On September 29, the U.S. Air Force awarded Boeing a $2.38 billion contract for 22 F-15EX Eagle II fighters under the seventh production lot of the program.
At $2.38 billion for 22 aircraft, the contract represents an average cost of approximately $108 million per aircraft. However, this figure does not include the aircraft’s engines, which are supplied by GE Aerospace and procured separately by the U.S. Air Force.
Funding for Lot 7 was drawn from $115 million allocated in the fiscal year 2026 budget, supplemented by approximately $2.8 billion provided through the previous year’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” reconciliation package.
The latest contract brings the total number of F-15EX Eagle II aircraft under contract to 120. The Air Force had originally planned to terminate the program after procuring 129 aircraft, but that plan changed significantly in April, when the service increased the planned fleet size to 269 F-15EXs.
The expansion underscores the F-15EX’s growing importance within the Air Force’s future fighter fleet.
It is interesting to see that more F-15EX are being added by the US Air Force when it could have chosen a 5th generation fighter.
Let’s check the 3 reasons for this.
Source: Defense Updates
