WI: USAF buys Tomcat instead of Eagle

Ming777

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Well, iirc, the Avionic of the 'Cat was the most expensive part of the project. If it was exported without the Phoenix-AWG-9 system, and thus allow countries to use less expensive or indigenous systems, the airframe costs are not that expensive.
 
Well, iirc, the Avionic of the 'Cat was the most expensive part of the project. If it was exported without the Phoenix-AWG-9 system, and thus allow countries to use less expensive or indigenous systems, the airframe costs are not that expensive.

Generally the case...how much did Iran pay for its Tomcats? The end cost might be lower than that if lots of countries buy them, too, just due to volume sales.
 
Generally the case...how much did Iran pay for its Tomcats? The end cost might be lower than that if lots of countries buy them, too, just due to volume sales.

In January 1974 $300mio for first batch (30 planes, 424 AIM-54s and shitload of spares). In June 1974 second batch (50 planes (one never delivered), 290 AIM-54s). Total $2bn, highest single foreign sale at the time.

I'm sure somebody will translate that into 2010 dollars.......
 
Then there was the planned follow-on order for 70 more F-14s-and the Shah planned to have all of the Persian Cats (as Grumman called them) reengined with the F110. Of course, the events of 1979 intervened.
 
They got about half, according to various books, including the Airtime one, on the F-14, and the Osprey book on the Iranian F-14 force. Supposedly, the Iranians have reverse-engineered the AIM-54A and begun to manufacture their own Phoenix missiles, according to the latter work.
 
They got about half, according to various books, including the Airtime one, on the F-14, and the Osprey book on the Iranian F-14 force. Supposedly, the Iranians have reverse-engineered the AIM-54A and begun to manufacture their own Phoenix missiles, according to the latter work.

Then I really don't understand why the Iranians would do this:
f-14gr_sky_hawk.jpg


Which is mating an Surface-to-Air Missile (the Hawk) to the Tomcat.

I haven't got the Osprey book, but one online source indicates that the Iranians have managed to produce a definite amount of Phoenix missiles.
http://theboresight.blogspot.com/2009/07/iran-satellites-and-tomcats.html

If it is only a certain number, say 100, then I get the need to improvise all kinds of other missiles as a missile only has a number of hours which it can spend hanging on a pylon before it needs to be discarded.
 
Supposedly, that was a stopgap measure until the Iranians started their reverse-engineered Phoenixes going; it was tried also during the Iran-Iraq War with little result.
 
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