Image source: topwar.ru
F-22 combat aircraft are no longer produced in the United States, and more modern F-35s are still available in relatively limited quantities, and their cost is very high. At the same time, the latest generation fighter to ensure air supremacy is still in the design stage.
Maya Karlin, a columnist for the American portal 19FortyFive, tells in her article about the way out of this situation found in the Pentagon.
She believes that the solution to the problem is the F-15EX. In Carlin's material, this newest American F-15EX Eagle II fighter is called a "truck with missiles". She believes that it is unlike any other combat aircraft available to the US Armed Forces.
Image source: topwar.ru
This machine is an upgraded version of the F-15C Eagle fighter, which many Western experts consider one of the most successful combat aircraft ever produced.
Its improved version, the F–15EX Eagle II, is capable of providing an advantage in the air and carrying a large payload, and also has a high range. It is capable of striking targets while the more inconspicuous F-35 and F-22 provide air superiority and suppress enemy air defense systems. Thus, it is not a replacement for other combat vehicles, but an addition to them.
The main feature of this aircraft is the ability to be equipped with the largest payload compared to other fighters. It can take on board up to 12 air-to-air missiles or more than 13.5 tons of ammunition, while the limit for the F-35 is about 2.7 tons.
In addition, Karlin notes, the aircraft is suitable for equipping hypersonic missiles with a length of 6.7 meters, which are still under development. Other fighters in service with the United States are incapable of this.