Jane Edwards
The U.S. Air Force will seek funds in its fiscal 2020 budget request to procure eight upgraded versions of Boeing-built F-15 fighter aircraft as part a five-year plan to buy 80 of the planes, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.
The service will propose purchasing F-15X planes in its budget request expected by March 11 without cutting the number of its planned purchase of Lockheed Martin-made F-35 fighter jets, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The report noted that the new F-15X variant is designed to carry heavier air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons, such as hypersonic missiles, than existing F-15s.
Under a fixed-price contract, Boeing has offered the updated F-15 aircraft to the military branch for approximately $80M per unit with initial deliveries slated for 2022.
