The US Air Force has awarded Boeing a $2.38-billion contract to produce an additional 22 F-15EX Eagle II aircraft under Lot 7.
The latest award follows the company’s delivery of the lead F-15EX-22 aircraft under Lot 3 in August, with more to follow throughout 2026, as well as its selection to build the US Navy’s sixth-generation F/A-XX fighter earlier this month.
With Boeing currently under contract for the full production of F-15EX Lots 1 through 7, it is now expected to produce a total of 120 F-15EX fighters to replace the service’s aging F-15C/D aircraft.
The American manufacturer is closely collaborating with the US Air Force and the Pentagon to increase the production rate to two aircraft per month.
“Lot 7 reflects a disciplined approach to executing available resources while balancing the realities affecting defense production,” said Brig. Gen. Timothy Helfrich, portfolio acquisition executive for the Fighters and Advanced Aircraft Directorate.
F-15EX Lots 1 To 7
The US Air Force first awarded Boeing a nearly $1.2-billion contract for eight F-15EX aircraft under Lot 1 in July 2020, with all eight aircraft delivered by June 2024 and entering initial operating capability the following month.
The service subsequently ordered 12 aircraft under Lot 2 in 2021 and another 12 under Lot 3 in 2022. It later ordered 24 aircraft under Lot 4, 24 under Lot 5, and 18 under Lot 6, bringing the total number of aircraft under contract to 98 before the latest award.
F-15EX production was disrupted when Boeing machinists at the company’s St. Louis facility went on strike from August 4 to November 17, 2025.
The disruption, along with broader inflation across the defense industrial base, was among the factors the Department of the Air Force said it accounted for in negotiating the Lot 7 agreement.
Multirole Strike Fighter
Building on the F-15 Eagle model, the F-15EX incorporates advanced avionics, digital backbone architecture, large-area displays, and enhanced survivability.
With a 29,500-pound (13,300-kilogram) payload capacity, it can carry up to 12 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs) or an equivalent combination of large ordnance.