F-15C becomes Instructional Air Frame

[ffuries]

The USAF at Tyndall AFB transferred F-15C tail number 78-0523 to Tom P. Haney Technical Center to be used as a Instructional Air Frame.

Link to video:

https://youtu.be/5FsQb5mO4aY

Link to Tyndall AFB Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/325FWTyndall

[JohnB]

That's enough to make you feel old.

[PropsRule]

That's enough to make you feel old.

No kidding, now we have F-16s getting converted to target drones and F-15s getting designated as instructional airframes. Makes me feel old indeed! I wonder if, decades from now, this particular airframe will become a "rare" F-15 survivor due to the fact it was sent to a tech school instead of the scrapyard.

[sandiego89]

Had to look that one up. I thought it would have been an "A" with a 78 serial number. Guess I forgot how soon they switched over to the the C model.

I don't think the F-15 will ever be as rare as some earlier types. With 35+ early models already on museum display, droves at the boneyard, instructional airframes, no announced plans for Q conversion, and many later models still serving I think it will be well represented as inside and outside static displays. Perhaps when retired, some C, D, and E Models will replace some tired A/B models that have been on outside display for sometime. The F-14 at at Oceana was a early pre-production bird that was found to be a rotted out shell, and was replaced by a newer aircraft upon retirement of the type. I can imagine some early display F-15's like the Langley bird on the stick, and other places are suffering as well.

Wiki museum lists: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell ... F-15_Eagle

[ffuries]

Tell me about feeling old. The majority of the air craft I worked on are now retired.

OV-10A Retired (George AFB, CA)
C-9A Retired (Rhein Main AB, GE)
C-130E Retired (Rhein Main AB, GE)
C-130E-II Retired (Rhein Main AB, GE)
MC-130E Retired (Rhein Main AB, GE & Duke Field, FL)
MC-130N/P Retired (Duke Field, FL)
NC-130A Retired (Duke Field, FL)
T-39A Retired (Rhien Main AB, GE)
F-15A Retired (Tyndall AFB, FL)
F-15B Retired (Tyndall AFB, FL)
F-15C Operational, Gate Guard, Instructional air frame, etc (Tyndall AFB, FL)
F-15D Operational, Gate Guard, Instructional air frame, etc (Tyndall AFB, FL)
C-130J Operational (Keesler AFB, MS)

Last edited by ffuries on Mon Aug 31, 2015 2:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[shrike]

Look at it this way.

F-15 first flight was in 1972, with operational deliveries in 76. 43 and 39 years ago.
F-16 first flight in '74 with operation in '78. 41 and 37 years

[ffuries]

Look at it this way.

F-15 first flight was in 1972, with operational deliveries in 76. 43 and 39 years ago.
F-16 first flight in '74 with operation in '78. 41 and 37 years

I remember seeing the F-16A Demonstration Aircraft (The red, white and blue AC with all the flags on it, and a bald General Dynamics pilot in a blue flight suit) fly against the F-4 at Zaragoza AB, Spain sometime between Jun 74 and Jun 75. I remember we were living on base when the demo bird came, and we only lived on base for one year, I was 7/8 years old at the time.

Funny how we remember the date when something happened by where we were living at.