used with exclusive permission by Kazuo Taguchi, webmaster www.f-15J.com

The aircraft:

The USAF had one mission for it's new air superiority fighter, the F-15 Eagle: "To clear the skies of enemy aircraft wherever needed, day or night, in any weather."

The F-15A took-off for it's maiden flight in July 1972. The first Eagle to be delivered to the USAF was a F-15B in November 1974. In January 1976, the first Eagle destined for a combat squadron was delivered. The single-seat F-15C and two-seat F-15D models entered the Air Force inventory beginning in 1979. These new models have Production Eagle Package (PEP 2000) improvements, including 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms) of additional internal fuel, provision for carrying exterior conformal fuel tanks and increased maximum takeoff weight of up to 30,600 kilograms (68,000 pounds). (http://www.af.mil)

The F-15 Eagle has a perfect combat record of 101 victories and zero defeats. F-15s downed four Mig-29 fighters during the recent Balkan conflict and 33 of the 35 fixed-wing aircraft Iraq lost in air combat during Operation Desert Storm. (http://www.boeing.com)

 "The F-15J is a single-seater variant designed specially for Japan. So far, the only nation to build the F-15 Eagle under license is Japan. In June-July of 1975, Japanese officers carried out two flight evaluations of the F-15A/B Eagle at Edwards AFB. In December of 1977, the Japanese National Defence Council announced that the Eagle had been selected to supplement and eventually replace the Lockheed F-104J Starfighters serving with the Nihon Koku Jietai (Japanese Air Self Defence Force, or JASDF). The Japanese Eagle was to be designated F-15J, with the two-seat version being F-15DJ. They were to be the Japanese counterparts of the F-15A and B respectively.

A license was acquired for manufacture of the F-15 in Japan, with Mitsubishi being selected as the prime contractor. Initial plans were for the first two single seaters and 12 two-seaters to be built in St Louis by McDonnell under Project Peace Eagle. The remainder would be manufactured in Japan by Mitsubishi at its plant in Komaki. A similar sort of arrangement had been worked out for license manufacture in Japan of the Eagle's predecessor, the F-4 Phantom.

As it turned out, the Japanese F-15s were quite similar to the early production blocks of the USAF F-15C and D. However, Japanese Eagles were to differ from the Air Force Eagles primarily in omitting certain sensitive items of electronic countermeasures equipment, such as the ICS and EWWS sets. In their place, provisions were made for the installation of a Japanese-built radar warning system. Among the indigenous equipment fitted to the JASDF F-15J and F-15DJ aircraft is the J/APR-4 RWR, the J/ALQ-8 ECM suite, the AN/ALE-45 chaff/flare dispenser, and the XJ/APQ-1 radar warning system. Nuclear delivery equipment was omitted, data links were installed and MER-200P bomb racks were provided.

The first two F-15Js were built by McDonnell (USAF serials 79-0280/0281, JASDF serials 02-8801/8802. 02-8801 flew for the first time on June 4, 1980. The next eight (JASDF serials 12-8803, 22-8804/22-8810) were assembled by Mitsubishi from McDonnell-built knock-down kits. The first Japanese-assembled F-15J (12-8803) flew at the Mitsubishi plant at Komaki on August 26, 1981, twelve of the two seat F-15DJs were built by McDonnell Douglas, with the remainder (from FY 1988 onward) being built by Mitsubishi.

The service evaluation was carried out by the Koku Jikkendan (Air Proving Wing) at Gifu AB on Honshu, the first planes being delivered in March of 1981. The first front-line JASDF Eagle squadron was 202 Hikotai (Squadron) of 5 Kokudan (Air Wing), based at Nyutabaru on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu. It received its first Eagles in 1981-82, replacing the units F-104J Starfighters. 202 Hikotai acted as the OCU for the remainder of the squadrons that were to receive the Eagle. In 1986/87, Eagles began to replace the F-4EJ in JASDF service, the first unit to convert being 303 Hikotai at Komatsu." (http://home.att.net/~jbaugher1/f15_15.html)