Iran is the only nation still using the F-14 Tomcat, the fighter made famous by the 1986 movie ‘Top Gun’. Find out how Iran obtained these US planes and why they are still in service 50 years later in 2024.
Dr. Mark Felton is a well-known British historian, the author of 22 non-fiction books, including bestsellers ‘Zero Night’ and ‘Castle of the Eagles’, both currently being developed into movies in Hollywood. In addition to writing, Mark also appears regularly in television documentaries around the world, including on The History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, Quest, American Heroes Channel and RMC Decouverte. His books have formed the background to several TV and radio documentaries. More information about Mark can be found at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Felton
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Sources:
– ‘The Spies and Arms Smugglers Who Kept Iran’s F-14 Tomcats Flying’ by Stephen Witt, Popular Mechanics, March 2, 2023
– ‘How Is Iran Still Flying Top-Gun F-14 Tomcats?’ by Kris Osborn, US Navy News, June 15, 2023
– ‘Iran Flies the F-14 Tomcat Fighter Like in Top Gun: Maverick’ by Maya Carlin, The National Interest, October 1, 2024
Credits: US National Archives; Library of Congress; US Navy; Israeli Defense Force
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4:44 During the war with Iraq they lost 22 not 16 F-14’s
I always enjoy your videos. And your pronunciations were perfect.
This is like the Wright Flyer been competitive with 1950s Sabre jets! Wild.
I can only assume they are capable of replicating/reproducing any part on that plane.
Oh they new all along the flip was happening
Upon landing at Shiraz, Isfahan, or Tehran in pre-islamic Iran, one was met by the sight of row upon row of American aviation products. Seemingly no limit to how much they purchased. Unsurprising that a technically capable society produces material for themselves and maintains good equipment.
Iranian Top Guns 😂😂😂😂. What do they have like five planes ? 😂😂😂
Northrom VF-1S Valkyrie
Iran should upgrade their Tomcats with Russian / Chinese Engines & Radars.
Thank you Mark, have a good weekend ❤
Someone once said (maybe when the F-111B was a washout for the Navy), "why doesn't the Navy just let Grumman build all their planes and forget it …" and they did. The F-14 was Grumman's entry into the TFX competition against the F-111 …
My friend and former interpreter's father was an Iraqi fighter pilot during the war. He flew mirages in a ton of sorties into Iran.
Are we going to have an Iron Sheikh vs Hulk Hogan rematch soon?
I think they will be replaced with Su-35, since there is an order for 23 aircraft in 2023.
Shahanshah didn't fled.
There are fundamental differences when you leave your country's fate to your people and when you flee.
I love me some F-14's But the ones Iran is flying are 1960's tech, without the benefit of the Mid-life upgrades the USN did on its Tomcats, much less the -D model conversions. In a shooting war, Iranian F-14's would die before that big old AN/AWG-9 could get all of it's tubes warmed up.
I was on the Enterprise in 73 or 74 in an A7 outfit. Saw the first F14 landing on the Big E. It was flown by Grumman. Impressive aircraft.
Mostly correct analysis and information, except for a few things. First, the Shah of Iran did not "flee" Iran in 1979. He decided to leave because he knew that if he stayed, the military would stage a coup, which would have led to bloodshed. All the while, Jimmy Carter made a deal with the Mullahs. Carter sent General Huyser to Iran to persuade the military not to stage a coup. Meanwhile, your "honorable government," the old fox—the British—did all they could to help the Mullahs.
Your government-run BBC acted as a propaganda arm for Khomeini, to the point that they continuously broadcast locations and information about the next demonstrations against the Shah. These events are well-documented. Iranians are well aware of the connection between the Mullahs and the British government, and how they used the clergy to interfere in our country. Over the last 150 years, the British government has been a constant thug and savage imperialist, trying to destroy our country.
Typically what ends the flying carrier of any plane is lack of its most expensive and delicate part: engines. These cannot easily be fabricated out of thin air like many other parts.
Overhauling jet engines without access to specific parts maybe and often is – impossible.
In fact, this is how today's commercial and airline operation is structured.
Most current passenger jets are 2 engine machines.
No more 747's with its 4 engines @ 25+ mil. USD each. The end of A380 is also attributed to 4 engines.
F-14 has just 2 but no more of these can be had..
I was going through Navy pilot training when we were training the Iranian pilots to fly the F-14 s we were selling them. They had no mechanical abilties and had so many car accidents they were forbidden to drive The instructors called them CJs short for camel jockeys and hated having to fly with them. They behaved like children and didn't seem to take anything seriously. And yes I heard they couldn't fix them and keep them flying once they were drlivered
You didn't mention the British and CIA coup that removed democratic elected Musadeck who wanted to Nationalise oil. Or that we supported Sadam against Iran. Russia is supplying Iran with SU 35's. In air to air combat, its the radar and range of Air to air missiles that dictate, not Hollywood Top Gun dog fights.
I swear Mark is my long lost twin. Everything topic I find fascinating, he makes a video about. I've always been a tomcat fanboy!
Now they're getting SU-35
I find it hilarious how Americans praise the F14 but when they find out another country still uses them they are belittled.
I love how much Iran hate and despise the USA but they still fly US f14s among other equipment
About what is happend today , Israel is like a dog in chain ,but if americans release the chain Iran will be dust ! Israel is a big military power in region .
F14s were meant to have been replaced by the F35, but that project was a decade behind schedule, well two decades behind schedule. The F/A 18 Super Hornets brought into service in 2006 were merely a stopgap, and they were adopted in a time when the prospect of a peer war(for which the F14 was designed) was very very remote.
Notably the F35 cannot perform supersonic cruising, cannot carry the same weapons payload and lacks the range of the F14. The F35 can also be destroyed by the Tomcat at stand off ranges, as this is dependent on targeting and weapons, the F14 has an excellent long range RADAR, and I think Iran would have bought some decent air to air missiles with decent range, the F35's stealth profile is only adequate on the front. Notably some Iserali F35s have reportedly 'crashed' whilst flying over Syria, there is an old saying in this field: countermeasures to stealth technology are easier to develop than stealth technology. Lets not forget the Serbians managed to shoot down a B2 Stealth bomber. Using ground spotters near Iserali airfields (F35s are excessively loud as, so they are unmistakable, and you can probably get a good bearing on their destination, because it takes a long long time for them to get out of auditory range) and employing Tomcats in a dispersed fashion utilising their RADARs to monitor for incoming F35s based on this data from multiple points would be what I would do. The F35's stealth profile is reportedly only effective from the front, so dispersing the Tomcats means you can overlap RADAR fields, and gain angles where the stealth profile might not be effective, then tag them, punch in and fire off whatever stand off missiles you got.
That's if someone does not warn the F35 and it goes home, in which case that is an enemy strike mission stopped.
I cannot think that the US is the only nation that has been developing long range stand off air to air missiles, and China and Russia will sell if Iran wants to buy, and your older but superior RADAR might just let you scrub an F35 before it knows what the hell is going on.
It is what I would try in any case.
To my mind a modernised F14 would be a superior naval fighter to the F35. But I do not have a high opinion of the later airframe.
If they were any good the RAAF would have retired all their Super Hornets years ago. But they are not. They have problems, like everything that is new has problems, but then they got problems and problems and problems on top of that.
The F35 cannot maintain Mach 1.5, and must do 'supersonic bursts' the Tomcat can put the hammer down and cruise at Mach 2.3 for as long as it has the fuel to do so. I would not want to be in an Iserali F35 heading for home with one of these things in the air behind me.
Back when the US made decent birds of war.
Please do an episode on Mufti Husseni and Adolf Hitler meeting.