How The Vietnam War Forced America To Build The F 15

Описание: The F-15 Eagle is widely considered the greatest air superiority fighter of the 20th century. But this legendary aircraft only exists because the US Air Force was losing the battle for the skies during the Vietnam War.

In the late 1950s, military doctrine shifted away from agility. The Pentagon was convinced that new radar and missile technology meant pilots would never need to dogfight again. Consequently, jets like the F-4 Phantom were built without guns and designed to be heavy interceptors. But when these theories were tested in Vietnam, they failed catastrophically.

US pilots were being shot down at alarming rates by older, cheaper, but much more agile Soviet MiGs. The technological advantage America thought it had vanished in close-range combat. The situation became critical when intelligence revealed the Soviets were developing the MiG-25, a next-generation fighter that threatened to outclass the entire US fleet.

Refusing to be second-best, the US developed the F-15 Eagle with a focus on high thrust-to-weight ratio and extreme maneuverability. It was designed to fix every mistake made with the F-4. This video breaks down how the F-15 turned the tide of the Cold War and became the most successful fighter in history, with a perfect combat record that stands to this day. Sound taken from the Epidemic Sound

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