Product Description

So formidable an opponent did the Iraqi airforce consider the F-14 that during the Iran-Iraq war, they ordered their pilots not to engage F-14s and the presence of one in an area was usually enough to empty it of Iraqi aircraft. Officially losses where tiny; only one F-14 was lost in aerial combat (to a MiG-21), one to a control problem and one downed by a ground-to-air missile. This book looks at the F-14's Iranian combat history and includes first hand accounts from the pilots themselves. It will consider key engagements and the central figures involved, illustrating the realities, successes and failures of the Iranian air campaign.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #181499 in Books
• Published on: 2004-09-24
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 96 pages

About the Author
Born in 1970, Tom Cooper is a native of Vienna, Austria. His travels in Europe and the Middle East have enabled him to establish excellent contacts with many informed sources in Iran, whose experiences he has drawn upon in his books and articles. He has been researching the Arab and Iranian Air Forces and the Iraq-Iran war since the late 1980s, and has authored several articles for various military aviation magazines. 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. He has done extensive research on the Iran-Iraq War in particular, which he has augmented with some unique personal experiences and encounters, as well as with his exclusive collection of narratives from other veterans of the conflict.

Customer Reviews

Finally some serious information about Iranian F-14s
Being the Tomcat one of my favourites fighters of all times I had always wondered about those 79 Iranian F-14s and the real rol they played on the war, not satisfied with the classic "source of canibalized spares and sort-of-AWACS" in western explanation finally I found this book and got all the answers I wanted and more.

The book goes deep in details and facts and finally we have the whole history that proves the Tomcat was the total fighter jet, not only on the paper but also in the air. The irony is this plane reached the sumit of its career as a fighter in the hands of nowdays USA's enemy while the USNavy's F14s ended their days dropping bombs, far away from the fighter glamour they were born with, and without a real chance to prove it's qualities.

interesting to a point
while interesting i can't help but wonder whether the authors, Tom Cooper and Farzad Bishop, are biased in their repeated statements tht the Iraqi airforce was incompetent. there air defences did well in 1991 against far superior forces

Persian Cats !
Another insightful book from Osprey. As usual lots of facts and figures on F-14 ops in Iranian service. A lot of new info was presented with great pics side profiles and stats on kills etc.
If you like the Tomcat or are interested in Middle East air arms I would highly recommend this one !