South Korea receives three F-15K Slam Eagles

Boeing on Aug. 20 delivered three F-15K Slam Eagle aircraft to the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) at Daegu Air Base.
The aircraft left the Boeing St. Louis facility on Aug. 16 and made stops in Palmdale, Calif., Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, and Anderson Air Force Base, Guam, before arriving in Korea.
"We are pleased to receive the latest three F-15K Slam Eagles, F-15K 51, 52 and 53, from Boeing," said Lt. Col. Tae Uk Kim, Commander of the 110th Squadron, 11th Fighter Wing, ROKAF. "The F-15K is one of our most important assets in defense of the peninsula. We are satisfied with the continued on-schedule, quality deliveries of our F-15K Slam Eagles from Boeing."
Boeing delivered the first six of 21 F-15Ks it is producing under the Next Fighter II contract in 2010, followed by two in April and two more in May. The remaining eight aircraft will be delivered through April 2012.
"Boeing has a demonstrated record of on-time, on-cost deliveries to the ROKAF," said Roger Besancenez, Boeing F-15 Program vice president. "We're proud of that record, and equally proud of Boeing's relationship with Korean industry, which includes major work sharing and partnerships on both commercial and defense products. Our long-term cooperative relationship enables Boeing and Korean industry to ensure the ROKAF continues to fly a superior multi-role aircraft in defense of Korea."
Six of the new F-15K Slam Eagles are scheduled to participate in an advanced aerial combat training exercise at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., in late January.
The F-15K is an advanced variant of the combat-proven F-15E. Equipped with the latest technological upgrades, it is extremely capable, survivable and maintainable. The aircraft's service life is planned through 2040, with technology insertions and upgrades throughout its life cycle. Boeing completed delivery of 40 Next Fighter I F-15K aircraft to the ROKAF in October 2008 Published by HT Syndication with permission from Daily Pak Banker

A US Air Force F-15E fighter jet crashed in Libya overnight after a mechanical failure but its crew was safe, a spokesman for the US military Africa Command said Today.
 

Libyan rebels rescued the pilot after he ejected from the warplane, which came down near the eastern city of Benghazi, Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on its website.

Spokesman Vince Crawley declined to give the location of the crash and also would not say how the rescued crewman was picked up or where he was taken.

Another spokesman for the Stuttgart-based Africa Command said later the second crewman had also been safely rescued, and both crew members had suffered only minor injuries after ejecting from the aircraft.

The aircraft, based out of England, was flying out of Aviano Air Base in Italy when it experienced an equipment malfunction over northeast Libya, a military statement said.

The Telegraph web site showed local Libyans inspecting the charred wreckage of the plane.

Western forces carried out a third night of air raids overnight aimed at protecting civilians from forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Boeing Delivers Latest F-15K Slam Eagle Jets To South Korea

The latest two aircraft from South Korea's ongoing acquisition of the Boeing F-15K Slam Eagle have arrived at the nation's Daegu air base.

Boeing announced details of the milestone on 5 April, three weeks after the aircraft had arrived at the end of their delivery flights from St Louis, Missouri.

The pair left the company's production site on 8 March, and were flown to South Korea via stops in Palmdale, California, Hickam AFB, Hawaii and Andersen AFB, Guam.

The newly delivered fighters are tail numbers 47 and 48 from Seoul's overall programme for 61 F-15Ks. Boeing delivered the first six aircraft from a 21-unit order last year, and says the remaining 13 will be handed over throughout April 2012.

The South Korean air force had previously acquired 40 of the two-seat aircraft, before signing a follow-on order in 2008 for its new, Pratt & Whitney F100-229-powered examples.

Boeing says the service will deploy six of its F-15Ks to Nellis AFB in Nevada early next year to participate in an advanced aerial combat training exercise alongside the US Air Force.