The U.S. Air Force has cleared about 60 percent of its F-15A/B/C/D Eagle fighters to limited flight status after having grounded them following the crash of an F-15C on Nov. 2, 2007. The return to flight order applies only to those F-15 aircraft that have cleared all inspections and have met longeron manufacturing specifications. USAF General John D.W. Corley, the Air Combat Command (ACC) commander said "aircraft inspection results and counsel from both military and industry experts have made me confident in the safety of a portion of the fleet. As a result, I have cleared those F-15s to return to flight." The decision results from information gathered from the F-15 program manager, senior engineers from Boeing and the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, as well as a briefing received from the Accident Investigation Board president. The information included an analysis of the health of the Air Force's F-15 fleet from findings from the Nov. 2 mishap investigation, maintenance inspections and actions completed and taken to date as well as historical science and engineering trend data from F-15 fleet management.
Inspections are more than 90 percent complete. Remaining inspections have primarily focused on the forward longerons, which are critical support structures. The F-15C crashed in November when it broke apart in the air. Time compliance technical order inspections have discovered nine additional aircraft with longeron fatigue-cracks. Additionally, approximately 40 percent of inspected aircraft have at least one longeron that does not meet blueprint specifications. Deviations in these longerons will be analyzed, with the work expected to take approximately four weeks to complete. Once the analysis is complete, ACC will be able to better determine which aircraft will need further inspection, or repair, before returning them to flight.