The F-14 "Tomcat" is the world's first third-generation heavy fighter in service. As an opponent, the Su-27 was in service ten years later than it, and its technical level is far from as good.
Even when compared with F-15, F-14 has a stunt when it comes out. Its AN/AWG-9 radar is a masterpiece carefully crafted by Hughes. It can track twenty targets at different distances at the same time and lock six of them to strike.
Coupled with the "phoenix" ultra-long range of 150 kilometers, this heavy fighter can be called invincible before it is retired—the F-15 needs to be developed to the C model, and matched with the AIM-120D to match it. .
As for the Su-27 series, this is a bit scratching. When it was really capable of fighting, the F-22 turned out to be scumbags.
At this moment, the turbofan engine of the'Super Tomcat' is turning on afterburner to get closer to the two F-15Cs. As long as the distance is closer, the no-escape zone will be larger and the missile hit rate will be higher.
Zhou Qingfeng's mental power was integrated with Arcie, and he controlled the radar extremely quickly to lock the target, and the airborne fire control system quickly loaded the target parameters into the mounted missile.
The active radar guide head of the "phoenix" began to energize, and after a few seconds it popped out of the ventral pylon with a sound. The missile fell to a certain height, and the rocket engine ignited, emitting a long white tail flame.
It will soon be accelerated to the Mach 5 high speed, and it will attack an F-15C about fifty kilometers away.
The Yingjiang pilot was really careless, and he didn't expect to be beaten. At the moment the missile is launched, its fate is determined.
After one missile was launched, the second and third missiles were separated from the pylon one after another, and white tail flames appeared one after another, pushing the missile body forward. They lock their targets in turn until they hit.
On the radar screen, the two F-15Cs were originally intended to reversely lock the Super Tomcat without showing any weakness. But the medium-range AIM-120A they brought was not as good as the "phoenix", and the no-escape area was small and pitiful.
Three missiles were fired, Zhou Qingfeng's spirit moved. The variable swept wings of the'Super Tomcat' stretched slightly, the body of more than 20 tons turned from high speed to low speed, and turned around flexibly, then turned around and ran.
The "phoenix" is an active radar bomb that can be fired and left alone. The carrier only needs to provide the initial position of the target, and it can lock and track by itself.
Up to this moment, the two F-15Cs woke up like a dream, and they were surprised to find that they had actually become the target of being attacked. They hurriedly turned and ran afterburner desperately, trying to rush out from the'no escape zone'.
The E-3, one hundred and fifty kilometers away, was also taken aback, because the third missile came towards it—someone dared to launch a missile at Yingjiang’s AWACS.
"Turn!"
In the cabin, the officer on duty saw a small spot on the radar screen rushing towards Mach 5, and rushed into the cockpit with a heart-piercing tone.
"Turn quickly, you should be able to escape."
"Notify the base that we are under attack."
"Strong electromagnetic interference was conducted against the active radar of the'phoenix', causing it to lose its target."
The cabin of the E-3 was full of hustle and bustle, and neither the pilot nor the radar controller had encountered such a thing. They can only do some targeted evasion and defense in accordance with their usual training.
Just...
The E-3 was modified from the 707 passenger plane. Its huge fuselage of more than one hundred tons is a big dangling target. Don't talk about maneuverability.
The four TF33 engines are also in no afterburner state, so don't even think about speeding up when you use the power of milking.
After accelerating to Mach 5, the "phoenix" ran out of fuel and entered a state of gliding. But it was already as fast as lightning at this time, approaching 6,000 kilometers per hour. A distance of 150 kilometers can be reached in just two minutes.
Two-minute countdown to death!
The cruising speed of E-3 is only Mach 0.6 and the cruising altitude is 9 kilometers. The incoming'phoenix' was rushing down from a height of 15,000 meters.
The duty officer only needs to do a mental calculation to know that he can't count on the speed of E-3. He could only turn around and stare at the AWACS's own electronic countermeasure system, hoping to deceive the "phoenix".
However, active radar bombs are not easy to deceive!
With a body the size of E-3 and a high-powered radar, it is the most eye-catching target in the sky. The'phoenix' that rushed to it was fine-tuned by Arcie, and its anti-interference ability was enhanced, and the signal source was locked and not let go.
It seemed that the attacking missile was getting closer, and the personnel in the E-3 cabin gradually became hysterical. No one wants to die, but now death is approaching.
At this juncture, it is difficult for ordinary people to perform at the level of usual training.
"Sir, the two signals of'Flashing' No. 6 have disappeared." The face of a radar operator was earthy. He stood up from his display console, hoping that the duty officer would say something.
Without thinking about it, the two escort F-15Cs were killed. They were too close to the'Super Tomcat', unable to escape from the'No Escape Zone', and were torn to pieces by the 60-kilogram warhead of the'phoenix'.
But who can care for others now? The duty officer only stared at the display console of the electronic countermeasures. The airborne countermeasure system has been tuned to the "phoenix" radar band for reverse jamming.
Electronic jamming takes a while, but the high-speed bright spot on the radar screen remains unchanged.
The other group of F-15C escorted was rushing from another direction, but it was useless if they came. The officers on duty in E-3 had to calmly comfort themselves and their subordinates.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, the maximum range of the'phoenix' is only 150 kilometers. We are leaving the edge of the range quickly, maybe we will run out of energy when it comes over."
For the E-3, the maximum range of the missile is a'non-escape zone'. This time being killed by the'Super Tomcat' within a distance of 150 kilometers, life and death can only be a gamble.
Two and a half minutes passed, but the'phoenix' was still flying over. Its speed has slowed down, but there is no sign of deviation from the target.
The ground commander of Eagle Sauce in Qatar has learned of the situation on the radio and is hurriedly asking what happened.
But the officer on duty in the cabin was dumbfounded, and he and his subordinates made all efforts to save E-3. Time is racing against time, leaving him less and less room for decision-making.
"Prepare the parachute bag." The flight commander in the cockpit rushed over and shouted at the silly people in the cabin: "Open the hatch, and if you can't escape, you will parachute."
The people in the cabin were busy again, looking for their parachute bags.
However, the last time was so exhausted, the "phoenix" shot from 150 kilometers away did not show any signs of exhaustion of kinetic energy, and directly hit the "E-3".
The high-speed projectile grazed the back of the early warning aircraft, and the proximity fuze detonated a 60-kilogram warhead. Thousands of blasting fragments formed a ring-shaped cutting blade, breaking the body of'E-3'.
The 100-ton early-warning aircraft immediately emitted black smoke, the two engines on the right side caught fire instantly, and the nose descended as soon as it fell. The pilot in the cockpit tried hard to control the flight attitude, but this was no longer helpful.
"Parachute!" The pilot could only make the final decision, but when he turned around and entered the cabin. The skylight has been opened in the cabin, a large number of instruments and equipment have been torn apart, and the crew suffered heavy casualties.
At noon that day, the news spread, and the world was once again attracted by the latest Gulf situation.
Saddam staying in Baghdad received news one after another.
"The Persian'Tomcats' fired missiles at our enemies."
"Ha..., those cowards dared to do it."
"The evil enemy lost two F-15s and one E-3."
"Ha..., brilliant results. Salute to the pilots who achieved such an achievement!"
"The fighter plane that caused heavy damage to the enemy landed on our airport in Baghdad."
"Huh...? Who is so wicked? This time I have to pull us into the water."