ST. LOUIS, June 26 (UPI) -- The aerodynamics of the conformal weapons bay design by Boeing of the United States and Korean Aerospace Industries has been validated in wind tunnel tests.
Boeing conducted the test as part of the Silent Eagle project -- the upgrade to the F-15E, which is being offered to South Korea as the country pursues a future fighter program.
"Boeing and its partners have advanced to the next phase in the development of the Silent Eagle, an evolved derivative of the combat-proven F-15 family of aircraft," said Roger Besancenez, F-15 Program vice president for Boeing.
"We are now testing production-representative hardware as we continue to validate our affordable and low-risk design."
The F-15SE will feature stealth technology, including the carrying of weapons within the fuselage.
Boeing said that for the conformal weapons bay test it used a scale model of the Silent Eagle to determine the effect of various air speeds and flight angles. Future testing will focus on the "aerodynamic effects of multiple weapons loads, as well as opening and closing the upper and lower CWB doors."
