Air Force buys 22 more F-15EX jets at budget deadline

The Air Force on Tuesday awarded Boeing a $2.38 billion contract to build 22 F-15EX Eagle II fighter jets just before a fiscal-year deadline to spend the money.

The purchase comes from funds in the 2026 reconciliation legislation nicknamed the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” The contract was nailed down just hours before the new fiscal year began on Oct. 1. Missing the deadline would have mandated cuts to the amount of funds that could be used in the F-15EX program.

The F-15EX contract came on the same day the Navy announced Boeing beat Northrop Grumman for the $20 billion contract to develop its F/A-XX sixth-generation fighter. Boeing previously was awarded the development contract for the Air Force’s sixth-generation fighter, the F-47.

Boeing said in a statement that it had now sold 120 F-15EX Eagle II jets to the Air Force. The service plans to eventually procure 267 of the updated versions of the venerable Cold War-era twin-engine interceptor. The F-15EX improvements include modernized radar, larger cockpit digital displays, advanced electronic warfare systems and increased survivability in combat.

The F-15EX Eagle II is meant to replace older F-15C and F-15D aircraft serving in Air Force and Air National Guard units. The F-15EX Eagle II has a top speed of Mach 2.5 — about 1,650 mph at high altitude.