Iran successfully produces a new generation of the Tomcat F-14

[Wright]

without saying whether iran's technical and engineering capabilities could or could not, the fact that the f-15 can be modified to be semi steathy tells us that it is possible to modify the f-14 in a similar manner

thus "It is not possible to make a 'stealth' version of the F-14" is a flat out lie.

I always thought the F-14 was too rectangular to avoid leaving a radar signature.

 

[gambit]

without saying whether iran's technical and engineering capabilities could or could not, the fact that the f-15 can be modified to be semi steathy tells us that it is possible to modify the f-14 in a similar manner

thus "It is not possible to make a 'stealth' version of the F-14" is a flat out lie.

A lie? The F-15 is not the F-14 and there is no such thing as 'semi stealthy'. The F-15SE reduced RCS had the manufacturer's technical support and pretty much the technical might of a first world country. The F-15's airframe may be more amenable to such modifications than the F-14 can be. Ever thought of that before you conveniently lump all airframes into one?

 

[MilSpec]

A lie? The F-15 is not the F-14 and there is no such thing as 'semi stealthy'. The F-15SE reduced RCS had the manufacturer's technical support and pretty much the technical might of a first world country. The F-15's airframe may be more amenable to such modifications than the F-14 can be. Ever thought of that before you conveniently lump all airframes into one?

The thread is about a new paint job.. relax

 

[The SC]

Less radar signature will be good enough and is the aim, the main objective is to have a good air combat force ready till Iran comes up with its own fighter plane.
Air defence is the most important for Iran right now, and it has a very massive one from AAs to S-300 (at least 4 of them are confirmed) and Bavar-373 is in production phase.

 

[The SC]

Iran Starts Building Powerful Air Defense Base in South

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Iranian military has started construction of its largest air defense base in Southern Iran, a senior commander announced on Tuesday.


Deputy Commander of Khatam ol-Anbia Air Defense Base for Engineering Affairs Mohammad Hosseini further added that the new air defense site is built in the city of Abadeh in the Southern Fars province.

He said the air defense base is due to be built at the cost of $300mln and will have 6,000 personnel for a large array of duties, including educational ones.

Hosseini also said that the super modern air defense base will include one of the most important military training centers of the country which will be comprised of seven battalions.

Meantime, representative of Abadeh at the parliament, Rahim Zare', said "this air defense site will be the product of the achievements gained in all areas of science in the world".

Tehran launched an arms development program during the 1980-88 Iraqi imposed war on Iran to compensate for a US weapons embargo. Since 1992, Iran has produced its own tanks, armored personnel carriers, missiles and fighter planes.

Last month, a senior Iranian air defense commander stressed that all Iranian air defense units and systems are fully prepared to repel possible enemy air raids.

"Ground-to-air missile and artillery systems of Khatam ol-Anbia Air Defense Base of the Islamic Republic of Iran's Army are fully prepared to defend the Islamic homeland's territory," General Shahrokh Shahram said in July.

Fars News Agency :: Iran Starts Building Powerful Air Defense Base in South

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Iran's defense minister says the country’s Defence Ministry plans to produce a variety of fighter aircraft, missiles, drones, submarines and military vehicles by the end of the Iranian calendar year (started March 20, 2012).

Referring to the 190 defense achievements that were unveiled during the last Iranian calendar year, Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said on Tuesday that a number of other important military products would be unveiled by the end of the current year.

“Producing new drones has been put on our agenda, and we are also trying to employ new submarines next year,” the Iranian defense minister added.

Vahidi said the Defense Ministry also plans to produce a new generation of flying boats with high combat capabilities as well as a new generation of ballistic and cruise missiles and military vehicles.


Vahidi also stated that one of the projects of the Defense industry is producing new fighter aircraft by the end of the year.

In a ceremony on the occasion of the national Defense Industry Day in Iran on Tuesday, six new defense achievements were unveiled.

The achievements included an enhanced version of fourth generation Fateh (Victory) 1D-110 missile, Armita flying laboratory, Bonyan (Foundation) 4 marine engine, Aras tactical vehicle, Vafa (Loyalty) mortar launcher as well as Shahed tapping and positioning system.

In recent years, Iran has made great achievements in its defense sector and attained self-sufficiency in producing essential military equipment and systems.

Iran has repeatedly assured other nations, especially regional neighbors, that its military might poses no threat to other countries, insisting that its defense doctrine is merely based on deterrence.

PressTV - Iran to produce new fighter aircraft, submarines, drones: Minister

 

[The SC]

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Israel would be committing suicide if it attacked Iran: MP

Iranian MP Avaz Heidarpour says Israel would be committing suicide if it launched a military strike against Iran in an attempt to stop the Islamic Republic’s nuclear energy program.

If the Zionist regime dares to attack Iran, the Islamic Republic clearly states that it cannot guarantee that even one single Zionist living in the occupied Palestinian territories will survive, Heidarpour, who is a member of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, told the Fars News Agency on Tuesday.

He said, “We have no doubt that the Zionists' claims about attacking Iran are nothing but psychological warfare.”

Heidarpour stated that Iranian missiles would target all of Israel if officials in Tel Aviv decided to attack Iran and there would be no chance for a formal apology or mediation by other countries in such a turn of events.

“The Zionists’ assessments for a 30-day war with Iran are accurate. However, the outcome will be just the opposite of what they say. Iran can bring Israel to its knees in no time, and compel the entity to plead with international organizations to broker a ceasefire,” the Iranian MP opined.

He said Iran would not waste its time and military might on a military strike against Israel, but if Israel made the blunder of attacking the country, Iran would not accept any third party’s mediation and would forcefully respond.

“The Zionists know that the power, speed, and accuracy of Iranian missiles are beyond their understanding of how to control these missiles,” Heidarpour added.

Due to Iran's anti-aircraft capabilities, Israeli missiles and fighter jets would have no chance to pose a threat to Iran, he noted.

He added that Israel’s military centers, including its air defense systems, would be completely destroyed on the very first day of the war, since they are the primary targets of Iranian missiles.

Afterwards, Iranian fighter jets would patrol the skies over Israel at leisure, he said.

PressTV - Israel would be committing suicide if it attacked Iran: MP

 

[Azatavrear]

No need for HARM since the newest AESA radars of the F-22, F-35, F-18, and F-15 can focus their beams and fry the electronics of SAM radars, aircraft, and cruise missiles.

No such thing exists, there has been studies and tests but not adopted in the field.....even if it did it won't be on all these jets.

 

[Azatavrear]

Semi- Stealth F-14s are possible but not worth it if it is too much work, radar sig is not everything in a aerial engagement, it is just an edge, plus let them know that thy are being dogged by F-14s.....if they are smart they would abandon mission.

I would think the best use of the F-14s would be to draw the attacking aircraft away from its primary mission and into a trap or where they gat forced to engage within visual range while still heavy with bombs.

 

[Mercenary]

Here is the current strength of the Iranian Air Force:

F-14 Tomcat -25
Mig29 -40
Mig27 -24
Mirage F1 -6
Chengdu F7 -25
F-5A -5
F-4 Phantom -35
HESA Azarakhsh -4
Su24 -24

Total Fighters: 188

One US Carrier operates around 90 Fighters. And they should be enough to annihilate the Iranian Air Force.

In essence, the Iranian Air Force is a non-player in any conflict between US/Israel and Iran.

 

[killerx]

all it needs is good long range radar and some BVR missile will keep the safe

 

[Abii]

Here is the current strength of the Iranian Air Force:

F-14 Tomcat -25
Mig29 -40
Mig27 -24
Mirage F1 -6
Chengdu F7 -25
F-5A -5
F-4 Phantom -35
HESA Azarakhsh -4
Su24 -24

Total Fighters: 188

One US Carrier operates around 90 Fighters. And they should be enough to annihilate the Iranian Air Force.

In essence, the Iranian Air Force is a non-player in any conflict between US/Israel and Iran.

Thank you senor obvious
any other obvious statements you wanna make?

lol

Go back to the first few pages where we discussed this issue and why Iran never wanted a half crap airforce like that of the arabs instead of a full on ancient airforce like we do now. In essense, it wouldn't have made a difference when you're going against the Americans. As a result, the money was spent on creating deterrents.

 

[Thomas]

No such thing exists, there has been studies and tests but not adopted in the field.....even if it did it won't be on all these jets.

Aviation Week

5 September 2005
Radar Becomes A Weapon
By David A. Fulghum and Douglas Barrie
Aviation Week & Space Technology


Directed energy takes an unexpected turn and surfaces as a handy antimissile device that can be built into aircraft, ship and ground-based radars
Radar is emerging as one of the key weapons--nearly all of them still shrouded by secrecy--in the Pentagon's growing arsenal of nonexplosive devices.

Knowledge that radar can produce violent effects on electronic systems is not new. More than 20 years ago, bomber aircraft radars were capable of generating enough concentrated noise jamming to burn out the valve amps (tube amplifiers) in fighters attempting an interception. The emergence over the last few years of the active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, and its ability to provide high average power for appreciable times, makes such electronically destructive devices all the more attractive and effective.

The weapons-effect utility of the AESA will provide a useful adjunct to other "nonkinetic"--not relying on explosives or impact--weapons research being done in the U.S. and in Europe. The intent is to develop an arsenal of weaponry that limits, or perhaps eliminates, collateral damage and unintended casualties, a particular concern with civilians in countries that coalition forces are trying to aid.

Arrays designed for carriage by aircraft appear to be focused on cruise missiles and self-defense against anti-radiation, home-on-jam and air-to-air missiles. The radars seem particularly effective against the latter categories because energy available to focus on the approaching missile increases as an inverse square as distance decreases.

With large ground- or sea-based AESA-type arrays, the targets are to include ballistic missile warheads, supersonic sea-skimming missiles or shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles that threaten airport operations.

Some of the airborne AESA radars, designed for X-band frequencies, use thousands of small transmitters/receivers, each a couple of inches square, that allow the array to conduct many tasks simultaneously. Those include detection of small, even stealthy targets, tracking and communications. Along with the AESA's high average power, there are also bandwidth benefits and the ability to utilize flexible waveforms.

They can also be used for "jamming," a term now encompassing weapons effects on enemy electronics from the right combination of power, waveform, frequency and pulse length. Possible AESA techniques for attacking another radar could include burning through the target radar's antenna side-lobes, filter side-lobes, or other known features of the target system. Radar specialists suggest it is reasonable to suppose this capability is already available to some fielded systems.

The AESA transmitters can also be focused on other targets to deliver bursts of X-band radio frequency energy into the vulnerable electronics of missiles--the current focus--or enemy aircraft and helicopters or computer systems. Under such assault, computers become confused and missiles lose interest in their targets.

MOREOVER, THE AESA radar is related to high-power microwave (HPM) just beginning to emerge as missile defense systems. The primary difference is that AESA radars produce a sustained pulse for microseconds over a limited frequency range to create an effect while HPM produces a one-pico-sec. pulse of much greater power over gigahertz of frequencies, says a long-time Pentagon radar specialist. A laser beam, by comparison, would have to be held on the target for several seconds.

Some industry specialists say such descriptions oversimplify the technology because both AESA radars and HPM can produce a variety of pulse lengths and bandwidths. They contend the only difference between AESA radars and HPM systems are the waveforms and RF power levels. Both systems use the same electronics technologies and those electronics are optimized for the performance needed to achieve the desired radar or HPM effect. That goal is often to confuse or damage enemy electronics.

These capabilities aren't openly discussed. Moreover, those with knowledge of the technology offer many caveats.

"It's not wise to characterize all AESA radars as potential weapons," says an aerospace industry expert in advanced radars. "Most radars are for defensive purposes only." Also, "one does not need an AESA to turn a radar into a weapon. It can be done with other technologies. High power is required, but beyond that, it's mostly a software issue.

"Wide bandwidth is needed in order to find a vulnerable frequency for the target," he says. "Purpose-built HPM systems would be better in this than most AESAs."

THE NEWLY EMERGING "HPM [devices] come in different flavors," says a second industry specialist. "It can make it uncomfortable for a human being to be in the beam by relying on high average power to heat the skin. Another is used to confuse or burn out missile seekers. The level of peak and/or average power depends on the specific technique being used to counter the threat.

"In general, high peak power is not unique to HPM [devices]," he says. "Radars also use high peak power in long-range search modes, and AESA [arrays] are used for both. The discriminators are the waveform properties and techniques, which include power, duty cycle, pulse length, etc., to counter the various threats, not the technology that goes into the AESA itself. AESA [arrays] support HPM, radar, communications and electronic warfare applications. What makes them unique are the properties of the waveforms that are transmitted."

There are AESAs fielded that operate at HF frequencies (re-locatable over the horizon radar) to millimeter waves (communications and other radar applications). The transmitter/receiver (T/R) modules for these devices can range from several feet to less that 1/4-in. square. Moreover, many frequencies beyond Xband can be exploited to produce weapons effects.

AESA radars on fighter aircraft aren't particularly suited to create weapons effects on missiles because of limited antenna size, power and field of view, a senior U.S. Air Force official says. And, while weapons effects from radars are interesting, "There's no requirement yet for the capability," at least on smaller aircraft, he says. The military's primary concern for now is high-resolution radar with moving target and synthetic aperture capabilities.

While it's easier to plug the energy-hungry system into city electrical power grids as ground-based systems or the Navy's next generation of electric-propulsion ships such as DD(X), the capability is also quickly moving into airborne systems.

A weapons capability exists in a handful of F-15Cs modified with the APG-63(V)2 radars for cruise missile defense and the latest production F/A-18E/Fs. It will soon be part of the F/A-22 and B-2 as part of their radar upgrades, and AESA is also to equip the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. HPM is eventually to be part of the Joint Unmanned Combat Air System payload, and the huge 4 X 21-ft. MP-RTIP AESA radar array is to fly on the E-10. An AESA array is also to be carried by the British Astor.

As to weapons effects, the AESA radar offers the best way to generate high, sustained power where countermeasures demand average power, the radar specialist says. However, weapons effects or countermeasures will vary depending on the target's sensitivities. Very high peak power, short duration pulse may be the best method for attacking enemy electronics. In that case, the attack might better and more cheaply be delivered by an HPM weapon. An AESA is best used where it can use its radar function to locate the target and focus its energy. It can then rapidly move to other targets and select how long it wants to dwell on each.

The radar's weapons effect is measured in watts/sq. cm. AESA arrays are more efficient and reliable since their RF and low-noise amplifiers are near the radiators so that very little energy is lost. The beam is produced by ganging the effects of thousands of lower-wattage T/R modules.

There are lots of similarities between ground-based HPM systems and AESA radars including the T/R modules. In fact, ground-based HPM is becoming affordable because the proliferations of AESA radars has driven the price of modules down.

"HPM and AESA radar are not much different," said the radar specialist. However, "HPM is not trying to be a radar. It's much simpler to concentrate the beam into a peak power pulse [since it's not busy detecting, tracking and identifying targets]. The instantaneous power it creates can burn out missile front ends [including focal planes and imagers]."

BY COMPARISON, AESA "radar uses more elaborate wave forms that focus on detection," he says. "They put more sustained energy onto enemy missiles and burn out the low noise amplifiers and receivers in a seeker." Other specialists caution this generalization isn't necessarily always true.

While HPM produces higher peak power, AESA often generates greater average power. That produces different operational and targeting strategies. For example, Raytheon's airport protection system uses infrared sensors to find the target and determine where to focus its beam. It also produces effects at longer range, possibly as much as 100 mi., because it produces powerful pulses of energy. AESA radar has the built-in ability to find and track a target, so it can be held on the target for the necessary additional microseconds needed to create its weapons effect.

Some HPM pulses are designed to be very broadband, covering "many gigahertz" of frequencies, so they are more likely to find any opening or vulnerability in a target, the radar specialist says. AESA radar has a narrower frequency range, but it uses its radar capability to identify a target, search a library for its vulnerable frequencies and then tailor the signal for the specific target.

 

[Wright]

Are the "F" fighter designations copyrighted? Can Iran produce a new fighter and call it F-25? Just for psychological effect.

 

[The SC]

Here is the current strength of the Iranian Air Force:

F-14 Tomcat -25
Mig29 -40
Mig27 -24
Mirage F1 -6
Chengdu F7 -25
F-5A -5
F-4 Phantom -35
HESA Azarakhsh -4
Su24 -24

Total Fighters: 188

One US Carrier operates around 90 Fighters. And they should be enough to annihilate the Iranian Air Force.

In essence, the Iranian Air Force is a non-player in any conflict between US/Israel and Iran.

At least 50 F-14's are operational, F-5's at least 70 are operational.
It makes no difference in confronting the US air force, somewhere else, but in the skies of Iran it will make a huge difference, since they can intercept the US planes that are busy with the air defences and EW systems.
Just try to be realistic, how many targets can the best attacking US plane acquire and counter-attack at the same time, apart from the pilots being concentrated on their main objectives... it is a scenario of hell to the US forces, if it comes only to US carriers in the Persian Gulf. Thus the US needs other bases and much more aircrafts in the region to attempt to succeed, and no Arab state is willing to do that... this time.
So the perspective of war is almost nil.

 

[Thomas]

At least 50 F-14's are operational, F-5's at least 70 are operational.
It makes no difference in confronting the US air force, somewhere else, but in the skies of Iran it will make a huge difference, since they can intercept the US planes that are busy with the air defences and EW systems.
Just try to be realistic, how many targets can the best attacking US plane acquire and counter-attack at the same time, apart from the pilots being concentrated on their main objectives... it is a scenario of hell to the US forces, if it comes only to US carriers in the Persian Gulf. Thus the US needs other bases and much more aircrafts in the region to attempt to succeed, and no Arab state is willing to do that... this time.
So the perspective of war is almost nil.

The ability to track, target and simultaneously engage several targets at once is no problem for modern fighter aircraft. And the US already has more aircraft in the area then Iran has. and thats not counting the GCC aircraft should Iran decide to try and close the straights or attack GCC countries as it has threatened to do.