F-15EX no. 1 performs a “Viking” take-off to kick-start the type’s test campaign. (Photo: Boeing)
Boeing has flown the first example of the new F-15EX Eagle fighter. The 90-minute flight on February 2 was conducted by F-15 chief test pilot Matt Giese from the company’s plant at Lambert Field in St. Louis, Missouri.
The sortie began with a “Viking” near-vertical climb-out, and went on to check out the aircraft’s new systems and software, with data being relayed in real-time to a test team on the ground. The aircraft performed as planned. The F-15EX’s first flight comes nearly five decades after the original F-15A Eagle took to the skies for the first time on July 27, 1972.