F-14A IRIAF (USA)
| This page is about the gift fighter F-14A IRIAF (USA). For other versions, see F-14 (Family). |
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Contents
Description
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat has been an icon of the USN since its introduction in 1970, but the US Navy wasn't the only user of the Tomcat. Though efforts were made to sell the Tomcat to US-allied countries, only Imperial Iran, then a close ally under the Pahlavi dynasty, sought a new interceptor to defend against the menacing, Mach 2.7-capable MiG-25R reconnaissance aircraft of the neighbouring Soviet Union. As soon as January 1974, after demonstration flights in the US alongside the F-15A, the IIAF placed an order for 80 Tomcats and ten years' worth of spare parts.
By the time of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which overthrew the 2,500-year-old monarchy of Iran and replaced it with the Islamic Republic, 79 F-14As had been delivered to the IIAF before the new IRIAF took them over. During the Iraq-Iran War, the Iranian Tomcats performed outstandingly against the Ba'athist Iraqi forces. However, due to sanctions placed on the now anti-US Islamic Republic, the IRIAF often had to improvise their existing weaponry to be outfitted on their aircraft, including modifying the MIM-23 Hawk SAM to be used as a substitute for the dwindling supply of AIM-54A Phoenix missiles, and even creating the "Yasser", a massive rocket created by strapping the M117 bomb warhead to spare rocket parts of the MIM-23 Hawk SAM to supplement the lack of guided munitions. With the eventual destruction of all remaining Tomcats stored in the continental US after the Gulf War to prevent possible smuggling of spare parts to Iran, the IRIAF had to cannibalise some of their remaining Tomcats to keep the jet operational. These F-14As also received some upgrades in terms of firepower with domestic modifications and sometimes Russian weaponry to keep them up-to-date. Fifty years since first delivered, the Iranian Tomcats are still in active service today under the designation "F-14AM" to denote various modernisation efforts to keep the aging fighter up-to-date.
The ▄F-14A Tomcat (Early) IRIAF, introduced during Update "Seek & Destroy" as a reward for the 2024 Persian Tomcat event, is an F-14A operated by the IRIAF with domestic modifications to enhance its combat capabilities. The aircraft retains the advantages of the base model: powerful engines, advanced radar, and variable sweep wing, but this is supplemented by the Iranian Fakour-90 ARH missiles with longer range than the AIM-54A, Sedjil SARH missiles, and even the possibility of installing Soviet R-27R missiles. The massive Yasser rockets are also excellent for use against ground targets.
General info
Flight performance
| Characteristics | Max speed (km/h at 12,192 m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | 2,202 | 2,191 | 16764 | 24.9 | 25.3 | 178.4 | 170.5 | 750 |
| Upgraded | ___ | ___ | __._ | __._ | __._ | __._ | ||
Details
| Features | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear | Drogue chute |
| ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | X |
| Limits | Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | |||
| Min sweep | 1,021 | 518 | 1,200 | 873 | 416 | ~10 | ~5 |
| Max sweep | 1,555 | ~11 | ~5 | ||||
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < 1,200 | < 850 | < 1,555 | - |
Engine performance
| Engine | Aircraft mass | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine name | Number | Basic mass | Wing loading (full fuel) | ||||||
| Pratt & Whitney TF30-P-412A | 2 | 18,545 kg | 493 kg/m2 | ||||||
| Engine characteristics | Mass with fuel (no weapons load) | Max Gross Weight | |||||||
| Weight (each) | Type | 18m fuel | 20m fuel | 30m fuel | 45m fuel | 62m fuel | |||
| 1,802 kg | Afterburning low-bypass turbofan | 20,750 kg | 20,904 kg | 22,084 kg | 23,854 kg | 25,894 kg | __,___ kg | ||
| Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB) | Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (WEP) | ||||||||
| Condition | 100% | WEP | 18m fuel | 20m fuel | 30m fuel | 45m fuel | 62m fuel | MGW | |
| Stationary | 4,860 kgf | 8,019 kgf | 0.77 | 0.77 | 0.73 | 0.67 | 0.63 | _.__ | |
| Optimal | 5,808 kgf (1,555 km/h) |
12,389 kgf (1,200 km/h) |
1.19 | 1.19 | 1.12 | 1.04 | 0.97 | _.__ | |
Survivability and armour
The F-14A (IRIAF) is a frail aircraft at best. Like most jets, it will struggle at taking hits from modern weaponry. Its large size also doesn't help as having a larger cross section makes one much more vulnerable to radar and much easier to hit. Most of its fuel tanks are not self-sealing, with only the centre tank being self-sealing. It is also very susceptible to IR missiles, largely due to its two Pratt & Whitney engines running extremely hot. Its low countermeasure count of only 60 and early RWR can handicap one from countering missiles fired at close ranges. It is a manoeuvrable plane though, and with enough skill, a pilot can prevent enemies from getting guns or missiles on them.
Modifications and economy
| Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Armaments
| Ballistic Computer | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CCIP (Guns) | CCIP (Rockets) | CCIP (Bombs) | CCRP (Bombs) | EEGS |
 |
|
|
|
|
Offensive armament
The F-14A IRIAF (USA) is armed with:
- 1 x 20 mm M61A1 cannon, cheek-mounted (676 rpg)
- 60 x countermeasures
Suspended armament
The F-14A IRIAF (USA) can be outfitted with the following ordnance:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 250 lb LDGP Mk 81 bombs | 8* | 6 | |||||
| 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs | 8* | 6 | |||||
| 500 lb Mk 82 AIR bombs | 8* | 6 | |||||
| 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs | 2* | 2 | |||||
| 1,000 lb Mk 83 AIR bombs | 2* | 2 | |||||
| 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs | 2*† | 2 | |||||
| 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 Air bombs | 2*† | 2 | |||||
| Yasser rockets | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Zuni Mk32 Mod 0 ATAP rockets | 8 | 8 | |||||
| AIM-7E-2 Sparrow missiles | 1 | 2 | 1, 2* | 1 | |||
| AIM-9P Sidewinder missiles | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||
| AIM-54A Phoenix missiles | 1, 2 | 1, 2 † | |||||
| Fakour-90 missiles | 2 | 2† | |||||
| R-27R1 missiles | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Sedjil missiles | 1 | 1 | |||||
| * Use of dual Sparrow missiles on hardpoint 4 prevents use of the marked options on hardpoint 3 † ARH missiles on hardpoint 4 cannot be carried in conjunction with 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs on hardpoint 3 | |||||||
| Default weapon presets | |
|---|---|
| |
Usage in battles
Describe the tactics of playing in the aircraft, the features of using aircraft in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Excellent manoeuvrability in medium to high speed range
- Engines pack a lot of thrust
- Decent energy retention
- Sturdy airframe, can take some damage to the fuselage
- Variable sweep wings and automatic slats
- The M61 Vulcan cannon has an extremely fast fire rate, good velocity, and deals great damage
- Wide variety of weapons choice, both air to air and air to ground
- Long range radar with TWS HDN which allows to launch radar missiles without hard lock. 6 channel datalink enables to fire all Phoenixes one by one at different targets
Cons:
- Heavy
- Large target, massive wing and fuselage fuel tanks
- Afterburner gulps fuel like crazy
- No drop tank, all the fuel is carried internally hampering performance in dogfight
- Low countermeasure count considering the hot engines
- Can rip its wings in sustained high G turns
- RWR is subpar for the BR
- Any damage to the airframe hurts performance greatly
- Acceleration below Mach 1.0 is below average compared to other planes in the BR
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).
Media
- Videos
See also
- Related development
External links
- [Devblog] Persian Tomcat: F-14A IRIAF
- [Event] Get the Iranian F-14A IRIAF in the 'Persian Tomcat' event
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