AIM-54 Phoenix

170 F-14s could provide the same level of Defense as 290 F-15s but USAF bought the Eagle instead of the Tomcat. Here’s why.

170 F-14s could provide the same level of Defense as 290 F-15s but USAF bought the Eagle instead of the Tomcat. Here’s why.

The Phoenix missile system alone was far more capable than the Eagle’s AIM-7 Sparrow. Studies indicated 170 F-14 Tomcats could… Read More

3 weeks ago

US Navy F-14 Tomcat pilot who fired a Phoenix missile against an Iraqi MiG-23 explains why the AIM-54 missed its target

Using their F-14 Tomcat (much-improved) Link-16 datalink, LCDR Coby 'Coach' Loessberg and his RIO obtained their targeting data from the… Read More

4 weeks ago

F-14 Pilot tells the story of when Air Traffic Controllers asked him to buzz the tower so that they could see for themselves a Navy Tomcat

‘Iowa the Air Traffic Controllers could not believe that they had an F-14 Tomcat under their control and so very… Read More

1 month ago

The story of the SR-71 I, the long-range high-speed interceptor version of the Blackbird fitted with AIM-120 missiles and AN/APG-65 radar aimed to shoot down Soviet AWACS planes and strategic bombers that never was

One of the latest known ideas for creating an interceptor variant of the Blackbird was the `SR-71 I', proposed by… Read More

2 months ago

The Marine guard that inadvertently jettisoned the canopy from a parked F-14 to sit in the Tomcat cockpit. The missiles aboard (1 AIM-54, 1 AIM-7 and 1 AIM-9) did not have the pins but were not damaged.

Key explanatory text within the message was encrypted in "aviator acronyms” - "GF," YGTBSM," WTFO,” and "HS," and other coded… Read More

3 months ago

The story of when a US Navy F-14 Tomcat fired six AIM-54 Phoenix missiles against six different targets simultaneously: the six-on-six missile shot test

A new capability introduced by the AIM-54 was strictly linked to its radar: the AWG-9 had the unprecedented ability to… Read More

4 months ago

F-15 maintainer explains why even though NASA equipped an Eagle with an AIM-54 the USAF Never Outfitted its F-15 fleet with the mighty Phoenix

The odd photos in this post show an F-15 Eagle fighter jet carrying an AIM-54 Phoenix long-range air-to-air missile. The… Read More

7 months ago

From doing a flyby of the tower at over 400 knots to ejecting from an F-14: former Tomcat RIO answers your questions

‘I have actually done a fly by of the tower at over 400 knots…and I have photos to prove it,’… Read More

10 months ago

A Kill is a Kill! The story of the Iraqi MiG-23 that crashed while trying to escape from two AIM-54 Phoenix missiles fired by US Navy F-14 Tomcats

While approaching for the second landing attempt, the Iraqi MiG-23 ran out of fuel, stalled and crashed only 200 metres… Read More

11 months ago

The day Shah of Iran said he liked the F-15 because it was an Air Superiority Fighter but he liked the F-14 even more because he Needed an Air Supremacy Fighter

The Shah was a very intelligent man and knew the benefits which an F-14/AWG-9/PHOENIX system would provide in defending the… Read More

1 year ago

Even though the AIM-120 was successfully tested on the F-14, the AMRAAM integration into fleet Tomcats was scrapped. Here’s why.

F-14A/B/D did not have the capability to carry and fire the AIM-120 because - even though missile tests were conducted… Read More

2 years ago

Here’s why F-14 Tomcat fighter jets preserved in museums could never be restored in flight conditions

The key structural element of an F-14 is its wing box. It is an electron beam welded titanium box that… Read More

2 years ago

The F-14 Tomcat posed such a serious threat to the Soviets that they once tried to fish one that fell off the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy

The Soviets tried to go fishing for an F-14 that fell off the USS John F. Kennedy in 1976 - after the… Read More

2 years ago

US Navy F-14 crew members explain how you could land a Tomcat with a full load of six AIM-54 Phoenix missiles on the aircraft carrier

‘Actually, you could trap aboard the boat with 6 Phoenix, but you wouldn’t have much fuel at max trap gross… Read More

2 years ago

Here’s why the F-14 Tomcat was a true multirole fighter (and not just a fleet defense interceptor)

The F-14 Tomcat wasn’t supposed to be a one trick pony like the F-15 Eagle. Often referred to as a… Read More

2 years ago

The “ADCOM F-14:” the Tomcat that USAF never bought

Studies indicated 170 “ADCOM F-14 Tomcats” could provide the same level of Defense as 290 F-15 Eagles Taken at the… Read More

2 years ago

F-15C scores aerial kill from the furthest distance ever recorded by firing an AIM-120 at a BQM-167 drone and brings to memory famous AIM-54 six-on-six missile shot test

A USAF F-15C Eagle fired an AIM-120 AMRAAM at a BQM-167 subscale drone, resulting in a "kill" of the aerial… Read More

2 years ago
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