Designed in the late 1960s and early 1970s to replace the F-4 Phantom, the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle has been one of the world's most formidable interceptor fighter jets for over the last twenty-five years.

The requirements for this new jet, just as in the design of any new aircraft was driven by the successes and failures of the time. For various reasons, the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom was not as successful as previous military aircraft. The kill-ratio in air battles against the North Vietnamese Air Force from 1965 - 68 was only 1.5 to 1. One reason for the lack of success of the F-4 was that it was considerably less maneuverable than the opposing Russian MIG-17s and MIG-21s.

Hence, maneuverability on the next generation fighter jet became a priority. Design requirements were further driven by the 1967 introduction of the MIG-25 “Foxbat.” The Foxbat is a twin-engine fighter capable of Mach 3.2. An assessment of the MIG-25s capabilities by the United States spurred on the design and development of products such as the F-15 as well as the Grumman F-14 Tomcat.

The initial F-15, F-15A, designed for air-to-air targets only, was first flown and tested in 1972. An extremely maneuverable fighter, it was an all weather single seat jet powered by two Pratt & Whitney F-100-PW-100 turbofans capable of reaching Mach 2.5 at altitude, which along with a high engine thrust-to-weight ratio gave it tremendous acceleration. The first F-15A was delivered to the Air Force in 1974.

Combined with the attributes of superior range and a superior weapons systems has helped the F-15 maintain air superiority for over 25 years. Israel used several variants of the F-15 in Lebanon in 1982, while the United States used the F-15 in 1991 in the Persian Gulf War. Combined, the air-to-air kill ratio was an unprecedented 120:0.

Other variants include:

F-15C, first flown in 1979, today is the Air Force's primary fighter. The improved version includes superior avionics compared to the original.

F-15D is a two-seat version of the F-15C and was also initially flown in 1979.

F-15E, known as the Strike Eagle, is a two-seat jet designed for air-to- ground missions. It was first appeared in 1987 and was designed to replace the F-111. The Lockheed Martin F-117 Nighthawk has since come on the scene and has replaced F-15E as the premier attack bomber. While the Nighthawk is used only for night missions, the F-15E is used for any day, all-weather missions. Both the F-15E and F-117 were used in Operation Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf in 1991.

F-15I (nicknamed “Thunder”) is an air-to-ground version purchased by Israel in the late 1990s.

F-15JI (nicknamed “Peace Eagle”) is an air-to-air jet purchased by Japan . It is based on the F-15C.

F-15S is an air-to-ground version purchased by Saudi Arabia .

Armed with one 20-mm M61A1 cannon, four air-to-air AIM-7 Sparrows, and four heat-seeking AIM-9 Sidewinders, the F-15 will be in time replaced by the F-22.

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