New airframe or other variants

[Fdino]

Hi air friends! I´ve a question for made. The F/A-18E Super Hornet and the F-15E Strike Eagle are variants or new aircrafts that made from a baseline of her predecessors? Thanks and Very wishes!

[Flanker562]

Yeah the F/A-18E is a new aircraft that was introduced, and the F-15E was probably a modified D model for ground attack/strike

[daddyairplanes]

More specifically on the Strike Eagle, the prototype was a modified B model, and it shared alot of airframe commonality with the Fighter Eagles. it did get differrent engines, radar and other avionics including the hardpoints for the LANTIRN system and later FLIR/targeting pods. it also carried the FAST conformal fuel tanks more regularly, although the C/D models could always use those and the Es have been spotted over the last couple years sans FAST tanks to act in an air to air dedicated role. finally, some inside structure and the landing gear was beefed up to handle more weight and down low flying  (the original operational environ for hte Mud Hen) 

The Super Hornet is more of an "inspired by" the legacy Hornet than an evolution.

[Fdino]

Now I get it. Yes, I heard and read a little bit about these modifications they made to Strike Eagle. And yes, I also think that the Super Hornet is a new aircraft albeit based on the Legacy Hornet. It's just that I see a lot of people arguing, especially when I was active on Facebook, in the aviation community... There was a very fierce debate where some argued that they were variants while others spoke of them being new aircraft. Was Strike Eagle based on a B-model? Wasn't the Super Hornet totally built from new? Thanks and Very Wishes.

[Flanker562]

Yes, the Super Hornet was a new build, 33% larger than it's Hornet progenitor