Product Description

Different versions of the jet have provided the backbone of the frontline strength of the Iranian air force since the 1970s, and whole generations of Iranian pilots and ground personnel have been trained to fly and maintain them. Indeed, the type bore the brunt of active combat operations during the long war with Iraq. Iranian F-4 Phantom IIs were also some of best equipped examples ever exported by the USA. Some Iranian Phantom II pilots gathered immense experience on the type, flying it in combat for more than ten years. This book removes the veil of secrecy surrounding Iranian Phantom II operations since the war with Iraq.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #289377 in Books
• Published on: 2003-07-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 96 pages

Review
Good quality information on the activities of the Imperial Iranian Air Force during its operations against the Iraqi air force is, by its nature, extremely hard to come by. Now the team of Iranian-born Farzad Bishop and Tom Cooper, the latter an acknowledged expert in the field of Middle Eastern air warfare operations, has put this right to a large extent with this unbelievable book centred in Iranian F-4 operations. No. 37 in Osprey's acclaimed Combat Aircraft series shatters a number of Western misconceptions about the Iranian and their air combat operations. Providing the type of first-hand account that we have become accustomed to in this series and setting that account in its correct context, it leaves the reader with a new understanding of the Iranian crews and their abilities. These were well trained resourceful crews flying well maintained, well equipped jets. Tales of RF-4E operations at 30 ft and more than 600 mph and innumerable air combats, show the Iranians as a force to be reckoned with. This is a superb addition to the series. --Scale Aircraft Modelling

About the Author
Tom Cooper is a native of Vienna, Austria. He has been researching the Arab and Iranian air forces and the Iran-Iraq war since the late 1980s, and has written several articles on the subject. This is his first book for Osprey. Farzad Bishop is a well-known Iranian-born aviation analyst and writer who has spent many years researching the airpower aspects of the recent Middle Eastern conflicts. His articles and observations have appeared in both Iranian and international military aviation journals.