Ten Seymour Johnson F-15Es returning from the Middle East stopped at RAF Mildenhall, revealing new Mortal Kombat-themed nose art and a combined 45 Shahed drone kill markings.
The “flow” of F-15E Strike Eagles returning from deployments to the CENTCOM AOR (Area of Responsibility), where they supported Operation Epic Fury against Iran, continues through UK airbases. After 12 F-15E Strike Eagles belonging to the 366th Fighter Wing (FW) touched down at RAF Lakenheath on their way back to Mountain Home AFB on Sept. 16, 2026, ten Seymour Johnson AFB F-15Es arrived at RAF Mildenhall between Sept. 24 and 25.
The latter are the first of a total of 24 Strike Eagles belonging to the 4th FW that deployed to the Middle East between January and March 2026.
US ORBAT – Fast-Jets – 03/SEP/2026 #IranWar
Update to the slightly more detailed US Orders of Battle for fast-jets in CENTCOM available in case of further conflict with Iran. Due to the fact my list of airframes is over 250, I am not going to list individual airframes here,… pic.twitter.com/LoSf2nMNlj
— DefenceGeek 🇬🇧 (@DefenceGeek) September 3, 2026
Upon their arrival in the UK, the 4th FW jets could be seen sporting a variety of Mortal Kombat-inspired nose art and nicknames, along with some interesting Shahed kill markings and bomb silhouettes. For those who don’t know it yet, Mortal Kombat is a long-running and hugely popular fighting video game franchise born in the early 1990s.
The first section of four F-15Es, callsigns TABOR 21-24, was supported by KC-135R CLEAN 63, arrived on Sept. 24 and included the following airframes:
TABOR 21 SJ AF 89-0490 “Liu Kang”
TABOR 22 SJ AF 87-0181 “Sub Zero”
TABOR 23 SJ AF 89-0492 “Kitana”
TABOR 24 SJ AF 89-0505 “Scorpion”
The second section, arrived on Sept. 26, and included:
TABOR 11 SJ AF 90-0229 “Reptile”
TABOR 12 SJ AF 89-0478 “Kano”
TABOR 13 SJ AF 87-0193 “Cage”
TABOR 14 SJ 87-0177 “Smoke”
TABOR 15 SJ 88-1704 “Shao Kahn”
TABOR 16 SJ 88-1670 “Jax”
In order of appearance, “Liu Kang” refers to one of the franchise’s central heroes, a Shaolin monk and martial artist; “Sub-Zero” is the iconic cryomancer ninja known for his ability to manipulate ice; “Kitana” is the Edenian princess who fights with steel war fans; and “Scorpion” is the undead ninja warrior famous for his spear attack and “Get over here!” catchphrase.
Dealing with the second section, it featured “Reptile,” the reptilian ninja associated with invisibility and acid attacks; “Kano,” the ruthless Black Dragon mercenary recognizable by his cybernetic eye; “Cage,” a reference to Johnny Cage, the flamboyant Hollywood action star and martial artist; “Smoke,” the Lin Kuei ninja known for smoke-based attacks; “Shao Kahn,” the powerful emperor of Outworld and one of the series’ best-known villains; and “Jax,” or Jackson Briggs, the Special Forces officer distinguished by his cybernetic arms.
Nose art and nicknames on Strike Eagles deployed to the Middle East first appeared on the 18 F-15E Strike Eagle jets belonging to the 391st Expeditionary Fighter Squadron returning to Mountain Home AFB from OIR (Operation Inherent Resolve) in April 2019. Since then, it has become a standard for all the F-15E squadrons deployed to the CENTCOM AOR.
Besides the nose art, the F-15Es also sport some interesting Shahed-like kill markings, applied to aircraft credited with Iranian drone shootdowns, along with a wide variety of weapon silhouettes. These include AGM-158 JASSMs (Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles), GBU-39 SDBs (Small Diameter Bombs), and what appear to be AGR-20 APKWS II (Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II) laser-guided rockets. The latter have increasingly become a weapon of choice for the counter-UAS mission, offering a comparatively inexpensive way to engage drones without expending more costly air-to-air missiles.
Integration of the APKWS II onto the F-15E began in May 2025, when images surfaced online showing Strike Eagles from Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, flying in a variety of configurations with LAU-131 rocket launchers. As explained at the time, with six LAU-131 launchers the F-15E can carry 42 laser-guided rockets in addition to its standard loadout of eight air-to-air missiles, a payload that gives the jet significant flexibility in combat and up to 50 opportunities to engage aerial targets even before considering the gun. The counter-UAS configuration was employed extensively in combat by the F-15E Strike Eagles of the 366th Fighter Wing, as shown by the bomb markings carried by the jets returning to their home bases from deployment in the Middle East in July 2025.
A big thank you to our contributor and friend Stewart Jack Photography for sending us his photos!
