What Do We Know About the American Fighter "F-15E"? .. And What Is It Doing Over Iran?

SadaNews - American officials confirmed last night, Friday, that an American fighter plane was shot down in Iran.

The U.S. forces rescued one pilot from the downed warplane, while operations continue to search for the other, according to reports from U.S. media. Other foreign reports indicated that special ground forces are operating inside Iran to search for the other pilot.

According to the "New York Times" and "Wall Street Journal," the aircraft is of the model "F-15E," which is a fighter carrying a pilot and a weapons systems officer sitting in the back seat.

CNN also indicated that the analysis of the wreckage images broadcasted by Iranian media shows that they belong to an "F-15" aircraft, not a stealth "F-35," as some Iranian reports claimed.

So, what do we know about the "F-15E" aircraft? And what is it doing over Iran?

According to the "Wall Street Journal," the "F-15E Strike Eagle" is a multi-role fighter capable of shooting down aircraft and bombing ground targets, operating in Iranian airspace since the beginning of the war.

This aircraft, originally manufactured by "McDonnell Douglas," which merged with "Boeing" in 1997, can carry about 23,000 pounds (approximately 10,500 kilograms) of bombs, making it ideal for striking multiple targets in one mission.

It entered service in the U.S. Air Force in the late 1980s and has also been purchased by Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Singapore, and Israel.

While the U.S. Air Force received its last "F-15E" from "Boeing" in 2004, it is now purchasing a newer model called "F-15EX," which features more advanced electronic capabilities and a larger payload of 29,500 pounds (about 13,400 kilograms).

The "F-15E" is piloted by a pilot in the front seat, with a weapons systems officer known as "WSO" in the back seat.

The downing of an "F-15E" fighter represents the second incident involving this aircraft since the U.S. and Israel began conducting airstrikes on Iran in late February.

In the early days of the war, a Kuwaiti "FA-18" shot down 3 U.S. "F-15E" aircraft by mistake, according to previous reports by the "Wall Street Journal."

How Do "F-15E" Aircraft Defend Themselves?

The "F-15E Strike Eagle" uses various countermeasures to evade pursuing missiles. These include thin metallic strips known as "flares" aimed at dazzling or disrupting radar systems, and illuminating bombs to confuse radar-guided and thermal missiles.

The U.S. Air Force is upgrading the electronic protection systems of the jet, creating a system known as the Effective Passive Anti-Survivability Warning System (EPAWSS). This technology is manufactured by "BAE Systems."

In a test report released in 2020, the Pentagon noted that the "EPAWSS" is a defensive system designed to provide "F-15" aircrews with comprehensive information about ground and aerial threats operating on radio frequencies, in addition to providing countermeasures against them.

It was not immediately possible to verify whether the "F-15E" that was shot down on Friday was equipped with the "EPAWSS" system.