The Grumman F-14 Tomcat dominated the skies between 1974 and 2006, as well as pop culture, thanks to the movie "Top Gun." In its time, it was on the bleeding edge of technology, with AIM-54 Phoenix missiles and a sophisticated radar system that, together, could shoot down enemies up to 100 miles away. Only one country besides the United States has ever flown the F-14, and it's not one of our current close allies. The only country we ever shared the F-14 with was, of all places, Iran.
The U.S. has banned supplying F-14 parts to Iran since at least the early 1980s, but Iran has not had much choice but to keep these old birds in the air anyway. Iran had hoped to update its air force with former Soviet aircraft in the 1990s, and did purchase small numbers of Su-24s and MiG-29s. However, pressure from the U.S. persauded the former Soviet republics to pull out of deals to sell more planes, thwarting Iran's plans to replace its older aircraft. While the Iranian Air Force does have more than 300 fighter jets, they are all outdated designs compared to modern fleets.
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Iran was a very different place in the 1970s. The White Revolution modernization program had thoroughly changed the country, with redistribution of wealth from the rich to the poor, literacy programs, and women's liberation. The Shah of Iran was not only friendly with the West, but also a pilot, and recognized the need for air power. He negotiated a $2 billion deal to buy 80 F-14A aircraft, 633 Phoenix missiles, and training in the U.S. and Iran for pilots, radar intercept officers, and maintenance personnel.
Everything changed during the 1979 Iranian Revolution, which created the Islamic republic we know today. The shah fled to the U.S. and protesters took 66 hostages at the U.S. embassy, demanding his return. Needless to say, the U.S. was no longer on friendly terms with Iran. It imposed sanctions, and the two countries have been occasionally shooting at each other ever since. On top of that, many trained pilots, radar officers, and maintenance personnel fled the country. Technicians sabotaged some of the Phoenix missiles left behind. Those who remained were arrested, and some killed, simply for being part of the shah's military.
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When the Iran-Iraq war started in 1980, Iran was highly motivated to put the F-14 back in the air, despite its American origins and the resulting supply chain issues. Some planes were cannibalized to keep others flying, but this would only get them so far. The Iranian Air Force declared a self-sufficiency jihad, determined to reverse-engineer and re-create simpler parts like brakes and tires.
More sophisticated electronic parts remained elusive, so Iran turned to more devious means. Israeli smugglers were one early source, buying parts from the U.S. and reselling them at inflated prices. Despite explicit trade embargoes, the U.S. sold F-14 parts to Iran during the Iran-Contra affair. And as time went on, Iran made deals with independent arms dealers to get what it needed. For a time, it was surprisingly easy for arms dealers to buy surplus parts directly from the U.S. government, then sell them to Iran. When the U.S. decommissioned the F-14 in 2006, many were dismantled and shredded to prevent hardware from ending up in Iranian hands.
Iran was said to have up to 10 F-14s in early 2024, but it was unknown how many were airworthy. Israeli Air Force footage confirms that two of these were destroyed in June 2025 in drone attacks. After all these years flying against the odds, time may have finally run out for the Iranian F-14 Tomcat. Maybe Iran will consider our previous Dodge Viper proposal as a replacement.
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