Editing McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle (section)

===Focus on air superiority===
In 1967, the [[Soviet Union]] revealed the [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25]] at the [[Domodedovo International Airport|Domodedovo airfield]] near [[Moscow]].<ref name=Davies_p9-11>Davies 2002, pp. 9–11.</ref><ref>"In July 1967, at Domodedovo airfield near Moscow, the Soviet Union unveiled a new generation of combat aircraft… [codenamed] Foxbat by NATO": "Development" in ''Modern Fighting Aircraft'', 1983.</ref> The MiG-25 was designed as a high-speed, high-altitude interceptor aircraft, and made many performance tradeoffs to excel in this role.<ref name=Bowman_p193>Bowman 1980, p. 193.</ref> Among these was the requirement for very high speed, over Mach 2.8, which demanded the use of [[stainless steel]] instead of [[aluminum]] for many parts of the aircraft. The added weight demanded a much larger wing to allow the aircraft to operate at the required high altitudes. However, to observers, it appeared outwardly similar to the very large F-X studies, an aircraft with high speed and a large wing offering high maneuverability, leading to serious concerns throughout the Department of Defense and the various arms that the US was being outclassed. The [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23|MiG-23]] was likewise a subject of concern, and it was generally believed to be a better aircraft than the F-4. The F-X would outclass the MiG-23, but now the MiG-25 appeared to be superior in speed, ceiling, and endurance to all existing US fighters, even the F-X.{{sfn|Neufeld|2007|p=48}} Thus, an effort to improve the F-X followed.<ref>Davies and Dildy 2007, p. 12.</ref>

Both Headquarters USAF and TAC continued to call for a multipurpose aircraft, while both Disosway and Air Chief of Staff [[Bruce K. Holloway]] pressed for a pure air-superiority design that would be able to meet the expected performance of the MiG-25. During the same period, the Navy had ended its VFAX program and instead accepted a proposal from [[Grumman]] for a smaller and more maneuverable design known as VFX, later becoming the [[Grumman F-14 Tomcat]]. VFX was considerably closer to the evolving F-X requirements. The Air Force in-fighting was eventually ended by the worry that the Navy's VFAX would be forced on them; in May 1968, it was stated that "We finally decided – and I hope there is no one who still disagrees – that this aircraft is going to be an air superiority fighter".{{sfn|Neufeld|2007|p=49}}

[[File:F-15 Eagle Cockpit.jpg|thumb|F-15A [[cockpit]]|alt=Cockpit of jet fighter with circular dials and gauges: A control stick protrude from between where the pilot's legs would be.]]
In September 1968, a request for proposals was released to major aerospace companies. These requirements called for single-seat fighter having a maximum take-off weight of {{convert|40000|lb|kg}} for the air-to-air role with a maximum speed of Mach 2.5 and a thrust-to-weight ratio of nearly 1:1 at mission weight.<ref name=Jenkins_p8-10>Jenkins 1998, pp. 8–10.</ref> It also called for a twin-engined arrangement, as this was believed to respond to throttle changes more rapidly and might offer commonality with the Navy's VFX program. However, details of the avionics were left largely undefined, as whether to build a larger aircraft with a powerful radar that could detect the enemy at longer ranges was not clear, or alternatively a smaller aircraft that would make detecting it more difficult for the enemy.{{sfn|Neufeld|2007|p=52}}

Four companies submitted proposals, with the Air Force eliminating [[General Dynamics]] and awarding contracts to [[Fairchild (aircraft manufacturer)|Fairchild Republic]], [[North American Aviation|North American Rockwell]], and [[McDonnell Douglas]] for the definition phase in December 1968. The companies submitted technical proposals by June 1969. The Air Force announced the selection of McDonnell Douglas on 23 December 1969; like the Navy's VFX, the F-X skipped much of the prototype phase and jumped straight into full-scale development to save time and avoid potential program cancellation.<ref name=Jenkins_p9-11>Jenkins 1998, pp. 9–11.</ref> The winning design resembled the twin-tailed F-14, but with fixed [[wing]]s; both designs were based on configurations studied in wind-tunnel testing by NASA.<ref>Davies and Dildy 2007, p. 14.</ref>

[[File:De McDonnell Douglas F-15A Eagle (CR 77-092) van 32nd Tactical Fighter Squadron (2157 054017).jpg|thumb|left|An early USAF F-15A]]
Formally named the "Eagle" upon its introduction, the aircraft's initial versions were the F-15 single-seat variant and TF-15 twin-seat variant; after the F-15C was first flown, the designations were changed to "F-15A" and "F-15B". These versions would be powered by new [[Pratt & Whitney F100]] engines to achieve a combat thrust-to-weight ratio in excess of 1:1. A proposed 25-mm Ford-Philco [[GAU-7 cannon]] with [[caseless ammunition]] suffered development problems and was dropped in favor of the standard M61 Vulcan gun. The F-15 used conformal carriage of four [[AIM-7 Sparrow|Sparrow]] missiles like the Phantom. The fixed wing was put onto a flat, wide [[fuselage]] that also provided an effective [[lifting body]] surface. The airframe was designed with a 4,000 hour service life, although this was later increased through testing and life extension modifications to 8,000 hours and some would fly beyond that.<ref name="lifespan">{{cite web |url= https://www.acc.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1073678/nellis-f-15s-odometer-hits-10000-flight-hours/ |title=Nellis F-15's Odometer Hits 10,000 Flight Hours |work=U.S. Air Force |date=6 February 2017}}</ref> The first F-15A flight was made on 27 July 1972, with the first flight of the two-seat F-15B following in July 1973.<ref name=Spick_p130-1>Spick 2000, pp. 130–131.</ref>

The F-15 has a "[[look-down/shoot-down]]" [[radar]] that can distinguish low-flying moving targets from ground [[clutter (radar)|clutter]]. It would use computer technology with new controls and displays to lower pilot workload and require only one pilot to save weight. Unlike the F-14 or F-4, the F-15 has only a single [[aircraft canopy|canopy]] frame with clear vision forward. The USAF introduced the F-15 as "the first dedicated USAF air-superiority fighter since the [[North American F-86 Sabre]]".<ref>{{cite book |title=The Cutting Edge: A Half Century of U.S. Fighter Aircraft R&D |chapter=Chapter 5: Return of the Air Superiority Fighter |chapter-url=https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/monograph_reports/1998/MR939.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013133518/http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/monograph_reports/1998/MR939.pdf |archive-date=13 October 2012 |url-status=live |location=Santa Monica, California |publisher=[[RAND Corporation]] |year=1998 |isbn=0-8330-2595-3 |last1=Lorell |first1=Mark A. |last2=Levaux |first2=Hugh P. |access-date=21 July 2022}}</ref>

The F-15 was favored by customers such as the Israel and Japan air arms. Criticism from the [[fighter mafia]] that the F-15 was too large to be a dedicated [[dogfight]]er and too expensive to procure in large numbers, led to the [[Lightweight Fighter]] (LWF) program, which led to the USAF [[General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon]] and the middle-weight Navy [[McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet]].<ref>Jenkins 2000, pp. 1–8.</ref>