3D Printing Sends Broken F-15 Back to Action Within Hours
Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2025 6:02 pm
https://nextgendefense.com/3d-printing-broken-f15/
3D Printing Sends Broken F-15 Back to Action Within Hours
US Air Force and Marine teams used on-site additive manufacturing to rapidly print and install critical F-15 parts, slashing repair timelines from months to hours.
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An F-15 Eagle in flight. Image: NAVAIR
US Air Force and Marine Corps repair teams have joined forces to send a damaged F-15 back to flight status in just a few hours, far ahead of the original several-month timeline.
The 18th Maintenance Group (18 MXG) at Kadena Air Base in Japan reached out to Marine Aircraft Logistics Squadron 36 (MALS-36) to leverage its on-site additive manufacturing equipment in repairing a malfunctioning cooling duct.
Within 12 hours, the teams printed, delivered, and installed two prototypes that restored the duct to operational condition, beating engineers’ original four-month repair estimate.
An Air Force pilot flying an F-15 aircraft. Image: NAVAIR
Further inspections led to an improved design that reduced printing time by two hours, an innovation that could speed future repairs even more.
“Here was a situation where a multi-million dollar aircraft was going to be sidelined for months due to the lack of a part in the supply system,” Naval Air Systems Command Additive Manufacturing Program Manager Theodore Gronda said.
“18 MXG was backstopped by MALS-36’s AM capability and they even got a better and quicker [additive manufacturing] design out of the collaboration.”
Saving Costs and Time
Additive manufacturing builds replacement parts layer by layer, on-site and on-demand, enabling rapid repairs where traditional supply chains fall short.
Depot Liaison Engineer Diego Carrillo said the process is crucial in situations where repair items are hard to source or have long lead times.
“In applications where 3D manufactured parts are a viable option and are non-procurable or have a long lead time, using this capability can offer cost and time savings,” he added.
A formation of four F-15 jets. Image: Blake Wiles via DVIDS
The air force now plans to incorporate additive manufacturing into standard technical processes, replicating these results across the F-15 fleet.
“The duct’s new printing requirements are now part of the Air Force’s AM technical publications and will be used for similar repairs across the F-15 community,” Carrillo stated.
“Cooperative and joint exercises with sister services and other stakeholders can help cross-pollinate ideas and methodologies, strengthen partnerships and increase force effectiveness.”
