The US offers brand new F-15EX to India with exclusive and unparalleled weapons package

IgMp Report

Image Credit : Boeing

The US Air Force (USAF) inducted its first F-15EX jet on March 10 at Boeing's St Louis manufacturing facility in Missouri and race has started to clinch a second customer for the most recent version of the American Eagle with India being on the radar of the Boeing as well as of key authorities in the Pentagon. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will visit India this month and will give his stress on two significant offers that Pentagon has been offering India for a long time now.

Pentagon is hopeful that India will scrap the S400 air defense system deal with Russia and rather has offered to joint development of long-range air defense system in line of S-400 with India or India could be included in the American-Israeli defence system being worked on, second on offer is manufacturing of the F-15EX in India with full ToT, with weapons package unequaled in Asia. 

India will be offered top-of-line AIM-120C-8 advanced medium-range air-to-air missile (AMRAAM) alongside AIM-120C-7 with a written guarantee that equivalent or higher AMRAAMs won't be given to Pakistan's F-16 armada. Reports even says that even AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile may be on a proposal to not very many nations once it is prepared and India will among a few friendly nations who can get their hands on it.

Instead of ramjet propulsion, AIM-260 will have novel propulsion which will have a "boost-coast-boost" arrangement, that will permit the missile to meet its objectives with more energy, or will run on a higher-energy fuel than past ages of solid motors, to surpass the performance of the MBDA's Meteor that currently has the 60km "no-escape zone", greatest among any BVRAAM currently in service worldwide, that will put F-15EX much ahead of Dassault's Rafale. 

The second outstanding offer of the weapons package will be the Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator (SHiELD) framework which expects to field a laser beam on a fighter aircraft to safeguard against approaching enemy missiles. This laser framework will showcase the protective capacities of airplanes against surface-to-air (SAM) and aerial (AAM) missiles. India has been briefed that both this framework will be tested and will enter service by 2024 and India will be among the couple of nations who will be offered this cutting-edge aerial weapons framework that the Pentagon says, will make F-15EX far superior than Dassault's Rafale. 

F-15EX offered to India will come fitted with Raytheon's AN/APG-82(V)1 AESA radar that can at the same time recognize, distinguish and track various air and surface targets at longer ranges than any other radars in recent history. The more extended standoff range encourages persistent target observation and data sharing for info-based decision-making. F-15EX will have Open Mission Systems (OMS) design, that will empower the fast inclusion of the upgrades in the aircraft domain. 

Developed by BAE Systems, Eagle Passive/Active Warning and Survivability System (EPAWSS) will be under up-gradation to ensure the F-15EX doesn't crumble against future best air defense systems to be brought into service. To put it plainly, Pentagon is bundling its most recent F-15EX offer, which has an aircraft that is superior to Dassault's Rafale regarding the weapons package, and it is offering alongside redesigned radar and flying at a much moderate cost for India.