home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Wild Blue Yonder 1: 50 Years of Gs & Jets
/
Wild Blue Yonder - Episode 1 - 50 Years of Gs and Jets (Digital Ranch) (Spectrum Holobyte)(1-107-40-101)(1994).iso
/
control
/
printext.dir
/
00090_Field_90.txt
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1994-08-29
|
2KB
|
38 lines
The Mighty Eagle
The F-15 Eagle began where other fighter programs failed. The
Air Force was looking for a plane to improve on the poor
performance of the early General Dynamics F-111s. With a full
bomb load, these aircraft could climb no higher than 16,000 feet.
Air Force Major John Boyd, spokesman for the "Fighter Mafia,"
championed a lightweight, fixed-wing fighter of about 40,000
pounds, an aircraft focused primarily on the air superiority
role. After a mammoth paper competition, McDonnell Douglas was
selected to produce this aircraft. The F-15 Eagle was born.
The F-15 was a big improvement on the F-4 Phantom. In Vietnam,
many F-4s limped home on one engine after the other had been shot
out. There were also many times when fire from the first engine
damaged the second. In the F-15, a titanium keel separated the
two F100 engines for safety. Poor visibility was another of the
F-4's drawbacks. In the F-15, a clear blown canopy was mounted
high and forward on the fuselage so the pilot had a commanding
field of view. The Eagle's cockpit is also well laid out,
especially the placement of the control stick.
The F-15 engine was another story. It had a long history of
problems including fires, explosions, and the need for frequent
maintenance and overhaul. A combined effort between the
manufacturer and the Air Force eventually solved the problems,
but only after the expenditure of thousands of man-hours and
millions of dollars.
The F-15A made its first flight on July 27, 1972 at Edwards Air
Force Base, California. The test program, conducted with twenty
pre-production aircraft, proceeded at a rapid pace with
relatively few airframe problems. From the first, pilots were
delighted with the aircraft's performance. Like the F-4, it used
energy maneuverability to enhance its dogfighting, but the F-15
Eagle could accelerate, turn and climb better than the Phantom
ever could.