The U.S. Air Force has successfully equipped its F-15E Strike Eagle fighters with laser-guided rockets designed to counter drone swarms, completing the unprecedented integration in just nine days compared to the typical 18-month timeline.
The Air Force Test Center announced Sept. 3 that it had integrated BAE Systems’ Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II (APKWS II) rockets onto the twin-engine fighters and completed multiple live-fire demonstrations. Frontline F-15Es began flying with the rocket pods in an unspecified region within one week of the demonstrations.
“We made it a top priority to field this new capability as quickly and safely as possible,” said Brig. Gen. Mark Massaro, commander of the Air Force’s 96th Test Wing.
The rapid deployment reflects growing concerns about drone threats similar to those faced by Ukraine, Israel and U.S. Navy ships in the Red Sea. Iranian-sourced HESA Shahed-136 drones have emerged as a preferred weapon for long-range strikes, with each drone costing approximately $35,000 â the same price as the AGR-20F rockets now mounted on the F-15Es.
The integration required developing new mounting systems using Vietnam-era hardware retrieved from the Air Force’s “boneyard” at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. Test engineers used 1970s-era triple ejector racks paired with legacy LAU-131 launchers to create clusters of three rocket pods per wing station, allowing each F-15E to carry six pods total.
“An already-proven way to mount the rockets onto an F-15 did not exist,” said Col. Alec Spencer, director of the Seek Eagle office that evaluates aircraft-store compatibility for the Air Force.
Breaking normal protocol, air force test engineers conducted multiple airworthiness evaluations simultaneously with weapon demonstrations, compressing the certification campaign to nine days. The Air Force Test Center cited the “increasing operational need for this weapon” as justification for the accelerated process.
The 70mm-diameter APKWS II rockets provide a cost-effective solution against cheap drones that have proven problematic for military forces. Each Shahed drone has a range of 1,350 nautical miles and weighs around 440 pounds, making them difficult targets for expensive guided missiles costing $1-2 million each.
The military is rapidly expanding its APKWS inventory, recently signing a $1.7 billion contract with BAE Systems for delivery of 55,000 munitions. BAE’s website indicates the company can produce up to 20,000 rockets annually and has delivered more than 50,000 to date.
“We are prepared to meet increased demand,” the company noted.
The Air Force integration completed in May brings the F-15E “into the counter-unmanned aerial system fight in a cost-effective way,” alongside F-16 fighters that have carried APKWS rockets since 2016. In March, U.S. Central Command released footage showing an F-16 using an AGR-20F rocket to down a one-way attack drone launched by Yemen’s Houthi militant group.
BAE’s website lists the F-16, Boeing F/A-18, Fairchild Republic A-10 and Boeing AV-8B as fixed-wing fighters certified to carry AGR-20F launch pods. The rockets are also used by rotary-wing platforms and ground-based counter-drone systems such as the truck-mounted L3Harris Vampire.
Key Takeaways
- Record Integration Speed: The Air Force completed F-15E rocket integration in nine days versus the typical 18-month timeline, demonstrating unprecedented urgency in fielding anti-drone capabilities.
- Cost-Effective Counter-Drone Solution: The $35,000 APKWS II rockets provide economical defense against $35,000 Shahed drones, replacing expensive $1-2 million guided missiles for drone targets.
- Immediate Operational Deployment: Frontline F-15E fighters began flying combat missions with the new rocket pods within one week of successful demonstrations.
- Major Military Investment: The Pentagon’s $1.7 billion contract for 55,000 rockets signals significant commitment to expanding counter-drone capabilities across multiple aircraft platforms.
