The Obama Administration intends to sell 84 advanced F-15 fighters to Saudi Arabia under a proposed $30 billion arms package, according to press reports. Saudi Arabia already operates a fleet of F-15s. These new aircraft would be a more capable version, but the exact configuration has not been disclosed. The Wall Street Journal reported that the new Saudi airplanes would be comparable to the modern F-15s that Boeing has supplied to Singapore and South Korea in recent years. The company has also been developing a new F-15 variant called the Silent Eagle that has signature-reducing features. Boeing spokeswoman Pat Frost referred all questions regarding the sale to the US and Saudi governments. She did tell the Daily Report Tuesday that Boeing still believes that South Korea, which is looking to eventually procure more new fighters, will be the first Silent Eagle customer.
Boeing received a $2.47 billion Air Force contract Nov. 25 for 15 more KC-46s, bringing to 183 the number of Pegasus tankers on contract to all customers, foreign and domestic. The new contract—for Lot 12 of the initially planned KC-46 buy—is to be completed by 2029.
