F-15EX Eagle II Touches Down at Kadena for Training Ahead of Permanent Deployment

The F-15EX Eagle II has landed at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa for the first time, marking an important step towards a permanent deployment. The visit comes after a year since the type's inaugural visit and gives crews and maintainers experience with the new jet.

Kadena has had a fighter problem since 2022, when its F-15C/D Eagles began phasing out without a replacement. Since then, rotating deployments of F-22 Raptors and F-35A Lightning IIs have filled the gap, but these lack institutional knowledge due to being temporary units.

The F-15EX is designed to fix this issue with its modern AN/APG-82(V)1 AESA radar, fly-by-wire controls, and ability to carry twelve air-to-air missiles at once. The aircraft will eventually replace the aging F-15C/D Eagles and provide a much-needed boost to the Indo-Pacific command's capabilities.

Although the current visit is just for training and familiarization, Brig Gen John Gallemore, Commander of the 18th Wing, sees this as 'the next chapter of airpower at Kadena.' The first permanently based F-15EXs are expected in 2027, following production recovery from the 2025 Boeing machinists' strike.