The iconic F-14 Tomcat made its mark in naval aviation for its cultural significance and popularity. However, the defining weapon that sets the Tomcat apart from its peers is the long-range AIM-54 Phoenix missile. This weapon, intended to strike Soviet bombers from a long distance before they could fire deadly anti-ship cruise missiles, allowed the F-14 to perform its "Fleet Defense" role. Thus we will dive into the development behind this fascinating missile, the improvements it had, and how it would not be America writing the tomes on the AIM-54's combat usage, but instead Iran.
Development of the Phoenix
The development of an American long-range air-to-air missile traces back to 1958, when Hughes was awarded a contract by the United States Air Force for the GAR-9 missile (designated in 1962 as the AIM-47). The GAR-9 was to have a range of 160 km (100 mi) and a 45 kg (100 lb) warhead. Due to the long distances required, the missile was given an active radar seeker in order to attack its target.
The US Navy, seeking a fleet-defense weapon since the late 1950s, took an interest in the GAR-9 design as a potential candidate. Their concern was Soviet bombers carrying long-range anti-ship missiles, such as the Kh-22MA, that enabled the Soviets to threaten the USN carriers. This necessitated an interceptor to help defend the USN fleet as far away as possible by shooting down opposing aircraft and cruise missiles, with an appropriate long-range air-to-air missile to enable the capability. The USN had previously started the AAM-N-10 Eagle as a solution, but its cancellation led to the search for a newer design. The US Navy contracted Hughes in 1962 to develop a new long-range air-to-air missile for their fleet interceptor based on the GAR-9, the project which received the designation AAM-N-11. AAM-N-11 would be later designated in June 1963 as the AIM-54 Phoenix to follow the new United States Tri-Service rocket and guided missile designation system.
Compared to the preceding AIM-47, Hughes' AIM-54 featured an AN/DSQ-26 semi-active radar homing seeker for cruising while receiving updates on the target position. The missile switches over to active radar homing for the terminal attack around 18 km (~11 mi) from the interception point. The AIM-54 featured a Rocketdyne Mk47 or Aerojet Mk60 rocket motor that helped propel the missile more than Mach 4. The missile maintains a range specification of 160 km (~99 mi, ~86.4 nmi) and was to be able to attack both aircraft and cruise missiles. The warhead is a 60 kg (132 lb) MK 82 blast-fragmentation warhead that was triggered by a fuse system consisting of radar proximity, IR proximity, and an impact fuse.
Flight tests of the prototype (XAIM-54A) started in 1965, with the first interception tests taking place on September 8th, 1966 at the Navy Pacific Missile Range, fired from a Douglas A-3A Skywarrior. The aircraft platform for the AIM-54 Phoenix was originally the F-111B, an aircraft intended to have commonality with the US Air Force's F-111 Aardvark, but the F-111B was canceled in 1968. The US Navy set to work building a new fleet-defense fighter to their specifications on February 3rd, 1969, which produced the F-14A Tomcat. The F-14A can carry six AIM-54 missiles linked with its AN/AWG-9 radar, allowing the aircraft to fire all six AIM-54 missiles simultaneously at separate targets.
Hughes received a production contract for the AIM-54 missile in December 1970 as more tests with the missiles continued to show its capabilities. In November 1973, the missile passed its technical evaluation and is slated to be ready for deployment with the F-14A. The F-14A's capability with the AIM-54 was shown during an exercise on November 21st, 1973, where a F-14A fired six AIM-54 missiles within 38 seconds towards six different targets up to 50 miles (~80.5 km) away, with four missiles hitting their targets. This event would also be notable as the only time the F-14 Tomcat fired a full payload of six AIM-54 Phoenixes.
The AIM-54A Phoenix missile was officially adopted into the US Navy service the same year and ready to be operationally deployed with the F-14A in November 1974. At the time, the missile cost $477,131 USD, which is roughly $3 million USD in 2025 adjusted for inflation.
Fielding and Evolving the Phoenix Missile
In 1974, the AIM-54A Phoenix missile was first issued to the first F-14A squadrons aboard USS Enterprise (CVN-65) as part of VF-1 "Wolfpack" and VF-2 "Bounty Hunters." Though passing operation evaluations in 1974, it wouldn't be until early 1975 that the AIM-54A Phoenix missiles received their approval for service use on the F-14A Tomcats.
Other variants of the AIM-54A developed, primarily for training purposes, were the ATM-54A with an inert warhead for firing exercises, the CATM-54A as a non-launching missile for target acquisition practice, the DATM-54A for ground-handling training, and the AEM-54A that contained telemetry electronics for test and evaluation purposes. Similar versions would be created for all major variants of the AIM-54 Phoenix. A simpler-to-produce version of the AIM-54 was created under the designation AIM-54B that featured sheet metal construction for the wings and fins.
One additional adventure the Phoenix missile went through was consideration as a surface-to-air missile variant to complement the RIM-7 Sea Sparrow. Named the Sea Phoenix, feasibility studies were performed with a shipped-mounted cell launcher and an AWG-9 radar, reportedly trialed on the USNS Wheeling in 1974. A land-based version was also reportedly trialed out. However, the Sea Phoenix project did not proceed, presumably due to high costs.
Meanwhile, the US Navy looked into improving the AIM-54 Phoenix missile and started engineering development for its next iteration in 1976. By 1977, it was announced that development towards the improved AIM-54C Phoenix had begun. Hughes delivered the first XAIM-54C prototype in August 1979.
As the AIM-54C was developed, the last AIM-54A was produced on November 18th, 1980 with a total of 2,505 units produced, though the production line wouldn't halt until 1981 for a total combined 2,566 AIM-54A and AIM-54B produced.
Differing from its predecessor, the AIM-54C utilizes a new digital WGU-11/B guidance and WCU-7/B control sections, a programmable digital signal processor, an inertial navigation system, an electronic counter-counter measure (ECCM) capability, new rocket motors to enhance speed and range, and a new DSU-28/B target detection device for better fuzing. Trials continued with limited pilot production of the XAIM-54C, and by October 1981 the first production AIM-54C Phoenix missiles were delivered, with operational and technical evaluations continuing through 1982. Finally, by 1983, the AIM-54C was in full production, and in 1984, the AIM-54C achieved Initial Operational Capability (IOC).
Two additional minor improvements to the AIM-54C were made later. The first had a newer warhead and temperature management, designated as AIM-54C+, also known as "sealed," and would achieve IOC in 1986. The second had newer ECCM capabilities implemented and was designated AIM-54C ECCM/Sealed and achieved IOC in 1988.
Retrofits were performed to older AIM-54C in inventory to keep them up to date with latest capabilities. Some notable improvements were reprogrammable memory and new software for the signal processor. However, funding to continue production of the AIM-54 Phoenix stopped in 1991, with the AIM-54C missile production concluding in 1993 with around 2,000 missiles built. In total, more than 5,000 Phoenix of all type and variants were produced.
Iranian Usage of the AIM-54A Phoenix
In the 1980s, the US Navy would not see combat which necessitated the use of the AIM-54 Phoenix. As such, they would not have the chance to fire the AIM-54A in combat. Instead, it would be the Islamic Republic of Iran that would be the first to use the AIM-54 Phoenix missiles in anger during the Iran-Iraq war.
Under the Shah's rule, Imperial Iran signed a contract in January 1974 for 30 F-14A Tomcats that included 424 AIM-54As, with another contract for 50 F-14As and 290 AIM-54A missiles signed in June of the same year. However, only 274 Phoenixes and 10 training missiles would be delivered prior to the Iranian Revolution. Despite the F-14 Tomcat's association with the Shah's rule, the new Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) would have to use the F-14s and AIM-54 Phoenix missiles to defend their country in the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War in 1980.
The first air victory credited to the AIM-54A Phoenix occurred on September 13th, 1980, when a patrolling Iranian F-14A of 81st Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) from Tactical Fighter Base (TFB) 8 shot down a MIG-23MS. On January 7th, 1981, two Iranian F-14A from TFB 8 spotted four MiG-23BN flying in a tight formation and launched an AIM-54A from a distance of 50 km. The missile detonated on the lead MiG, and the explosion, debris, and tight formation in which the MiGs were flying caused two other MiG-23s to crash. This is currently the only known case of a single anti-aircraft missile downing three aircraft.
The IRIAF continued to use the AIM-54A Phoenixes throughout the Iran-Iraq War, even as the stocks of Phoenix missiles began to run dry due to usage and inability to maintain AIM-54s due to the exigencies of war and the lack of spare parts such as thermal batteries. The Iranians received spare parts and service-life extension kits known as Phase 1M54ALE for the AIM-54 Phoenixes as part of the Iran-Contra affair, but the stocks of AIM-54 fell below 50 working missiles by November 1987. By the time a ceasefire was held on July 7th, 1988, to begin ending the Iran-Iraq War, the IRIAF was credited with 62 victories with the use of AIM-54 Phoenixes.
American Usage of the AIM-54 Phoenix
For the Americans, the lack of heavy air-to-air combat requiring the range of the AIM-54 Phoenix to intercept targets means the AIM-54 Phoenix saw very little use. Though F-14s carried AIM-54 Phoenix in flight missions, the few times the American F-14s have engaged in combat, such as the incidents with Libya in the Gulf of Sidra, the AIM-54 Phoenix were not fired, let alone carried into these scenarios.
Even during the 1991 Gulf War, where the US Air Force and US Navy saw their most active aviation combat, the F-14's lack of ability to interrogate friend-or-foe played a part in their inability to find opportunities to engage with the AIM-54 Phoenix's long-range envelope. However, it was not until after the Gulf War that the AIM-54 would finally have the opportunity to be fired in a combat scenario during the enforcement of the Iraqi No-Fly Zones (NFZ), specifically after 1998 when Iraq began contesting the NFZ by sending fighter jets into the southern NFZ.
On January 5th, 1999, two F-14D Tomcats from VF-213 alongside a unit of F/A-18C Hornets were responding to intruding Iraqi MiG-23MLs when the two F-14Ds with AWACS support detected a MiG-25 Foxbat approaching. Given clearance to fire upon the Iraqi aircraft, each F-14D fired an AIM-54C towards the MiG-25, however the engines failed to start on both AIM-54C due to being improperly armed. The F-14Ds then turned away, deciding to not enter a merge with the MiG-25.
In a second incident on September 14th, 1999, a single F-14D from VF-2 launched from the USS Constellation (CV-64) alongside a F/A-18C Hornet from VFA-151 as their wingman to intercept two Iraqi MiG-23ML. With data provided from an E-2C AWACS via Link-16, the F-14D spotted and fired an AIM-54C at the MiG-23MLs. However, the MiG-23MLs turned around and escaped the AIM-54C's envelope due to the sub-optimal launch parameters.
For the remainder of the Tomcat's career, where it saw service in Operation Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom over Afghanistan and Iraq, respectively, the US did not encounter any notable enemy air-to-air resistance, and as such, the AIM-54 Phoenix did not have any opportunity to be used. This relegated the F-14 Tomcats to a fighter-bomber role and dropped regular and guided bombs in air strikes.
Thus, the Americans fired three AIM-54C in anger throughout the AIM-54 Phoenix's service life, with no confirmed kills.
Retirement and Successors
Despite the disappointing combat record in American service, the AIM-54 Phoenix as a long-range missile introduced important capabilities for the fleet defense interceptors to do their job. A successor to the AIM-54 Phoenix was planned, designated the AIM-152 Advanced Air-to-Air Missile (AAAM), but was cancelled in 1992 with the end of the Cold War. The biggest crutch on the AIM-54's longevity would be its reliance on the F-14 Tomcat, being the only airframe capable of using the AIM-54. As such, when plans were made to sunset the F-14 Tomcat from US Navy service, the AIM-54 was on its way out as well, leaving service earlier than the F-14 Tomcat on September 30th, 2004.
With the US retirement of the AIM-54 in 2004, the IRIAF remains the only user of the AIM-54 Phoenix missiles. In an attempt to supplement their dwindling supply of AIM-54, Iran developed a domestic production version of the missile, the Fakour-90, which was unveiled in 2013. The Fakour-90 is suspected to have been derived from reverse-engineering the US MIM-23 Hawk surface-to-air missile.
For America, the desire for a long-range anti-air missile continued despite the AIM-54 Phoenix's retirement. The newer active radar missile in US service, the AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM), originally only achieved just over half of the AIM-54 Phoenix's effective range, and it would not be until the AIM-120D variant introduced into service in 2016 that allowed the US Navy to reach AIM-54 Phoenix ranges. The continued evolution of the long-range missile has led to several ongoing programs for new missiles such as the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile (JATM) and the Long-Range Engagement Weapon (LREW). The first dedicated long-range air-to-air missile to be fielded since the AIM-54 Phoenix retirement would be the AIM-174B, based on the US Navy's RIM-174 surface-to-air missile, that is claimed to have an effective range of 130 nautical miles (~240 kilometers).
Bibliography
- Cencioti, David. 2013. "Iranian F-14 Tomcat’s “new” indigenous air-to-air missile is actually an (improved?) AIM-54 Phoenix replica." The Aviationist. Last modified September 26, 2013. Website (Archive).
- Cooper, Tom and Farzad Bishop. 2004. Iranian F-14 Tomcat Units In Combat. Great Britain: Osprey Publishing. Kindle.
- Cooper, Tom. 2021. In the Claws of the Tomcat: US Navy F-14 Tomcats in Air Combat Against Iran and Iraq, 1987-2000. England: Helion & Company Limited.
- Goebel, Greg. 2021. "[1.0] Falcon & Sidewinder." Air Vectors. Last modified June 01, 2023. Website (Archive).
- Naval Air Systems Command. 2017. "AIM-54 Phoenix Missile." United States Navy. Last modified March 10, 2017. Website (Archive).
- Newdick, Thomas. 2021. "Surface-Launched Version of The Tomcat's AIM-54 Phoenix Missile Nearly Armed Cold War Carriers." The War Zone. Last modified August 11, 2021. Website (Archive)
- Parsch, Andreas. 2004. "AIM-54." Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles. Last modified October 08, 2004. Website (Archive)
- Stillion, John. 2015. Trends in Air-to-Air Combat: Implications for Future Air Superiority. Washington, DC: Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. CSBA Online.