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BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan: When an F-15E Strike Eagle goes by low and fast, the ground shakes and even crew chiefs with years of experience with the aircraft can be surprised.
With its advanced sensors and wide array of weapons, enemy forces don't have to see or hear the F-15E for it to strike them.
“We can find targets on the ground with infrared or TV to target individuals precisely without them seeing us or hearing us,” said Capt. Tony Breck, 391st Expeditionary Fighter Squadron weapons systems officer, deployed from Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. “We can target them through the clouds in the dark of night. We don't need to see the ground to hit them.”
The Sioux Falls, S.C., native said the F-15E is uniquely suited to the close air support mission the 391st EFS is responsible for, with the ability to drop bombs on targets as small as windows or individual people.
“We can target them even if they're moving,” he said. “No matter where they are or what they're doing, we can hit them.”
Normally relegated to the role of air-to-air fighter or air-to-ground interdictor, the fighter squadron spent the past year training for their mission at Bagram. That training remained the squadron's training priority in the months leading to the deployment.
“We're here to support the ground troops out there doing the main mission,” said 1st Lt. Cale Marthens, 391st EFS pilot.
One of the unique abilities the 391st brings to the fight is the Strike Eagle's speed. Unlike other close air support fighters, the F-15E's Pratt and Whitney engines allow the aircraft to exceed speeds twice that of sound.
“We can be anywhere in the country in less than half an hour,” said Lieutenant Marthens, a native of Stevensville, Mont.
“The whole ground shakes,” Captain Breck said of the aircraft's power. “We get there the same time sound does.”
“It's like we rain thunder down on them,” Lieutenant Marthens added.
Speed also gives the crew more standoff range. The faster and higher the Strike Eagle is when the bomb is dropped, the further the weapon goes before hitting the ground. This allows the crew to launch their payload out of range of shoulder-fired missiles and other threats.
“We're far enough away that they can't hear it or detect it,” Lieutenant Marthens said.
Another advantage is the sheer number of weapons the F-15E can carry.
Air Force Staff Sgt. Russell David, 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron weapons load crew chief, joined the weapons career field 12 years ago. He said it's difficult to list every weapon the Strike Eagle can drop.
“The list is shorter if you say what it can't carry,” he joked. “There (are) only three things it won't carry. Everything else we can drop.”
The largest weapon a crew can drop is the 4,500-pound bunker buster.
“It's designed for deep penetration into the ground before the explosion … good for caves or underground bunkers,” said Sergeant David, who also deployed from Mountain Home.
The smallest bomb approved for the F-15E is also the Air Force's newest — the 250-pound GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb. Designed for pinpoint air strikes, this satellite-guided bomb is well suited for close air support missions with a low probability of collateral damage.
“The best part is the wide array of weapons,” Sergeant David said. “Every time they go out, we load something new. It makes a more perfect match with a better chance of getting steel on target.”
Couple that with a 20mm gun that fires high-explosive incendiary rounds, and the odds of the target surviving an encounter with a Strike Eagle go down drastically, Lieutenant Marthens said.
“A few rounds will cut down a large tree,” he said. “You can destroy a vehicle with a one-second burst.”
Sergeant David said the Strike Eagle is a weapon that's as deadly as its crew and the maintainers keeping them flying.
“Every man and woman here is ready to do whatever it takes to take out any threat to any American troop out there,” he said. “It doesn't matter what kind of hardships there are. It's a small thing next to completing the mission every day.”
