FP,
The USAF have a limited number of F-15Es ground attack aircraft being flown into the ground. They have a life of 9000 hours and the vast majority are over 21 years old and past 6000 hours life.
F-15 SLEP funding is being put into the F-15C force to keep it going until the F-X enters service. Offensive funding is looking at the swivel to the Pacific and the LRSB. The F-15E is supposed to be replaced by......the F-35.
I am just interested to understand where you see the funding coming from to keep the F-15E flying, to assume the air superiority role, as a small legacy fleet with all the support costs involved, as an affordable option to giving the role to the F-35 itself?
(Or designing the F-X to do it from the start of course)