UoUo
10-06-2004, 07:32 PM
The Phoenix missile, once one of the U.S. Navy’s most famous weapons, is no more. As of Sept. 30, the AIM-54 air-to-air missile has left the Navy’s operational inventory.
The Phoenix, used primarily by the F-14 Tomcat carrier-based fighter, was conceived in the 1960s as a long-range weapon to counteract waves of Soviet bombers attacking U.S. carrier battle groups. The missile’s range of more than 100 miles “gave the F-14 the greatest stand-off engagement capability of any fighter in the world,” Capt. Scott “Stewie” Stewart, the Navy’s program manager for air-to-air missile systems, said in a Naval Air Systems Command press release.
“For years, Soviet aircrews flying Badger, Bear and Backfire bombers feared the unprecedented capabilities of the Phoenix missile.”
Originally intended to be used by the F-111B fighter, the Phoenix became the Tomcat’s prime weapon when the F-14 was developed to replace the troubled F-111B program. Six missiles could be carried by a single F-14, which had the ability to guide each Phoenix onto a separate target. The missile could operate in autopilot, semi-active radar homing, or fully active radar homing modes.
Beginning in 1962, Hughes Aircraft developed the Phoenix, with Raytheon taking over when that company acquired Hughes Missile Systems in 1988.
The AIM-54A entered service in 1973 and became operational the next year. The missile and its associated AWG-9 fire control system aboard the Tomcat were closely guarded U.S. secrets, and extensive efforts were made to recover intact F-14s and AIM-54s that were lost in deep water to prevent recovery by the Soviet Union.
With the end of the Cold War and its mission of stopping mass bomber attacks on the U.S. Fleet, the Phoenix had little further use. Its electronics became increasingly difficult to maintain, and the decision to phase out the missile was made in early 2002.
The Phoenix was produced in three models, the AIM-54A, -54B and -54C. The last Phoenix, an AIM-54C, was delivered in 1993.
The last Phoenix shot came from an F-14 of Fighter Squadron 213 on July 15.
The Phoenix, used primarily by the F-14 Tomcat carrier-based fighter, was conceived in the 1960s as a long-range weapon to counteract waves of Soviet bombers attacking U.S. carrier battle groups. The missile’s range of more than 100 miles “gave the F-14 the greatest stand-off engagement capability of any fighter in the world,” Capt. Scott “Stewie” Stewart, the Navy’s program manager for air-to-air missile systems, said in a Naval Air Systems Command press release.
“For years, Soviet aircrews flying Badger, Bear and Backfire bombers feared the unprecedented capabilities of the Phoenix missile.”
Originally intended to be used by the F-111B fighter, the Phoenix became the Tomcat’s prime weapon when the F-14 was developed to replace the troubled F-111B program. Six missiles could be carried by a single F-14, which had the ability to guide each Phoenix onto a separate target. The missile could operate in autopilot, semi-active radar homing, or fully active radar homing modes.
Beginning in 1962, Hughes Aircraft developed the Phoenix, with Raytheon taking over when that company acquired Hughes Missile Systems in 1988.
The AIM-54A entered service in 1973 and became operational the next year. The missile and its associated AWG-9 fire control system aboard the Tomcat were closely guarded U.S. secrets, and extensive efforts were made to recover intact F-14s and AIM-54s that were lost in deep water to prevent recovery by the Soviet Union.
With the end of the Cold War and its mission of stopping mass bomber attacks on the U.S. Fleet, the Phoenix had little further use. Its electronics became increasingly difficult to maintain, and the decision to phase out the missile was made in early 2002.
The Phoenix was produced in three models, the AIM-54A, -54B and -54C. The last Phoenix, an AIM-54C, was delivered in 1993.
The last Phoenix shot came from an F-14 of Fighter Squadron 213 on July 15.