An F-15EX Eagle II, assigned to the USAF 40th Flight Test Squadron out of Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, prepares to fire an AIM-120D AMRAAM during a Weapons System Evaluation Program (WSEP) mission near Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, on 25 January 2022. (US Air Force)
The US Air Force (USAF) conducted the first release of an air-launched missile from a Boeing F-15EX Eagle II next-generation multirole combat aircraft over the Gulf of Mexico on 25 January.
Pursuing a Kratos Defense & Security Solutions BQM-167A Skeeter subscale aerial target drone, an Eagle II assigned to the USAF 40th Flight Test Squadron successfully launched an AIM-120D Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile as part of Combat Archer, a USAF 53rd Wing air-to-air Weapons System Evaluation Program (WSEP) managed by the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group at Tyndall Air Force Base (AFB) Florida.
“During the flight, the F-15EX detected the drone using onboard sensors, acquired a weapons-quality track and launched the missile at the target. After tracking the missile's release and flight toward the BQM-167, the shot was determined a WSEP success, at which point the missile flight was terminated,” the air force said in a statement.
The successful release marked the first weapon fired from the F-15EX and a major milestone for the platform, which first arrived at Eglin AFB, Florida, for integrated developmental and operational flight testing for the shot in March 2021.
“This was an end-to-end verification of the entire weapons system, which will pave the way for more complex missile shots in the future,” said Colton Myers, F-15EX test project manager with the Operational Flight Program Combined Test Force.
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