The F-15E Strike Eagle from the forty eighth Fighter Wing, just lately painted to commemorate Operation El Dorado Canyon’s fortieth anniversary, took off on Might. 7, 2026 with a heavy load of inert coaching rounds.
F-15E Strike Eagle 93-0311’s new camouflage paint scheme was formally unveiled on Apr. 28, 2026 to mark forty years since RAF Lakenheath took half in Operation El Dorado Canyon. The scheme is consultant of the one worn by the F-111 Aardvarks employed on the long-range strike mission towards Libya, with a particular tribute paid to KARMA 52 – the one F-111 misplaced throughout the raid, ensuing within the deaths of pilot Captain Fernando L. Ribas-Dominicci and weapon programs officer (WSO) Captain Paul F. Lorence.
Our buddy, aviation photographer Stewart Jack, captured these pictures of 93-0311 because it took off on a coaching sortie on Might. 7, flying beneath the callsign EAGLE 31. Notably, the jet was seen to be carrying eight inert variations of the GBU-12 Paveway II guided bomb, distinguishable by strong blue casings.
EAGLE 31 took off from Lakenheath with wingman EAGLE 32 shortly after 08:30 native time (07:30 UTC), and commenced their sortie by assembly with a KC-135 Stratotanker to tackle gas earlier than heading to the low flying areas of North Wales. After ending up the low flying section of their sortie, EAGLE flight headed for the Holbeach Air Weapons Vary on the coast north of RAF Lakenheath the place the complete payload was dropped.
This primarily simulates an actual world strike mission, with a low-level ingress via the Welsh Valleys earlier than organising for weapon employment on the vary simulating the goal.
The GBU-12 is among the mostly seen variants from the Paveway collection, and equips a 500 lb Mark 82 bomb with a nose-mounted laser seeker unit and deployable tail steering fins. These fins have an ‘on/off’ model of operation – identified within the trade as bang-bang steering – the place the management surfaces can solely deflect on the most quantity, with no nice adjustment. The bomb’s steering system accounts for this by over-correcting for any course changes then instantly deflecting within the reverse strategy to align with the supposed trajectory. This technique permits for easier mechanics and electronics, reducing the general value for the single-use system.
Having the ability to simply carry such numerous these munitions is among the F-15E’s greatest strengths. Within the pictures we will see that even with such a load, the jet’s wing hardpoints are nonetheless empty and can be accessible for exterior gas tanks and/or air to air weaponry. The entire air to floor munitions are carried on fuselage stations, with the extra mounting factors on the plane’s conformal gas tanks (CFT) – fitted on both sides of the plane, outboard of the air intakes – offering important further capability.
On the F-15, these CFTs are often known as ‘FAST Packs’ – Gas and Sensor, Tactical – and have been initially developed for the air to air centered F-15C. In U.S. service, these have nearly completely been related to the Strike Eagle, and these darker-colored Eagles are not often seen with out them. The principle U.S. Air Drive F-15Cs seen to frequently carry them have been these primarily based with the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (FIS) at Keflavik, Iceland.
Watch them fly bayou!Louisiana’s 159th Fighter Wing #Boeing F-15Cs take flight with new conformal gas tanks – rising #USAF vary and homeland protection functionality! #F15 #AirNatGuard pic.twitter.com/qjrRNblIQC
— Boeing Protection (@BoeingDefense) February 5, 2018
For the reason that CFTs can’t be jettisoned in flight to achieve further velocity and maneuverability, the air-to-air centered pilots of the F-15C have most well-liked to make use of extra conventional drop tanks. For the F-15E’s strike mission, the everlasting influence to the plane’s flight traits are a worthy trade-off for the extra vary and payload choices they provide.
The U.S. has stated it doesn’t plan to function its F-15EX Eagle IIs with CFTs, though this can be reconsidered with the growth of the F-15EX order and the prospect of them changing older F-15E Strike Eagles within the coming years.
Many thanks as all the time to Stewart Jack for contributing these pictures, yow will discover him on Fb and Instagram.
