F-15s, troops from 493rd deploy to Bulgaria

Troops and fighter aircraft from the 493rd Fighter Squadron have been sent to Bulgaria as tensions in Eastern Europe continue to run high.

 

A dozen F-15s and approximately 180 personnel from the 493rd, based at RAF Lakenheath, England, have deployed to Graf Ignatievo Air Base to participate in a two-week bilateral training exercise with the Bulgarian air force, Pentagon spokesmen Col. Steve Warren told reporters Monday.

 

The exercise began Monday and will continue through Sept. 1.

 

The purpose of the deployment is to “conduct training and focus on maintain joint readiness while building interoperability,” Warren said.

 

The move comes at a time when America’s Eastern European partners and allies are concerned about Russian military intervention in Ukraine. There are fears that Moscow might try to destabilize other countries in the region.

 

“This is a reflection of our steadfast commitment to enhancing regional security,” Warren said about the exercise.

 

Last week the Pentagon announced that approximately 600 soldiers from the Army’s 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, based at Fort Hood, Texas, will deploy to Poland and the Baltic states in October for a three-month series of land warfare training exercises.

 

The First Cavalry will bring M-1 Abrams tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, and armored personnel carrier for the exercises, according to the Defense Department

Boeing recently completed wind tunnel tests on the Silent Eagle Conformal Weapons Bay

Boeing  recently completed wind tunnel tests on the Silent Eagle Conformal Weapons Bay (CWB). The tests, conducted at the company's St. Louis facility, validated the aerodynamics of the CWB design. CWBs are integral to the adaptable configuration and balanced survivability of the Silent Eagle.

"Boeing and its partners have advanced to the next phase in the development of the Silent Eagle, an evolved derivative of the combat-proven F-15 family of aircraft," said Roger Besancenez, F-15 Program vice president for Boeing. "We are now testing production-representative hardware as we continue to validate our affordable and low-risk design."

Boeing is partnering with Korea Aerospace Industries to design, develop and manufacture the CWB. The Silent Eagle is Boeing's offer in the F-X competition for the Republic of Korea's multirole fighter aircraft.

The wind tunnel tests used a scale model of the Silent Eagle to determine the effect of various air speeds and flight angles. The tests assessed enhancements made to the initial CWB design and confirmed the team's modeling analysis.

More detailed tests later this year will focus on the aerodynamic effects of multiple weapons loads, as well as opening and closing the upper and lower CWB doors.

Boeing this year also completed the final phase of Radar Cross Section (RCS) reduction tests to validate the aircraft's production configuration.

The Silent Eagle is designed with advanced technologies that provide an unprecedented balance of survivability and lethality to meet warfighters' needs in all phases of air combat. The CWBs can be reconfigured to Conformal Fuel Tanks (CFTs) to optimize the aircraft for longer ranges and increased weapons loading, making the Silent Eagle a flexible platform with unmatched range, speed, payload and persistence. The reconfigurable CWB-CFT concept is unique in the fighter aircraft world and contributes to the overall RCS reduction package while the aircraft maintains both air-to-air and air-to-surface capabilities.

The Silent Eagle also features enhanced avionics such as an integrated Active Electronically Scanned Array radar and Digital Electronic Warfare Suite that provide the aircrew with increased lethality and exceptional situational awareness.