The Iranian Air Force dispatched four fighter jets, but in fact only two Xiaolongs were actually responsible for combat missions, while the remaining two F-4s were used as cover to support the two main fighters after entering close combat.
The Iranian version of the Xiaolong for export has a total of 7 pylons. Since this time it is an interception mission within a small combat radius, the internal oil combat radius of the Xiaolong is more than 600 kilometers, which makes it unnecessary to mount auxiliary fuel tanks. Therefore, except for the pylon under the belly that does not carry weapons, the other six pylons are all equipped with air-to-air missiles. On the wingtips are two PL-9 close-range combat projectiles, and under the wings are a total of four PL-12A mid-range interceptor projectiles on the left and right.
"The target is locked, the distance is 45 kilometers, it has entered the no-escape area, PL-12 is launched!"
An FC-1 took the lead in launching two PL-12s. These medium-range air-to-air missiles are often dropped from the pylon, ignited in mid-air, and then directly attack the opponent.
With a speed of up to Mach 4 and an overload of 38G, the PL-12 rushed towards its enemy. Immediately afterwards, another FC-1 also seized the opportunity to launch a total of two PL-12 rounds at the opponent. Because it had already entered this distance, the medium-range missiles could only have two rounds of launch opportunities at most, because the aircraft flew It moves very quickly, so it takes almost a few minutes for both sides to be within sight.
The four air-to-air missiles with active radar guidance found their enemies one after another. When the radar warning device on the Super Etendard attack aircraft emitted a sharp beep, the Iraqi Air Force pilots who had not yet discovered the enemy were shocked. The Iraqi pilots who can fly only 5 Super Etendard attack aircraft are actually the best in the Iraqi Air Force. However, faced with such a huge gap, they are simply unable to resist.
A Super Etendard and a MiG-23 were shot down directly. However, the pilot of the Super Etendard was very lucky. After being hit, he decisively pressed the ejection button. A white parachute on the horizon slowly slid towards sea ??surface. It's just that in this area of ??water where Iraq's power is not yet reachable, even if he ejects and escapes, the possibility of him returning to his country is slim.
And the MiG-23 was directly blown up. The pilot may have died or lost consciousness when he was hit, and fell into the sea with the plane.
The death of his partner in the blink of an eye greatly stimulated the remaining two Iraqi fighter planes. However, they did not take any ruthless measures of retaliation. Instead, they immediately turned and fled north, hoping to escape the pursuit of the Iranian Air Force.
At this time, the pilot of the MiG-23 was very unloyal and flew his fighter plane to Mach 2, completely ignoring the super flag that could only reach Mach 1 at most, and fled home without hesitation.
"Target locked, launch!"
If the opponent's will to resist is stronger and they charge forward a little further, the two sides may still have a chance to enter a dogfight. Of course, at that time, the FC-1 Xiaolong still has superior maneuverability than either the Super Etendard or the MiG-23. and flexibility. But now the Iraqi pilots turned around and ran away without thinking, eliminating the only threat from the four Iranian Air Force fighters.
The two Xiaolongs also drove at high speed and rushed straight towards the opponent. One Xiaolong met the slow Super Etendard. The pilot bit the tail of the scurrying attack aircraft without any hindrance and selected PL. -9 is the weapon, press the launch button, and a PL-9 will be shot out, chasing the infrared trace behind the butt of the super flag. The Super Etendard also wanted to make a rolling action, but such a close distance was the no-escape zone of the PL-9 missile. The combat bomb suddenly hit the rear half of the attack aircraft and lost it. The Super Etendard, which had lost its engine, plunged headlong into the sea while puffing out black smoke.
I don¡¯t know if the ejection seat malfunctioned at this time, and the Iraqi pilot was not seen ejecting for a long time, but the Red Alert pilot did not show any mercy to them.
Although the other Xiaolong chasing the MiG-23 is not as fast as the MiG-23, the distance between the two is at most 30 kilometers. The PL-9 has a range of only 15 kilometers, but the PL-12A said it has no range at all. pressure. Without any suspense, the Xiaolong pilot launched a PL-12. The MiG-23 was not even equipped with a radar warning device. He did not know that he was finished until he was hit.
This air battle finally ended with a 4:0 victory by the Iranian Air Force. The two Xiaolongs each scored two kills. Instead, the F-4 following the cover wanted to take credit during the air battle, but it completely changed. Xiaolong's foil.
The Iranian Air Force used early warning aircraft to efficiently intercept Iraqi fighter jets preparing to carry Exocet anti-ship missiles, which also greatly boosted the morale of the Iranian army and convinced some air force personnel that the business of exchanging FC-1s for F-14s with China was valuable. .
It¡¯s just that although everyone knows that this is just the first performance of Xiaolong wearing an Iranian jersey, Xiaolong soon became the most dazzling star in the Iranian Air Force, almost single-handedly turning the Iranian Air Force¡¯s face against the Iraqi Air Force decline, especially when the second batch of 12 Xiaolongs arrived in Iran, the Iranians gained more combat capabilities.force.
Subsequently, in the four air battles with the Iraqis, Xiaolong participated in each of them, and with the assistance of the ZDK-03 early warning aircraft, it shot down 7 Iraqi fighter jets and damaged 3 in succession, without losing any of its own. The astonishing combat efficiency and level of the Xiaolong have also attracted the attention of the air forces of other countries around the world, especially Pakistan, which has a military procurement tradition with China and is in urgent need of stronger fighter jets. It is even more concerned about this matter.
Last year, in the second half of 1984, Pakistan Air Force Lieutenant General Jamal went to Beijing to discuss with Tujia how to improve the J-7M, using Western avionics and Western power, with air intakes on both sides of the nose, and maneuverability A fighter with good performance, long range and certain ground attack capabilities.
At this time, when the J-7M fighter jet jointly developed by Chengdu Aircraft Corporation and British Marconi was successful, almost all ambitious aircraft manufacturing companies in the world saw that the J-7M, which was small, cheap and had guaranteed combat power, would become a It is a hot-selling fighter jet (this is indeed the case. The J-7 can be called China¡¯s export version of the national fighter jet and is listed among the top ten fighter jets in the world). Therefore, they have expressed to Tujia that they will further cooperate to improve the J-7M to adapt to the market.
After research, Cheng Fei prepared a plan called "J-7CP". However, in early 1985, a little butterfly named Qi Yiming jumped out, flapped its wings a few times, and directly wiped out the entire Rabbit family. The temple was blown down by a typhoon, and Cheng Fei was among those blown down.
Originally, Chengfei¡¯s main job was to continuously improve the J-7 series and use it in foreign trade, while accumulating technology to develop new fighters for the country. But Qi Yiming sent a group of engineers to Chengdu in March with several trucks of materials and a J-10 prototype. Therefore, in addition to making money in foreign trade projects, Chengdu Aircraft Company devoted all its energy to absorbing new technologies. Originally, two Pakistani air force lieutenant colonels came to Chengdu Aircraft for inspection in March, but Chengdu Aircraft could not care less about doing any more J-7CP and blocked them back in the name of company rectification.
The Pakistani side was puzzled and expressed disappointment. In the end, they did not go to Chengdu to continue discussing the progress of the project, but began to consider other issues.
It was at this time that the Pakistani Army who went to the 617 Factory heard about the replacement of fighter jets between Tujia and Persian Camel in Beijing, and also heard the name of the FC-1 Xiaolong aircraft for the first time. At that time, the people in the Army did not pay special attention to it and just informed the Air Force.
Air Force Lieutenant General Jamal was greatly surprised. He originally thought that he was aware of the progress of the Tujia aviation industry, but he did not expect that the Chinese brothers actually used their own-made aircraft to persuade the Iranians who were currently at war to use the F-14 like this Replace them with high-end fighter jets. But even so, Jamal was not in a hurry to contact China. Instead, he went to the United States to discuss the introduction of other technologies with the United States.
Before he arrived in the United States, the United States began to spread rumors that China would purchase the first batch of 30 F-14 Tomcat fighter jets from the United States, and would also conduct a major upgrade based on the Tomcats with the United States. Jamal has had many dealings with Grumman, and knows that these defense contractors are all merciless. If they agree to cooperate with the Chinese, it will definitely be profitable.
At about this time, the air battle between the Iranian and Iraqi air forces began to appear in the news. At this time, Qi Yiming began to engage in trivial matters again. He directly passed the photos of the FC-1 through Grumman's relationship. Some major news media in the United States even sent CNN a video of the Xiaolong test flight. So the Americans realized for the first time that the technological strength of the Chinese who wanted to buy the F-14 from them should not be underestimated. The combat power of the fighter they designed seemed to be more powerful than the F-16 Shenma.
There is a little incident here. Pellehak, the president of Grumman International, has expressed great interest in China's FC-1 and believes that the two sides can also cooperate on this project.
Of course Qi Yiming understands the secret of Grumman. Grumman, who is not doing well in business, can just dig out a little money and do whatever it takes. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that China cannot get a $10 million JF-10 Dragon fighter jet. , the combat capability is stronger than that of F-16A\/B (at this time, F-16 does not have AIM-120, and only has a semi-active AIM-7 with a range of about 40 kilometers, which is not the same as the later modifications), and the price is only F About half of -16, its export market will be absolutely bright.
??The F-14 project with China is enough for Grumman to take a breath and come back to life, but if we can work with China on the Xiaolong project, it will definitely make Grumman prosperous again.
It¡¯s just that Qi Yiming¡¯s IQ is sound. He can obviously do everything by himself, but he will only allow others to take part in it if he is mentally ill. Therefore, Qi Yiming was conciliatory and expressed to Grumman that cooperation could be discussed, but he did not carry out any substantive work, and would not even tell which aircraft manufacturing company the Xiaolong was produced by.
Grumman also noticed that Qi Yiming was not very enthusiastic.?They didn't have any good way to persuade Qi Yiming to change his mind. However, these guys with limited moral integrity focused on the PL-12A air-to-air missile that FC-1 shined in air combat. This missile is much smaller than the Phoenix, and although its range has been reduced by half, its actual combat performance is only as strong as it is.
¡°If Qi Yiming can obtain the technology of this kind of missile and then produce his own copycat version and sell it to the United States, it will be a good deal.