The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed for air superiority in aerial combat. Developed for the United States Air Force, it first flew in July 1972, and is one of the most recognized modern fighters. Future development lead to the C, D and E versions as well as the J, K and S models for Japan, South Korea and Saudi Arabia respectively.

The F-15 has an all-metal semi-monocoque fuselage with a large cantilever shoulder-mounted wing. The empennage is all-metal twin fins and rudders with all-moving composite horizontal tail surfaces outboard of the fins. The F-15 has a spine-mounted air brake and retractable tricycle landing gear. It is powered by two Pratt & Whitney F100 axial-flow turbofan engines with afterburners mounted side-by-side in the fuselage. The cockpit is mounted high in the forward fuselage with a one-piece windscreen and large canopy to increase visibility.

Initial improvements to the F-15 with the C and D variants included the internal carriage of a extra 2000 lbs of fuel, the ability to carry the Conformal fuel tank (rarely fitted in practise) and the strengthening of the undercarriage and airframe to allow for the increased aircraft weight. With the Multi Stage Improvement Programme introduced from fiscal year 1984 machines, the original APG-63 radar was replaced during production by the APG-70 and this was followed by the APG-63(V1), which was refitted to older surviving airframes.