As usual these kind of topics come up and someone tries to prove one is better than the other. It's rather amusing considering how many here have the first hand knowledge to back the "superior" aircraft theories other than simple internet data on either airframe? Stop kidding yourselves into thinking one is better than the other by the news you hear. Disinformation is such a great tactic that has been used for ages and folks still fall for it.
Neubeck said the service probably needs to “take off the handcuffs that we
put on our red air training aids and allow them to be more aggressive and
make the red air tougher than we have in the past.”
Obviously non of you have ever particpated in an Air Force Red Flag scenario. As Neubeck has said we handcuff our aircrews in mock engagements and have for some time. We've limited our crews to certain systems capabilities and afterburner usage. It's well known amongst the fighter community that these things go on and people still seem to think that this aircraft can beat this aircraft because of internet data and news clippings. To make the story short no one not even India I'm sure will use everything in the book during mock engagements. If that were the case then why not just declassify all classified documents and let the enemy have full access to that data? You have to leave some things a secret even with allies because someday you may be facing them in war.
Oh and as far as the whole F-15 vs F/A 22 thing. Once again step away from the goodies and look at the big picture. Why wouldn't the DoD and the Air Force ramp up the hype on the F/A 22? Let see: money, money, and oh more money. The military in general loves new toys. The best way to get them is to prove in some way or another the old ones aren't capable of doing their job anymore(news clippings). The F/A 22 has been in developement for over a decade now and has cost massive amounts of money to get it where it is. Obviously the threat of aging systems isn't as bad as they make it seem or else the Raptor program would have been accelerated to an unfathomable rate. Yes it is superior than the F-15 in many ways but don't kid yourself that the Eagle can't hold it's own. Very few people have a clue as to whats coming for the Eagles in the future.
F-15 is aging and yes it may or may not be behind the times in comparison to the next generation fighters in some ways but it still gets the job done. The oldest F-15s still in combat squadrons other than guard still have alot of years on them left for duty. The Air Force could easily do extensive upgrades to fit future requirements but why when they've spent how much on the Raptor over how many years? Don't doubt that the Eagle is advancing it's technology though. The Eagle and the Strike Eagle will be around for many more years. Amusing how the F-117 is already trying to downsize it's fleet when there isn't many of them in the first place and the Eagle is still going strong. Considering the fact that the Stealth "Fighter" was designed around the same time as the later Eagle models and it's already being phased out is amusing to say the least.
