United States The F-15E was first delivered to the U.S. Air Force operational units in 1988. The F-15E reached
initial operational capability on 30 September 1989 at
Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina with the
4th Tactical Fighter Wing,
336th Tactical Fighter Squadron. At the start of
Operation Desert Storm, 24 F-15Es launched an attack on five fixed
Scud installations in western Iraq on 17 January 1991. Missions against Scud sites continued through that night with a second strike of 21 F-15Es. At night-time, F-15Es flew hunter missions over western Iraq, searching for mobile SCUD launchers. By conducting random bombings in suspected areas, it was hoped to deter the Iraqis from setting up for a Scud launch. On the war's opening night, an F-15E failed to hit a
MiG-29 with an AIM-9 Sidewinder; other F-15Es also unsuccessfully engaged this lone MiG-29, which was eventually brought down by a missile of unknown origin. On 18 January, during a strike against a petrol oil and lubricant plant near
Basrah, an F-15E was lost to enemy fire, killing both pilot and WSO. F-15E crews described this mission as the most difficult and dangerous of the war as it was heavily defended by
SA-3s,
SA-6s,
SA-8s and
Rolands as well as by anti-aircraft artillery. Two nights later, a second and final F-15E was downed by an Iraqi
SA-2; the crew survived and evaded capture for several days and made contact with coalition aircraft, but a rescue was not launched due to security issues over an airman who failed to identify himself with proper codes. The Iraqis later captured both airmen. F-15Es destroyed 18 Iraqi jets on the ground at Tallil air base using
GBU-12s and
CBU-87s. On 14 February, an F-15E scored its only air-to-air kill of the war: a
Mil Mi-24 helicopter. While responding to a request for help by US Special Forces, five Iraqi helicopters were spotted. The lead F-15E of two, via its FLIR, acquired a helicopter in the process of unloading Iraqi soldiers, and released a
GBU-10 bomb. The F-15E crew thought the bomb had missed its target and were preparing to use a Sidewinder when the helicopter was destroyed. The Special Forces team estimated that the Hind was roughly over the ground when the bomb hit its target. As another Coalition bombing operation had commenced, the F-15Es disengaged from combat with the remaining helicopters. F-15Es of the
391st Fighter Squadron,
492d Fighter Squadron, and
494th Fighter Squadron regularly deployed to Turkey throughout the 1990s. In January 1993, in breach of the ceasefire agreement,
Iraqi targets below the 32nd parallel north were attacked; 10 F-15Es conducted a punitive strike days later. Most missions were of a defensive nature; the Strike Eagles carried a flexible range of weapons on a typical mission.
AWACS aircraft were in close contact with F-15E crews, who would receive new taskings while airborne and thus could fly unplanned attacks on Iraqi targets. Between 24 and 26 January 1999, F-15Es expended several
AGM-130s and GBU-12s against SAM sites near
Mosul, northern Iraq. They also flew in support of
Operation Provide Comfort and Operation Provide Comfort II. In December 1993, F-15Es launched to destroy a pair of SA-2s which had fired upon two
Royal Navy Sea Harrier FRS 1s. In August 1995, F-15Es of
90th Fighter Squadron were also deployed. The 492d and 494th flew over 2,500 sorties since starting Deny Flight, 2,000 of these by 492d. In August 1995, in support of NATO's
Operation Deliberate Force, F-15Es flew strike missions against Serbian armor and logistics around the Bosnian capital,
Sarajevo. On 9 September, an F-15E deployed the type's first GBU-15 bomb; dropping nine on Bosnian-Serb ground forces and air defense targets near
Banja Luka. Strike Eagles were deployed to Aviano as well as RAF Lakenheath in the UK. In-theater, F-15Es conducted
close air support (CAS) missions, a popular concept within the USAF. Missions typically lasted around 7.5 hours, included two aerial refuelings; F-15Es would carry a mix of air-to-air and air-to-ground munitions to perform both
combat air patrol duties as well as strike missions in the same mission.
War in Afghanistan Weeks after the in 2001, the 391st Fighter Squadron deployed to
Ahmad al-Jaber air base, Kuwait, to support
Operation Enduring Freedom during the
War in Afghanistan. F-15Es met little resistance during initial missions. On the first night, the main targets were
Taliban military structures, supply depots, and
al-Qaeda training camps and caves. Both the AGM-130 and
GBU-15 bombs were expended; this was the GBU-15's first combat usage.
GBU-24s and
GBU-28s were used against reinforced targets, command and control centers and cave entrances. F-15Es often operated in pairs alongside pairs of F-16Cs. Within weeks of the start of combat operations, there was a lack of targets to strike as nearly all targets had been already destroyed. The Taliban had access to
SA-7 and
FIM-92 Stinger portable
surface-to-air missiles, posing no threat to most aircraft flying above . Additionally, fixed SAM sites near cities as Mazar-i-Sharif and Bagram were struck early on; Afghanistan had rapidly become a low-threat environment for air operations. Aircraft commonly flew on-call support missions for allied ground forces, F-15Es usually carried
MK-82 and GBU-12 bombs in this role, other weapons were sometimes carried, during one mission a GBU-28, two GBU-24s and six GBU-12s were released. It was during combat over Afghanistan that four 391st crews conducted the longest fighter mission in history; lasting a total of 15.5 hours, nine of those hours spent flying over the target area. Two F-15Es attacked two Taliban command and control facilities, two buildings suspected of being used by Taliban fighters, and a road block; the F-15Es refueled 12 times during the mission. On 4 March, another incident known as the
Battle of Roberts' Ridge involved several F-15Es performing a CAS mission. Aircraft destroyed a Taliban observation post and responded to nearby enemy mortar fire upon Navy SEAL forces searching for an ambushed
MH-47E Chinook in the
Shah-i-Kot Valley. Several bombs were dropped as the SEAL team took fire, however one bomb missed due to the aircrew using incorrect coordinates. Following refueling, the F-15Es dropped a further 11 GBU-12s in coordination with ground forces, and fired their cannons on Taliban forces in close proximity to the survivors of the downed MH-47. Years later, several incidents occurred. On 23 August 2007, a
friendly fire incident involved an F-15E mistakenly dropping a bomb on British forces, killing three soldiers; the stated cause was confusion between the air controller and the F-15E on the bombing coordinates. On 13 September 2009, an F-15E shot down a non-responsive
MQ-9 Reaper drone over Northern Afghanistan to prevent it entering foreign airspace.
Iraq War during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Note the visible wingtip vortices. In late 2002, during tension over suspected Iraqi possession of
weapons of mass destruction, the 4th Fighter Wing at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base was ordered to maintain at least one squadron ready to deploy to the
Persian Gulf. During January 2003, the 336th was deployed to
Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, in coordination with planners of the
Combined Air Operations Center at Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia. In late January, F-15Es began flying in Operation Southern Watch, typically performing surveillance and reconnaissance missions. Additional roles included simulated combat against potential Iraqi targets and regional familiarization with local procedures and
rules of engagement. In late February, the 336th received additional aircrews, many drafted from the two non-deployable squadrons at Seymour Johnson (the
333d and
334th Fighter Squadrons) and 391st Fighter Squadron at
Mountain Home Air Force Base, for a total of four aircrews per F-15E. On 19 March, as
F-117 Nighthawks dropped bombs over
Baghdad, targeting a house where Saddam Hussein was believed to be; F-15Es dropped GBU-28s around the H3 airfield. On 20 March, the effective start of the war, F-15Es fired AGM-130s against communication, command and control buildings, and other key targets in Baghdad; some weapons missed their intended targets, possibly due to jamming by
EA-6B Prowlers in the vicinity. On 3 April 2003, an F-15E mistook a USA
M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) for an Iraqi surface-to-air missile site and dropped a laser-guided bomb, killing three and wounding five others. On 7 April 2003, an F-15E, crewed by Captain Eric Das and Major William Watkins, performed a key interdiction mission in support of special forces, but crashed near
Tikrit, Iraq. During the war, F-15Es were credited with destroying 60% of the Iraqi Medina Republican Guard's total force; they also struck 65 MiGs on the ground,
Libyan civil war Following the adoption of
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 on 17 March 2011, 18 USAF F-15Es were amongst other NATO and allied aircraft were deployed to enforce the
Libyan no-fly zone as part of
Operation Odyssey Dawn. On 21 March 2011, an F-15E from the 492d Fighter Squadron crashed near Bengazi, Libya. Both crew members parachuted into territory held by resistance elements of the Libyan population and were eventually rescued by US Marines. Equipment problems caused a weight imbalance and contributed to the crash when leaving the target area.
Operations against Islamic State (2014–present) USAF F-15Es have participated in
Operation Inherent Resolve against
Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq and Syria. On the morning of 23 September 2014, numerous American and Arab aircraft conducted air strikes in Syria against IS fighters, training compounds, headquarters and command and control facilities, storage facilities, a finance center, supply trucks, and armed vehicles. The Pentagon released videos of targets hit by ordnance deployed by F-15Es, taken by their AN/AAQ-33 Sniper targeting pods. Between August 2014 and January 2015, F-15Es flew 37 percent of all USAF sorties. taking off from
RAF Lakenheath USAF F-15Es based at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom performed several long range strikes against IS camps and prominent figures in Libya. On 13 November 2015, a pair of F-15Es killed
Abu Nabil al-Anbari, the leader of the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Libya, in a strike near
Darnah, Eastern Libya. On 20 February 2016, USAF F-15Es hit an IS training camp near
Sabratha where foreign fighters were based, reportedly killing Noureddine Chouchane, a 36-year-old Tunisian jihadist linked to the
2015 Sousse attacks. Sources said that 49 people were killed and 6 wounded; two
Serbians kidnapped by IS in 2015 were also reportedly killed. On 8 June 2017, an F-15E shot down a
pro-Syrian Regime UAV near
Al Tanf, Syria; according to OIR officials, it was downed after deploying "one of several weapons it was carrying near a position occupied by Coalition personnel... [It was] similar in size to a U.S.
MQ-1 Predator". The drone may have been a
Shahed 129; on 20 June 2017, a second Shahed-129 was downed by an F-15E near the 50 mile exclusion zone around Al-Tanf. On 21 August 2021, a USAF F-15E shot down an unidentified drone with an
AIM-9X Sidewinder missile as the drone approached US forces in Eastern Syria. USAF F-15Es were deployed on 2 February 2024, during the
airstrikes against Iranian backed militias in Iraq and Syria. USAF F-15Es helped blunt an
Iranian attack against Israel on 13 April 2024 by shooting down over 70 Iranian one-way attack UAVs. Concurrent with the
fall of the Assad regime on 8 December, USAF F-15Es were deployed alongside
B-52s and
A-10s in what the USAF said were "dozens" of airstrikes against over 75 ISIS targets. The strikes were intended to prevent ISIS from benefitting from the political upheaval in Syria.
Iran war (2026) During the
2026 Iran war, on 1-2 March 2026, videos emerged online of a USAF F-15E in a death spiral, after it suffered a catastrophic issue due to a
friendly fire incident, after being hit by Kuwaiti air defense. Two other USAF F-15Es were also confirmed to have been shot down due to friendly fire in the same incident. All six crew members ejected from their aircraft and were safely recovered. It was later reported that the F-15Es were shot down by one or more Kuwaiti
F/A-18s. On 3 April 2026, U.S. officials reported that a F-15E had been shot down by Iranian forces. Both its pilot and
weapon systems officer (WSO) ejected inside Iranian territory and a massive search operation was undertaken, utilizing
C-130s,
Black Hawks and
Apaches. The pilot was recovered within a few hours, while it took roughly two days to recover and exfiltrate the
weapon systems officer. Hundreds of U.S. special operations forces were involved in the
rescue mission. Two
MC-130s and four
MH-6 were destroyed by U.S. forces on a makeshift airstrip in Iran to prevent them from being seized by Iranian military. No U.S. casualties occurred during the rescue, while there were three
IRGC and four
Iranian Army casualties.
Israel F-15I Ra'am The F-15I is operated by the
Israeli Defense Force/
Air Force No
69 Squadron, succeeding the F-4 Phantom II. It is used akin to a strategic bomber due to its long range, high munition capacity and advanced systems. After the
Gulf War in 1991, in which Israeli towns were attacked by
SCUD missiles based in Iraq, the Israeli government decided a long range strike aircraft was needed, issuing a Request for Information (RFI). In response, Lockheed Martin offered a version of the
F-16 Fighting Falcon, while McDonnell Douglas offered both the
F/A-18 Hornet and the F-15E. On 27 January 1994, the Israeli government announced their intention to buy 21 modified F-15Es, designated
F-15I. On 12 May 1994, the US Government authorized the purchase of up to 25 F-15Is by Israel. In November 1995, Israel ordered four extra F-15Is; 25 were built from 1996 to 1998. In October 2010, Saudi Arabia requested 84 F-15SA (Saudi Advanced) fighters, upgrading of its existing F-15S fleet to F-15SA standard, and related equipment and weapons through a
Foreign Military Sale (FMS). On 29 December 2011, the U.S. signed a $29.4 billion contract to sell 84 F-15SAs, as well as the F-15S upgrades. In June 2012, an FMS contract for 68 F-15S to F-15SA modification kits was placed with Boeing; the upgraded aircraft are designated the F-15SR. On 20 February 2013, the maiden flight of the first new-build F-15SA occurred.
Saudi-led intervention in Yemen (2015–present) On 26 March 2015, Saudi F-15Ss, along with other Arab coalition assets, started striking targets in Yemen as part of the
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen, called
Operation Decisive Storm. Opposing a joint force composed of former Houthi rebels and Yemeni Army forces, the strikes, at least initially, were met by ineffective anti-aircraft fire that reportedly only caused damage when falling to the ground. Early strikes were aimed at air defense sites, Army HQs, military airports, ballistic missiles depots, and launchers. During these attacks, a Saudi F-15S crashed into the Gulf of Aden after circling over the sea; its two pilots ejected safely and were recovered from the sea by a USAF
HH-60G rescue helicopter; Arab coalition reports claimed enemy fire was not involved, while Houthi and Iranian sources claimed they had shot it down. On 8 January 2018, a RSAF F-15S was reportedly shot down by a Houthi surface-to-air missile; a Houthi-released video shows the F-15 increasing speed and releasing decoy flares before being struck by a projectile and apparently suffering major damage. On 9 January 2018, the Houthi media, Al-Masirah, announced that the F-15 had been damaged but did not crash. On 21 March 2018,
Houthi rebels released a video allegedly showing a RSAF F-15 being hit in
Saada province by an
R-27 air to air missile adapted for surface to air use. As in the video of the previous similar hit recorded on 8 January, the target, while clearly hit, seems not falling to the ground when the video stops. Saudi forces confirmed the hit, while saying the jet safely landed at a Saudi base. Saudi sources confirmed the incident involved a surface-to-air missile being launched at the jet from inside Saada airport. ==Variants==