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AB Raymond Guinn
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Evans, William, Gen USAF(Ret).
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Contact Info
Home Town Norwich
Date of Passing Dec 12, 2000
Official Badges
Unofficial Badges
Additional Information
Last Known Activity:
Burial: Unknown
1974-1975, F-14 Tomcat (Iran)
From Year 1974
To Year 1975
Personal Memories
Not Specified
Image
F-14 Tomcat (Iran) Details
Aircraft/Missile Information
Iran
The sole foreign customer for the Tomcat was the Imperial Iranian Air Force, during the reign of the last Shah (King) of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
In the early 1970s, the Imperial Iranian Air Force (IIAF) was searching for an advanced fighter, specifically one capable of intercepting Soviet MiG-25 "Foxbat" reconnaissance flights. After a visit of U.S. President Richard Nixon to Iran in 1972, during which Iran was offered the latest in American military technology, the IIAF narrowed its choice to the F-14 Tomcat or McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. Grumman Corporation arranged a competitive demonstration of the Eagle against the Tomcat before the Shah, and in January 1974 Iran ordered 30 F-14s and 424 AIM-54 Phoenix missiles, initiating Project Persian King, worth US$300 million. Only a few months later, this was expanded by an order for 50 additional F-14As and 290 AIM-54s. The Iranian order was for 80 Tomcats and 714 Phoenix missiles, spare parts, and replacement engines for ten years, complete armament package, and support infrastructure (including construction of the huge Khatami Air Base in the desert near Esfahan).
The first F-14 arrived in January 1976, modified only by the removal of classified avionics components, but fitted with the TF-30-414 engines. The following year 12 more were delivered. Meanwhile, training of the first groups of Iranian crews by the U.S. Navy, was underway in the USA; and one of these conducted a successful shoot-down with a Phoenix missile of a target drone flying at 50,000 ft (15 km).
Following the overthrow of the Shah in 1979, the air force was re-named the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) and the post-revolution interim government of Iran cancelled most Western arms orders. Knowledge about F-14 use by Iran is limited; deteriorating relations led to an arms embargo being imposed on Iran, including the last Tomcat built for Iran, which was embargoed and eventually turned over to the United States Navy. Large shipments of spares were held back, and many aircraft were cannibalized for their spare parts. Limited reports from the Iran-Iraq war gave some indications Iran was exploiting the range and multi-contact tracking capabilities of the AWG-9 radar to use their Tomcats in the AWACS role, and that this usage was at least partly due to Iran's lack of a stockpile of usable AIM-54 Phoenix missiles.[citation needed]
In January 2007, it was announced by the US Department of Defense that sales of spare parts for F-14s would be suspended, due to concerns that they could end up in Iran. It announced that the decision was taken "given the current situation in Iran".[30] On 2 July 2007, the remaining American F-14s were being shredded to ensure that F-14 spare parts would not be acquired by governments considered hostile to the US.[29]
Although Iran is believed to possess 59 F-14s, only 20 to 25 are estimated to be in service.[31]
General characteristics
* Crew: 2 (Pilot and Radar Intercept Officer) * Length: 62 ft 9 in (19.1 m) * Wingspan: o Spread: 64 ft (19.55 m) o Swept: 38 ft (11.58 m) * Height: 16 ft (4.88 m) * Wing area: 565 ft² (54.5 m²) * Airfoil: NACA 64A209.65 mod root, 64A208.91 mod tip * Empty weight: 43,735 lb (19,838 kg) * Loaded weight: 61,000 lb (27,700 kg) * Max takeoff weight: 74,350 lb (33,720 kg) * Powerplant: 2× General Electric F110-GE-400 afterburning turbofans o Dry thrust: 13,810 lbf (61.4 kN) each o Thrust with afterburner: 27,800 lbf (124.7 kN) each * g limits: +7.5 g / -2.5 g[citation needed]
Performance
* Maximum speed: Mach 2.34 (1,544 mph, 2,485 km/h) at high altitude * Combat radius: 500 nmi (575 mi, 926 km) * Ferry range: 1,600 nmi (1,840 mi, 2,960 km) * Rate of climb: >45,000 ft/min (229 m/s) * Wing loading: 113.4 lb/ft² (553.9 kg/m²) * Thrust/weight: 0.91
Armament
* Guns: 1× M61 Vulcan 20 mm Gatling Gun * Hardpoints: 8 with a capacity of 13,000 lb (5,900 kg) of ordnance including, * Missiles: AIM-54 Phoenix, AIM-7 Sparrow, AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air o Loading configurations: o 2× AIM-9 + 6× AIM-54 o 2× AIM-9 + 2× AIM-54 + 3× AIM-7 (Most common loadout) o 2× AIM-9 + 4× AIM-54 + 2× AIM-7 o 2× AIM-9 + 6× AIM-7 o 4× AIM-9 + 4× AIM-54 o 4× AIM-9 + 4× AIM-7 * Bombs: GBU-10, GBU-12, GBU-16, GBU-24, GBU-24E Paveway I/II/III LGB, GBU-31, GBU-38 JDAM, Mk-20 Rockeye II, Mk-82, Mk-83 and Mk-84 series iron bombs
