Israeli F-15I to be equipped with removable probe for buddy air-to-air refueling?

Israeli F-15I to be equipped with removable probe for buddy air-to-air refueling in case of attack on Iran?

Even though nobody knows if an attack on Iranian nuclear program will ever be launched by the Israeli Air Force almost all analysts concur that, whathever its size, the strike force will be made of a certain amount of F-15Is, the Israeli version of the U.S. F-15E Strike Eagle.

Like all the other assets involved in the extremely difficult strike, the IAF F-15s would face serious fuel problems on such a long journey, requiring the support of several tankers; a tanker force whose presence has become paramount for the successful outcome of modern air campaigns (as shown by the Libya Air War).

As the American Strike Eagles, the Israeli F-15Is can be refueled by tankers equipped with a flying boom, using a boom receptacle embedded in the left wing root.

This means that, on the way to their targets, they will have to be refueled several times by either Israeli B-707s or American tankers (U.S. KC-135 and KC-10).

Although the IAF is believed to have 8 B707 still airworthy, someone believes that other planes were reconfigured to serve as tankers in case of a strike. But, at the refueling altitudes this kind of aircraft operates (much lower than the 50,000 feet someone affirmed!), they would be vulnerable to air defenses and, above all, visibile from many miles away announcing the incoming strike with a certain advance.

That’s why the possibility that the F-15I would not only by used as bombers but also as buddy tankers (e.g. to refuel other F-15s in a similar way Tornados or Super Hornets do) is quite likely, even if it would imply the use of an IFR (In-Flight Refueling) probe to be used to take fuel from a hose and drogue system in place of the boom/receptacle system.

In the past, the Israeli Air Force modified its F-4s with a cheap probe much easy to mount and quite effective. A similar kit could be also developed for the Israeli F-15I, in anticipation of a long range strike, as someone speculates. Even if the fuel transfer rate of the fixed boom is higher than the one of a hose and drogue system, and the kit would reduce the aircraft’s top speed, the use of an IFR on the F-15I could give the possibility to the Israeli planners to embed some tankers within the strike package thus reducing the “attack footprint”.

According to a CSIS (Center for Strategic and International Studies) document issued in 2009, studies have already taken place regarding buddy refueling between F-15Es that can be packaged in an external tank or CFT (Conformal Fuel Tanks). I’ve not found anything to confirm this report, but a similar system has been developed for the UAE AF F-16.

However, if Israel has developed such kit it’s quite unlikely that we will be able to see it: it would be the proof that they are about to launch a deep strike.

In the above rendering by Al Clark, an Israeli F-15I refuels from a US KC-10 over the desert on its way to the target. Al Clark has also drawn a fictional, scene involving an F-117. If you want to see it click here.

The Israeli F-15I (”Thunder’) and F-16I (”Storm”) were designed and built especially with the intention of striking Iran's nuke sites unrefueled. They are equipped with conformal fuel tanks that allow them the external range, but without the fuel-burning drag of pylon -mounted external fuel tanks.

The Israeli refueling B707s are configured for both “probe and drogue” (using a flexible hose) or the USAF flying boom because Israel operates aircraft having both types of air to air refueling methods.

However, if Israel is serious about taking down Iran, I'd suggest an EMP strike using Popeye Turbo SLCM from Dolphin-class submarines and Jericho 3 ballistic missiles with “special” warheads. Keep the F-15I and F-16I at home to eliminate Palestinians (Gaza and West Bank), Egyptian, and Syrian threats.

Seems like a good thread to hijack.

The USAF needs to equip their new F-35As with the F-35B/C's refueling probe.

Lockheed Martin designed a conformal fuel tank for the F-16IN that incorporated a refueling probe in addition to the boom receptical on the dorsal.

Here is a study that is a few years old that also advocates equipping USAF fighters with refueling probes: Air Force Aerial Refueling Methods: Flying Boom versus Hose-and-Drogue

The Republic F-105 “Thunderchief” (aka “Thud”) was the only USAF fighter built that carried both probe and drogue AND flying boom fueling receptacles. The probe retracted into a bay on the left side of the nose (just ahead if the cockpit windshield) and the flying boom receptacle was in front and to the left of center line also in the nose.

And perhaps ironically, yours is not the first time that the F-35 has been compared to the F-105 Thud.

If one accepts all the design and performance promises currently made, the F-35 will be overweight and underpowered. At 49,500 pounds air-to-air take-off weight and 42,000 pounds of engine thrust, it will be a significant step backward in thrust-to-weight ratio for a new fighter. With only 460 square feet of wing area, wing loading will be a whopping 108 pounds per square foot. That makes the F-35 even less maneuverable than the appalling F-105 “Lead Sled” that got wiped out over North Vietnam.

Actually, the F-105 wasn't designed as a tactical fighter bomber — the F-105 was designed as a STRATEGIC, single-seat fighter bomber. The F-105 was equipped with a rotary bombay for dropping “special weapons” on our Cold War enemies and an afterburning turbojet engine for Mach 2 ingress and egress from the target.

In Viet Nam, the bombay held an auxiliary fuel tank and the wings were hung with triple ejector racks for dumb bombs. This turned a supersonic fighter bomber into a subsonic bomb truck. It wasn't the brightest use of the F-105, but no one’s ever accused the USAF of getting its act together as far as tactical air ops are concerned.

When the USAF burned up its supply of F-105s, they tapped the F-4 Phantom for the role of both fighter (Combat Air Patrol) and tactical bomber (the role the F-105 filled).

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.