F14

From a distance of more than 100 kilometers, the F-14 Tomcat launched one AIM-54A. (60 miles). The MiG-25 Foxbat was soon closed in on by the missile, which smacked into it and created a massive ball of flames

The then-Imperial Iranian Air Force (IIAF; renamed Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, IRIAF, after the Islamic Revolution) sought a fighter with better mobility and armament, as well as a highly adaptable area defense interceptor when it bought the F-14 Tomcat. The IIAF desired a whole system with excellent sensors and efficient long-range missiles.

The F-14 was so effective that her AWG-9 radar could track up to 24 targets at once and direct six AIM-54 Phoenix missiles against them while simultaneously detecting airborne targets at great distances. The AWG-9/AIM-54 combo also made it possible to intercept high-speed airborne threats like the MiG-25 as well as low-flying cruise missiles.

The performance of the Tomcat during the conflict with Iraq proved the Iranian choice beyond a shadow of a doubt.

According to Tom Cooper and Farzad Bishop’s book Iranian F-14 Tomcat units in Combat, the Iraqi Air Force (IrAF) began employing MiG-25RBs to strike Khark Island oil infrastructure in the fall of 1981. It was incredibly challenging to intercept the Foxbats because they flew at such great speeds and heights. Even the best and most aggressive IRIAF Tomcat aircrew experienced enormous workloads in the cockpit during the ultimate exercise in precision flying and high-speed operations intercepting a MiG-25.

However, IrAF MiG-25RBs began conducting flights deeper into Iran in September 1982, attacking civilian targets. The F-14As stationed at Mehrabad began to conduct 24-hour Combat Air Patrols (CAPs) over Tehran as a result of these missions. The F-14 was initially flying these sorties at 30,000 feet, but as the MiG-25 got closer, it had to climb to 40,000 feet and speed up to Mach 1+. The IRIAF F-14 crews had to alter patrol altitudes, positions, and speeds in order to intercept the Foxbats because they typically flew at speeds of Mach 1.9 to 2.4 and between 60,000 and 70,000 feet.

According to Cooper and Bishop, the precise moment that an IRIAF Tomcat shot down an IrAF MiG-25 for the first time is unknown. The IrAF had lost 98 fighters and 33 pilots to Iranian F-4 and F-14 aircraft, including a MiG-25 and an F-14-launched Phoenix missile, the defector told his Syrian interrogators on May 4, 1982.

Iranian sources claim that the first confirmed IRIAF F-14 kill of an Iraqi Foxbat occurred on September 16, 1982. On that day, a single contact going close to Mach 3 was approaching Khark at 70,000 feet and was detected by ground-controlled intercept (GCI) by two F-14As on a CAP between Bushehr and Khark. The lead RIO began the intercept of what was obviously a MiG-25RB by activating his AWG-9 as the F-14s came into danger.

After a short while, the F-14’s radar found the target. Over 100 kilometers away, one AIM-54A was launched (60 miles). The Foxbat was struck by the missile, which quickly closed the gap between them, creating a massive ball of fire. The Persian Gulf’s shark-infested waters are likely to blame for Iranian helicopters’ failure to locate the pilot after he reportedly ejected over the water.

This triumph demonstrated that the AWG-9/AIM-54 combo was capable of engaging and destroying MiG-25 aircraft traveling at nearly Mach 3.

The following battle between the Foxbats and Tomcats happened once more close to Khark. According to Cooper and Bishop, Maj. Shahram Rostami was flying an F-14A on a CAP on December 1, 1982, between Khark and Bandar-e-Khomeini, covering a convoy of commercial ships sailing into Bandar Abbas. After spending two hours at the station, Rostami received a GCI alert about a single contact, a MiG-25, flying at 70,000 feet and Mach 2.3 from the north.

The Foxbat was swiftly closing in on the F-14, which was flying at barely Mach 0,4 at 40,000 feet and 113 kilometers (61 miles) above ground. The crew had to act quickly.

Rostami accelerated while the target was being pursued by his radar intercept officer (RIO). The pilot of the MiG engaged his Electronic Countermeasure (ECM) equipment and decreased the distance to 71 kilometers (38 miles). As the F-14A accelerated to Mach 1.5 and rose to 45,000 feet, Rostami’s RIO was still able to get a positive radar lock-on and fire a single AIM-54A from 64 kilometers (34 miles) away.

In order to avoid approaching the MiG too quickly, Rostami moved his Tomcat slightly to the west once the missile successfully separated. Just inside the radar envelope, he held the target. The hit symbol lighted on the radar screen as the computer-calculated time-to-impact on the weapons panel counters approached zero, and seconds later GCI confirmed that the Foxbat had vanished from their radar scope. Despite a significant IrAF SAR operation, the pilot of the MiG-25RB that crashed into the sea was not recovered.

When two MiG-25PDs breached the airspace above northern Iran on December 4 and attempted to intercept an airliner flying from Turkey as it passed over Tabriz, IrAF Foxbats sought to avenge a few days later. Maj. Toufanian, one of the first Iranian F-14 pilots, was flying an IRIAF F-14A when it was vectored into the region without the knowledge of the Foxbat aircrews. The Phoenix was launched by the Tomcat crew as they saw their intended target try to escape the AIM-54 that had been fired at it.

Due to mechanical issues, the Phoenix sped past the Foxbat. Maj. Toufanian launched a pursuit after accelerating his Tomcat to Mach 2.2. The IrAF pilot eased down after the initial AIM-54 missed, feeling secure. Instead, by approving his own death certificate, the MiG-25 was destroyed by a second Phoenix.

Photo by Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force official site, Dmitriy Pichugin, and gire_3pich2005 via Wikimedia and U.S. Air Force

On July 28, 2006, Lieutenant Chris Rattigan and Lieutenant Paul Dort of VF-31’s “Tomcatters” flew the F-14D BuNo 164346 “Sweet Little Miss” to perform the final scheduled arrested landing of a Tomcat

The main image of this post, which was taken on July 28, 2006, in the Atlantic Ocean while aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), depicts an F-14D Tomcat, aircraft number 110, BuNo 164346 “Sweet Little Miss,” flown by Lieutenant Chris Rattigan and Lieutenant Paul Dort and assigned to the “Tomcatters” of Fighter Squadron Three One (VF-31), completing the final scheduled arrested landing of an F-14 fighter aircraft.

On September 22, 2006, the F-14 was formally retired after 32 years of fleet duty. The National Naval Aviation Museum offered the Museum of Flight, located in Rome, Georgia, the scarce chance to host and show Georgia’s lone Tomcat, a living relic that recounts the tale of brave people who have flown and fought in the powerful F-14.

The Museum of Flight website explains that the costs of moving the aircraft were estimated at $40,000. The museum was concerned that paying such a high fee might ruin its chance of locating such a historic aircraft.

Christine Lewis, the director, contacted the F-14 Tomcat Association to try to save Sweet Little Miss. The Association volunteered to help the Museum of Flight save this iconic aircraft from being scrapped in addition to supporting the museum’s GoFundMe campaign by publicizing it in their newsletter, website, and Facebook page.

From the end of the Vietnam War until 2006, the F-14 Tomcat served as the U.S. Navy’s primary fighter aircraft. The fighter was hailed as the best aircraft of its era by its pilots and aviation engineers, and it was idealized on the big screen in films like The Final Countdown and Top Gun. However, while the U.S. Navy Tomcats were being demilitarized and the F-14s were being removed from service, there were worries that Iran might start purchasing the spare parts on the black market.

In truth, the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) continues to operate a number of the F-14s that the United States sold to Iran in the 1970s, when relations between the two nations were still cordial. As a result, the Department of Defense started destroying the aircraft and its components. Oregon senator Ron Wyden then created the Stop Arming Iran Act in 2008 to forbid the sale of any components to organizations other than museums.

The greatest sites to honor this distinctive fighter are museums, which are currently the only locations where the F-14 can be celebrated.

The Virginia Aviation Museum in Richmond featured BuNo 164346. This F-14 began its career with VF-31 before flying with the VF-101 Grim Reapers and VF-2 Bounty Hunters. It was given to the Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX-4) Evaluators in 1992. Operation Iraqi Freedom involved combat missions flown by BuNo 164346.

Unfortunately, the Virginia Aviation Museum shut down, thus it was unclear what would become of this famous aircraft.

Then Sweet Little Miss would be disassembled and transported from Richmond, Virginia, to Rome, Georgia. She needed to be assembled, transported, and recovered from her current state (and keep her in good condition).

Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Nathan Laird and Photographer’s Mate 3rd Class Tony Foster / U.S. Navy