RIYADH, Saudi Arabia—Boeing is actively proposing the upgrade of Saudi Arabia’s F-15SA fleet to bring the aircraft to the same standard as the new F-15EX.

The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) is the largest operator of the fighter outside the U.S., flying more than 200 examples in four different versions—the F-15C/D, the F-15SA and F-15SR. The latter are conversions of the F-15S models that the Kingdom acquired in the early 1990s and subsequently upgraded to F-15SA-standard here in country.

All the F-15S aircraft have now been converted to the F-15SR standard. The aircraft are the backbone of the RSAF fleet, operating alongside the service’s Eurofighter Typhoons and Panavia Tornadoes. Several RSAF Eagles are participating in the WDS static and flying display.

“We currently [are] talking right now with the Royal Saudi Air Force on F-15EX,” Vince Logsdon, Boeing’ vice president for International Business Development at Boeing Defense, told journalists Feb. 9 on the second day of the World Defense Show. “The F-15 is 52 years old, and the F-15EX is the latest and greatest [version] of that ... and we are looking at potential upgrades to the SA aircraft and potential new buys as well.”

Although development of the F-15SA helped light the spark for Boeing’s development of the Advanced F-15 family that includes the F-15EX, Boeing officials say the F-15SA features technologies that now date back more than 15 years. The F-15SA features a similar cockpit arrangement like that of the F-15E Strike Eagle, an older Raytheon APG-63v3 active electronically scanned array (AESA), and BAE’s Digital Electronic Warfare System.

Boeing is proposing fitting the F-15SAs with the more advanced features of the F-15EX, including a wide area cockpit display, the more capable APG-82 AESA radar and the Eagle Passive/Active Warning and Survivability electronic warfare system. The F-15EX is also at the heart of what Boeing calls its Family of Systems, which includes platforms such as the MQ-28 Ghost Bat collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) and the E-7 airborne early warning platform.

Prior to the World Defense Show, the U.S. State Department approved a $3 billion sustainment package to support the fleet. The package contains spares, consumables, repair support, ground equipment and training for the F-15 fleet.