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Liberty Wing F-15E Eagle Looks Locked and Loaded in the Skies Over Europe

American military forces are present in a large number of locations across the world, being deployed in some places, like say Europe and some bits of Asia, for more than half of century. And they have with them military hardware powerful enough to wage war effectively, if need be, until help arrives from the homeland or elsewhere.
F-15E Strike Eagle 15 photos
Photo: USAF/Staff Sgt. Jeremy McGuffin
USAF/Staff Sgt. Jeremy McGuffinF-15E Strike EaglesF-15F-15F-15F-15F-15F-15F-15F-15F-15F-15F-15F-15
Over in Europe there is a very large number U.S. military bases and installations belonging to various branches and serving different needs, in places like Germany, Italy, and the UK. It is the British islands from where the 48th Fighter Wing, or the Statue of Liberty Wing, operates.

The 48th is presently the only air wing that operates F-15 aircraft in Europe, and that makes the sight of the airplanes flown by American pilots one to remember. Especially when the F-15 in question is not only loaded to the teeth, but it is also performing pre-landing maneuvers that make it look particularly deadly.

This is exactly what is happening in the main pic of this piece (click main photo to enlarge), which shows one of the 48th Fighter Wing F-15E Eagles in the skies over the RAF Lakenheath base this unit calls home, performing what the U.S. Air Force (USAF) calls “routine training.”

The F-15, a machine made by Boeing, is called in one of its most recent configurations Strike Eagle. It is an incredibly nimble machine, being capable of reaching speeds of up to 1,875 mph (3,017 kph) thanks to a pair of Pratt & Whitney engines.

The thing comes with enough hardpoints to be able to be fitted with a large variety of air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles, bombs, and drop tanks.

Unlike the F-16, the F-15 is less widespread, presently being deployed by a small number of countries other than the U.S., namely Japan, Israel, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Qatar.
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Editor's note: Gallery shows other F-15s.

About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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