Sold out through 2035, targeted at 268 jets in the latest Pentagon budget — and Boeing’s defense chief already sees more than 300 F-15EX Eagle IIs in the Air Force’s future.
Boeing’s defense chief says the U.S. Air Force could ultimately operate more than 300 F-15EX Eagle II fighters as the Pentagon proposes more than doubling the program’s previous jet count under its latest budget request.
The Air Force’s fiscal year 2027 spending plan, publicly released April 21 at the Pentagon, calls for acquiring as many as 268 F-15EX aircraft — including Lot 1 test aircraft and 21 previously funded jets — at a cost of $3 billion for 24 jets in the upcoming fiscal year alone. That proposal would more than double the previous program of record of 129 aircraft set just one year earlier under the fiscal 2026 budget.
“This is quite extraordinary for a product that has been in play for some time, but it speaks to the $6 billion of modernization we’ve put into the platform over the last 10 years,” Steve Parker, president and chief executive of Boeing Defense, Space & Security, told FlightGlobal in Singapore.
Demand for the updated Eagle has proven sufficiently strong that Boeing’s F-15EX production line is “effectively sold out through 2034-2035,” Parker said. He estimates the Air Force could ultimately field “potentially over 300” examples — a total that would exceed even the ambitious FY2027 budget request. Parker, who was named to the Boeing Defense, Space & Security CEO role in July 2025, added that Boeing is working closely with the Air Force on boosting production numbers.
A Program Reversal Years in the Making
The proposed expansion takes on added weight against the backdrop of the program’s volatile procurement history. The Air Force’s F-15EX acquisition plans have fluctuated repeatedly over the years, falling from a planned ceiling of 144 aircraft to as few as 80 before rebounding to 104 and then to 129 under the FY2026 budget. The FY2027 request, if approved by Congress, would push the total planned buy to 268 jets — more than double what the service had planned just one year ago.
A core driver of that reversal is a persistent gap in the F-35 program. Lt. Gen. David Tabor, the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for plans and programs, testified before the Senate Armed Services air-land subcommittee on May 12 that repeated setbacks to the F-35’s Technology Refresh 3 and Block 4 software upgrades left the service with a fighter capacity shortfall it needed to address.
“As we encountered some slowdowns in deliveries of F-35s due to the previously discussed TR-3 and Block 4 upgrade issues, it became apparent to us that we needed another fighter capacity,” Tabor told the panel. “This, in conjunction with a lot of the work that has been done in force design and the capabilities of the F-15 and what that provides to us in the pacing challenge, [or China,] made it a very obvious choice.”
The FY2027 budget also requested 38 F-35As, reflecting the Air Force’s view of the two programs as complementary rather than competitive. The service’s calculus is sharpened by a separate capacity assessment: an unclassified Air Force report mandated by the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act found that the service needs 1,558 combat-coded jets — nearly 300 more than the FY2026 fleet of 1,271. The report concluded that increasing procurement of both the F-15EX and the F-35A could allow the Air Force to meet acceptable military risk milestones by 2030.
A $6 Billion Modernization Drives Resurgent Demand
Parker credits Boeing’s decade-long investment in the F-15 platform for the program’s renewed momentum. He pointed to the aircraft’s new radar, fly-by-wire flight controls, upgraded engines, and its electronic warfare system as the pillars of a technological overhaul that has repositioned a legacy design as one of the most sought-after fighter-bombers in the U.S. inventory.
The Eagle II’s primary electronic warfare suite — the BAE Systems Eagle Passive Active Warning Survivability System, formally designated AN/ALQ-250(v)1 and known as EPAWSS — provides integrated radar warning, geolocation, and electronic countermeasures capabilities against threats in highly contested signal environments. In early 2025, the Air Force cleared EPAWSS for full-rate production and awarded Boeing a $615.8 million installation contract.
The Air Force has also moved to extend those electronic warfare advantages to older aircraft. A dedicated EPAWSS installation facility — referred to as a “speedline” — was established at the Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex in Georgia, enabling upgrades to legacy F-15E Strike Eagles outside of routine depot maintenance cycles, which typically occur every five to seven years. The Air Force plans to add EPAWSS to 99 F-15Es through the program.
The F-15EX’s operating economics strengthen the acquisition case further. The Pentagon’s Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation office calculates the aircraft’s operating cost at $29,000 per flight hour — below comparable stealth platforms, Parker noted.
The aircraft itself brings formidable performance to that price point. The F-15EX carries approximately 29,500 pounds of payload — the largest weapons load of any fighter in the U.S. inventory — reaches a top speed of Mach 2.5, and entered operational service with the Air Force in July 2024. It can be flown single-pilot or with a two-person crew.
Complementing the Stealth Fleet
Parker placed the F-15EX at the center of the Air Force’s layered air power strategy, describing it as a high-capacity complement to both current and future stealth fighters.
“An F-15EX coupled with a [Lockheed Martin] F-35 or F-22 – which will be replaced by the [Boeing] F-47 – is going to be a very complementary mix of air dominance, and the EX is both an air-to-air and air-to-ground platform,” Parker said.
Boeing was awarded the Engineering and Manufacturing Development contract for the F-47 — the Air Force’s sixth-generation fighter intended to replace the F-22 Raptor — on March 21, 2025. Until the F-47 enters operational service, the F-15EX is positioned to serve alongside the F-35 as an affordable, high-payload strike and air-superiority platform in high-intensity scenarios.
Production Challenges Ahead
Scaling the F-15EX program carries real industrial risk. Boeing has long targeted an annual F-15EX production rate of 24 aircraft out of its St. Louis, Missouri manufacturing facility, but that target was disrupted in 2025 when approximately 3,200 Boeing machinists represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 837 walked off the job on August 4. The work stoppage — the first for that local chapter since 1996 — lasted approximately 15 weeks before workers voted on November 13 to accept a new contract that included a 24% wage increase over five years and a $6,000 signing bonus.
Parker acknowledged the dispute affected Air Force deliveries, but said Boeing was able to resolve the situation with the customer.
Looking ahead, Parker stressed that program execution — not just the scale of incoming orders — will ultimately determine whether the expanded fleet materializes. Growing production will require changes to Boeing’s workforce and supply chain, along with bringing in a new generation of F-15 production workers. Sustainment of the existing and growing fleet, Parker added, will be an equally significant priority alongside new production.
Israel Adds to a Crowded Line
International demand is compounding the pressure on Boeing’s already-strained St. Louis production line. The Pentagon approved an $8.58 billion foreign military sale contract on December 29, 2025 for an initial 25 F-15IAs — an Israel-specific variant of the F-15EX — for the Israeli Air Force, with an option for 25 additional aircraft. Israel aims to ultimately operate a total of 50 F-15IAs. Deliveries are planned to begin in 2031 at a rate of four to six aircraft annually, with all work to be performed at St. Louis and completed by the end of 2035.
The convergence of surging domestic orders and international demand from allied customers is what anchors Parker’s assessment of the production line as “effectively sold out through 2034-2035” — a characterization that, by his own projection, may only be the floor.
Key Takeaways
- The Pentagon’s FY2027 budget proposes acquiring up to 268 F-15EX Eagle II fighters — more than double the previous program of record of 129 — with Boeing BDS CEO Steve Parker projecting the Air Force could ultimately field more than 300.
- Boeing’s F-15EX production line at St. Louis is booked through 2034–2035; the company is working with the Air Force to boost annual output beyond the current 24-jet target.
- F-35 delivery setbacks, confirmed by Lt. Gen. David Tabor in Senate testimony on May 12, were a primary catalyst for the expanded F-15EX buy.
- A $6 billion, decade-long modernization — including new radar, fly-by-wire controls, upgraded engines, and the BAE Systems EPAWSS electronic warfare system — is credited for driving the production increase.
- An $8.58 billion Pentagon contract for up to 50 Israeli F-15IAs adds significant international demand to Boeing’s already-constrained production line.