[7] Despite a lack of official interest, McDonnell Douglas had quietly included a basic secondary ground attack capability in the F-15's design since the beginning and worked on an F-15-derived interdictor fighter.

The concept envisioned an aircraft capable of launching deep air interdiction missions without requiring additional support by fighter escort or jamming.

[12] The DRF evaluation team, under the direction of Brigadier General Ronald W. Yates, ran from 1981 through 30 April 1983, during which the F-15E logged more than 200 flights, demonstrated takeoff weight of more than 75,000 pounds (34 t), and validated 16 different weapons-carrying configurations.

[28][31] On 24 March 2014, Boeing won a $30.6 million contract from DARPA as part of the Airborne Launch Assist Space Access (ALASA) program.

The LANTIRN system is mounted externally under the engine intakes; it allows the aircraft to fly at low altitudes, at night, and in any weather conditions, to attack ground targets with a variety of precision-guided and unguided weapons.

The LANTIRN system gives the F-15E exceptional accuracy in weapons delivery day or night and in poor weather, and consists of two pods attached to the exterior of the aircraft.

Like the F-15C, it also carries an internally mounted General Electric M61A1 20 mm cannon with 500 rounds, which is effective against enemy aircraft and "soft" ground targets.

[56] On the war's opening night, an F-15E failed to hit a MiG-29 with an AIM-9 Sidewinder; other F-15Es also unsuccessfully engaged this lone MiG-29, which was eventually brought down by a missile of unknown origin.

Two nights later, a second and final F-15E was downed by an Iraqi SA-2; the crew survived and evaded capture for several days and made contact with coalition aircraft, but a rescue was not launched due to security issues over an airman who failed to identify himself with proper codes.

[62] After 1993, no-fly zone violations were minimal as Iraq staged a minor withdrawal; in 1997, Turkey approved the creation of Operation Northern Watch (ONW) and permitted US forces to use the Incirlik air base.

[citation needed] After Desert Fox, Iraq frequently violated the no-fly zones, thus F-15Es conducted several pre-planned retaliatory strikes; in ONW alone, weapons were expended on at least 105 days.

In August 1995, in support of NATO's Operation Deliberate Force, F-15Es flew strike missions against Serbian armor and logistics around the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo.

A total of 26 F-15Es flew the first strikes of Allied Force against Serb surface-to-air-missile sites, anti-aircraft batteries and early warning radar stations.

[68] Mobile SAM launchers posed a considerable threat to NATO aircraft and had made successful shoot-downs, most notably of a Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk.

[69] Weeks after the September 11 attacks in 2001, the 391st Fighter Squadron deployed to Ahmad al-Jaber air base, Kuwait, to support Operation Enduring Freedom during the War in Afghanistan.

Additionally, fixed SAM sites near cities as Mazar-i-Sharif and Bagram were struck early on; Afghanistan had rapidly become a low-threat environment for air operations.

[71] Frequent targets during the rest of the war were individual insurgents, light vehicles and supply convoys; cannon fire was often expended as well as bombs from F-15Es.

Aircraft destroyed a Taliban observation post and responded to nearby enemy mortar fire upon Navy SEAL forces searching for an ambushed MH-47E Chinook in the Shah-i-Kot Valley.

[79] In late 2002, during tension over suspected Iraqi possession of weapons of mass destruction, the 4th Fighter Wing at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base was ordered to maintain at least one squadron ready to deploy to the Persian Gulf.

[80] During OSW, F-15Es struck targets in southern and western Iraq, including radars, radio stations, command and control sites, and air defences.

One objective was the destruction of Iraq's air defenses and Early Warning radar network near the Jordanian border, allowing F-16s and helicopters to operate from Jordan from the war's outset.

Several radar sites and radio relay stations were hit in western Iraq near the "H3" airfield, encountering heavy anti-aircraft fire.

[83] On 3 April 2003, an F-15E mistook a USA M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) for an Iraqi surface-to-air missile site and dropped a 500 lb (230 kg) laser-guided bomb, killing three and wounding five others.

[84] On 7 April 2003, an F-15E, crewed by Captain Eric Das and Major William Watkins, performed a key interdiction mission in support of special forces, but crashed near Tikrit, Iraq.

[citation needed] Following the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 on 17 March 2011, 18 USAF F-15Es were amongst other NATO and allied aircraft were deployed to enforce the Libyan no-fly zone as part of Operation Odyssey Dawn.

[92] USAF F-15Es based at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom performed several long range strikes against IS camps and prominent figures in Libya.

[93] On 20 February 2016, USAF F-15Es[94] hit an IS training camp near Sabratha where foreign fighters were based, reportedly killing Noureddine Chouchane, a 36-year-old Tunisian jihadist linked to the 2015 Sousse attacks.

[111] Early strikes were aimed at air defense sites, Army HQs, military airports, ballistic missiles depots, and launchers.

[114] On 8 January 2018, a RSAF F-15S was reportedly shot down by a Houthi surface-to-air missile; a Houthi-released video shows the F-15 increasing speed and releasing decoy flares before being struck by a projectile and apparently suffering major damage.

[120][121] The F-15 Advanced Eagle represents a more substantial upgrade baseline over previous models in that it has a new fly-by-wire control system and wing structure that enables two additional underwing weapons hardpoints (increasing the number from nine to eleven).