Recently, Iran has once again become the focus of global media discussion, because an incident has been interpreted by many people as a precursor to a possible imminent war between the United States and Iran. The cause of the incident was a loud bang, followed by an Iranian-equipped US-made F5 fighter plane crashing on Iranian territory, killing the pilot instantly. After the accident, a large number of military personnel were urgently deployed and immediately blocked the scene.
While some suspect that the accident was caused by aging airframes, others believe the plane may have been shot down by U.S. warplanes close to the Iranian border. This raises the question, aren't the United States and Iran old enemies? Why is Iran equipped with American-made F5 fighters?
In fact, this situation stems from a special period in U.S.-Iran relations more than 50 years ago. During that period, in order to strengthen its air force, Iran purchased 166 F5 fighters from the United States, codenamed E/F, into 8 squadrons.
The F5 fighter was designed with a focus on lightweight and supersonic performance, because in the 60s of the 20th century, fighter design mainly focused on these two aspects. It features a narrow fuselage and wingfin design, with a total length of only 14.4 meters and a wingspan of 8.13 meters. This design made the aircraft very fast, but compared to its contemporaries in the MiG-21/23, the F5 was slightly clumsy in terms of air maneuverability.
Although not outstanding in terms of design, the F5's fire control and weapon systems are its biggest highlights. The F5 fighter is equipped with the APQ153 fire control radar, which has a detection range of up to 33 kilometers, and can calculate the target position and distance through a computer, and then use it for missile guidance. Although it seems that this radar is more general now, it was already at an advanced level in the 60s, surpassing the MiG fighters of that time.
In terms of weapons systems, the F5 can carry 7 hardpoints, including 5 in the belly and under the wings, and 2 on the wing tips. It mainly carries AIM9 air-to-air missiles, with a maximum range of 18 kilometers, uses infrared guidance, and has two killing modes: close bombing and fragmentation. In addition, the F5 can carry MK82/83/84 bombs and Maverick air-to-surface missiles, making it a versatile combat aircraft.
Although the Iranian Air Force now has fewer than 50 F5 fighters, after the Iran-Iraq War and years of use, these fighters are not in ideal condition. However, for Iran, the F5 is still attractive because it is cheap, lightweight and flexible, and ideal for mass manufacturing. In order to maintain its military strength, Iran developed the Xhosa fighter based on the F5 to extend the life of the F5.