights would look like then....F15s?.....F16s? -
Rafale all the way!!!
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Hopefully they will get the EuroFighter Typhoon
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Anything BUT the F-15, please!!!
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the f-15s not so bad la....considering in the future we are getting the NGF.....Originally posted by fudgester:Anything BUT the F-15, please!!! -
I think the F-15 is still the best bet, in terms of commonality and the fact the USAF is prepared to use it till 2030 speaks volumes about its lasting and combat proven design.The F-15T might be using an old design but its avionics and airframe is first flown in 1986 as the F-15E Strike Eagle.
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theyre surely gonna build new ones for us anywaes........not like they selling 2nd hand planes..Originally posted by LazerLordz:I think the F-15 is still the best bet, in terms of commonality and the fact the USAF is prepared to use it till 2030 speaks volumes about its lasting and combat proven design.The F-15T might be using an old design but its avionics and airframe is first flown in 1986 as the F-15E Strike Eagle. -
hmm..what about in terms of air to air combat? With Su-30s popping out all over the region, can the F-15T with a high RCS take on the flankers? Of course with force multipliers like AEW&C and superior ECM we might...but isn't the risk too high?
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SAF shall diversify its weapon source,sticking to one country of its major weapon is not a great move especially country like US who always link their military deal with politics.
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its a jack of all trades arh....anywaes the F15 was initially designed as a interceptor and the strike eagle concept was merely an enhancement to the already potent plane..in the end..its pilot skill too...Originally posted by sgFish:hmm..what about in terms of air to air combat? With Su-30s popping out all over the region, can the F-15T with a high RCS take on the flankers? Of course with force multipliers like AEW&C and superior ECM we might...but isn't the risk too high?
anywaes...i wont be worrying abt other planes of the region...in my opinion...aircraft maintenance in these countries are abysmal...
for example..look at My..they got , F18, Mig 29s, F5s...but how much of their planes are in tip top condition?... -
if we got the F-15 then it is the NGF lah!Originally posted by sidestep1984:the f-15s not so bad la....considering in the future we are getting the NGF.....
Anyway the USAF wld be using it till 2030 because the raptors wont be ready till then......heck they've only got 1 sqn of those planes now!!! and it's only for training!!! -
woops....edited this....wat i meant is....in the future we getting the jsf...Originally posted by |-|05|:if we got the F-15 then it is the NGF lah!
Anyway the USAF wld be using it till 2030 because the raptors wont be ready till then......heck they've only got 1 sqn of those planes now!!! and it's only for training!!!
hahaha...mixed up the abbreviations... -
High RCS but that is not the only factor in an air war.Tactics and network warfare and BVR engagement are other factors which favor us.RAM paint cna help to alleviate.We are not fighting Russia or China, and the F-15T Strike Eagle is already an offensive weapon in this region.Our strength is our logistics and maintenance quality.
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asides from weapon systems and powerplant commonality with our other aircraft, what advantages does the F-15T have over the Typhoon or the Rafale in terms of Air to air combat? If i'm not wrong it has the farthest combat endurance, and the largest weapon payload of the three..but is there anything more than that?
About the countries around us having poor aircraft maintainance, we must never be complacent. Their maintainance standards might improve once a sufficient budget is allocated to them, and the RMAF is also planning to get AWACS aircraft. If these scenarios materialise, we would only have a marginal advantage in terms of pilot skill and electronic warfare, and even that might change. Wouldn't choosing the F-15T give us too little air to air capability to dominate the skies in any case? -
Well.. TUDM getting AWACS, they have been talking since 1980's till now..Originally posted by sgFish:asides from weapon systems and powerplant commonality with our other aircraft, what advantages does the F-15T have over the Typhoon or the Rafale in terms of Air to air combat? If i'm not wrong it has the farthest combat endurance, and the largest weapon payload of the three..but is there anything more than that?
About the countries around us having poor aircraft maintainance, we must never be complacent. Their maintainance standards might improve once a sufficient budget is allocated to them, and the RMAF is also planning to get AWACS aircraft. If these scenarios materialise, we would only have a marginal advantage in terms of pilot skill and electronic warfare, and even that might change. Wouldn't choosing the F-15T give us too little air to air capability to dominate the skies in any case?
The prob is, how long can the Rafale and EuroFighter last either when the F-35 comes? -
"The U.S. Air Force/Boeing F-15E begins its Seoul Air Show air demonstration with a dramatic vertical climb. With its powerful twin engines capable of 29,100 pounds of thrust, and its high thrust-to-weight ratio, the F-15E is the only aircraft that can take off vertically and continue to accelerate throughout the climb. The F-15E can climb from takeoff to 30,000 feet in less than 80 seconds. " Taken from Boeing.Com
More facts about the Eagle
The F-15 Eagle is the most capable multirole fighter in the world. The F-15 entered service in 1974 and has attained an unprecedented perfect air combat record of 100.5 victories and zero losses. F-15s were responsible for downing 33 of the 35 fixed-wing aircraft Iraq lost in air combat during Operation Desert Storm, and the F-15 was responsible for downing four Mig-29 fighters during the Balkan conflict. In Desert Storm, the F-15E strike fighter provided devastatingly effective flying at night and in bad weather to attack numerous mobile Scud missile launchers and other high-value military and ground targets. The F-15E also maintained a 95.5 percent average mission capable rate, the highest of any fighter in the war.
The only manned vehicles which can accelerate while in a vertical climb are rockets (including the Space Shuttle) and the F-15E Strike Eagle.No other plane comes close.
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duplicated.
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And logistics wise... Too used to training in the USA...Originally posted by LazerLordz:The F-15T is the only contender here with the equivalent vertical thrust of a space shuttle and combat radius is the best.I'd say for a Skyhawk replacement, it's already way ahead.
And seriously, who wants to be Rafale's test - rats? If we take, it is their 1st export order -
My sentiments exactly.I would rule out the Rafale.We don't have a history of being the test rat for other people's weapons systems, unless it's our own.Originally posted by sbst275:And logistics wise... Too used to training in the USA...
And seriously, who wants to be Rafale's test - rats? If we take, it is their 1st export order -
the f15e is still as good an air to air interceptor as it is a air to land plane.....just bcos it is called the strike eagle....it is still a good air to air fighter....just that it is now capable of multirole missions....load it up with amraams...sparrows and sidewinders and it'll still be as potent as ever...considering the f15e has a wizzo....the plane can now fight ala f14s....pilot concentrate on flying...wizzos concentrate on acquiring the enemy.....
just dont assume that it being the strike eagle..it lost its air interceptor roots......it just got better......
off topic...its onli been a couple of years(5-6?someone enlighten me on this..) that the RSAF has been recruiting WSO(fighters) rite?....surely for the new f16s...and for the ngf(i suppose)...practically onli the f15t would need wizzos... -
For EuroFighter, if we take, we are their 1st Asian order... Again, a test rat
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Good observation there.The new Blk 52+s are C/D models and we are intensively recruiting WSOs.The Rafale and Eurofighter are single-seaters, what will we do with all that extra WSOs?Send them to ADA?No way, so I guess the signs are becoming clearer.The Strike Eagle is a multi-role fighter with intereceptor roots and a deep strike destiny.Originally posted by sidestep1984:the f15e is still as good an air to air interceptor as it is a air to land plane.....just bcos it is called the strike eagle....it is still a good air to air fighter....just that it is now capable of multirole missions....load it up with amraams...sparrows and sidewinders and it'll still be as potent as ever...considering the f15e has a wizzo....the plane can now fight ala f14s....pilot concentrate on flying...wizzos concentrate on acquiring the enemy.....
just dont assume that it being the strike eagle..it lost its air interceptor roots......it just got better......
off topic...its onli been a couple of years(5-6?someone enlighten me on this..) that the RSAF has been recruiting WSO(fighters) rite?....surely for the new f16s...and for the ngf(i suppose)...practically onli the f15t would need wizzos... -
if we purchase either the Rafale or Eurofighter. We will have the whole spectums of weaponary especially the Storm Shadow or Apache, Brimstone, Meteor (2010), Mica and etc. Thats gonna be impressive.
