“The question is not even remotely that simple ... that’s the sort of thinking I expect from the MSM.”
It is that simple and thanks for the insult.
“1) $250K does not guarantee a solution long term”
It promises a short term solution. The cost for a long term solution is most likely higher but still less than 10% the cost of a new raptor.
“2) $161 Mil is the total program cost for each plane, based on the size of the production run. Make more, and the cost per plane drops. Some of that $161 Mil has already been spent; it’s the R&D.”
Regardless its many many times the cost of the interim solution. The raptor is a great plane but the F15 still beats nearly all the competition out there. My point is you don’t need a 160 million dollar hammer for a 10 cent nail. The $10 hammer will sometimes work just as well. The B52 is a good example. The airframe is good and by performing maintenance, adding new engines, and new electronics we are getting a solid weapons system for much less than the alternative.
“We need more Raptors.”
No, we want more Raptors because we all like sexy new things. Need has yet to be determined. The Pentagon in their infinite wisdom doesn’t agree. Just like the other services the Air Force will always want more and better.
It promises a short term solution. The cost for a long term solution is utterly unknown to you. Unless you're working for USAF or Boeing and personally involved in the problem. And it entirely depends on what you mean by "long term solution". More Raptors are a long term solution. Very long term. And available right now. The line is up and running.
Airframes wear out. The F-15 fleet has been driven very hard, and that's a good thing. But there's a price for that, in maintenance and availability. And that misses the point that the F15, much as I love the bird, is an old design and no longer dominant, as it was in the 1970s.
The F-15 was designed over 30 years ago. Despite upgrades to the avionics and weapons, it's still obsolete. There are many aircraft that are as good as or better than the F-15.
The role of the F15 and the F22 is Air Supremacy. The Russians, the Chinese, the Brits and the French all have airplanes just as capable as the F15 in its prime. The Russians, Chinese, and French have been selling these planes to many countries that we could be fighting in the next 10-20 years.
The F15 can't fly at its full design capability because of cracks in the wings and fuselage. We keep patching them and putting more limitations on their capabilities, but the bottom line is that the F-15 isn't stealthy and is 30 plus year old technology. It's susceptable to newer SAMs and can be spotted at a much longer range by enemy radars. New Fire and Forget Air to Air weapons are a much bigger threat to the F15 than they are to a stealthy aircaft.