The Los Angeles Times is reporting that the Air Force will probably order dozens of its F-15 fighter jets permanently grounded because of crucial structural flaws, significantly reducing the number of planes available to protect the United States. The official announcement on the status of the F-15 fleet will be released today.
After one of the jets broke apart during a simulated dogfight in November, Air Force officials grounded the entire F-15 fleet, nearly 700 planes in all, fearing such a defect. The newest versions of the fighter jets were allowed to resume flying shortly afterward, but 440 of the older model F-15s have remained out of service.
The Air Force plans to allow about 260 of the remaining grounded planes to return to duty today. But about 180 more will remain idle because of suspected structural flaws.
You can read the entire article at the LA Times link below.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/la-na-airforce9jan09,1,2350411.story?ctrack=1&cset=true